News Updates

Lubbock: Leading the way on Texas' energy economy

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal
By David Nance
Sunday, August 16, 2009

Original Article

Move over California, Texas is the trendsetter in alternative energy. And much of the credit should go to Lubbock and Texas Tech University.

Earlier this year, I helped create the Innovate Texas Foundation to bring together inventors, investors, institutions and other interested parties in Texas' future economy.

To ensure a strong economy in Texas for decades to come, we are focusing on several key industry sectors including: advanced technologies, aerospace and defense, information technologies, life sciences, media and arts, petroleum and chemicals, and energy.

The last sector mentioned is what has Lubbock well positioned to deliver a strong economy for its residents and the state for years to come. As you certainly know, the energy industry plays a key role in the Texas economy, employing nearly 375,000 people who earned more than $35 billion in total wages in 2006.

The nationwide push toward alternative energy as an economic driver has sparked a new level of innovation and collaboration throughout the state and Lubbock is a strong example.

Even as we face a challenging economic environment, collaborative innovation in West Texas, especially Lubbock, is paving the way for economic well-being and job creation by taking Texas' expertise and resources in the energy sector into the 21st Century.

Of course, Texas has the long been an innovative leader in energy development, dating back several decades in every part of Texas from the Gulf Coast to the Texas plains.

But even with the traditional sources of energy, namely oil and gas, tightening up in the coming decades based on most research, Texas' leadership position in energy innovation doesn't appear to have an end in sight. Lubbock and its West Texas neighbors deserve much of the credit.

Discovering and developing both traditional and renewable energy resources is paramount to the future of the energy industry in Texas and abroad. Texas has the intellectual and technical expertise to being an innovative leader and growth generator in several renewable energy sources ranging from solar and wind to geothermal and biofuels technology.

One of the foremost leaders in sustainable technology and energy, Dr. Albert Esser, who has been a senior executive for multiple, global and energy and technology initiatives at General Electric, Hilti, Emerson, Eaton and Dell, recently joined Innovate Texas to chair our Sustainable Technologies Committee.

Dr. Esser and I, along with our staff, met with Lubbock's senior city, region and university leaders to talk about energy and other major sectors for growth and job creation.

The foundation for our conversation was simple: innovative thinking and sound investments in alternative energy have built Texas' profile beyond oil and gas to rank the state first in both wind energy and biofuels production, beating out California and other states perhaps more known for alternative energy.

And the state's third-place showing in solar energy is steadily on the rise. One study estimated Texas would get more than 10 percent of all new jobs and investments in solar technologies by 2015, including an estimated 5,000-plus manufacturing jobs to the tune of $4.5 billion.

The push toward alternative fuels provides a great case study on how West Texas will play a key role in the state's economy for years to come.

A 2008 energy report by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts pointed out several initiatives across the state that are demonstrating the emphasis on alternative fuels and West Texas is not to be overlooked.

Similarly, a recent story in The Wall Street Journal was titled, "Big, Big Solar Coming to West Texas." For many of us here in Texas, especially those of us whom keep up with the energy sector, the story wasn't a news flash as much as it was a sign that West Texas will be a major factor in maintaining a strong economy and job creation.

To spur on this innovation and ensure the investments being made are leveraged across the state, Innovate Texas Foundation is making sure the right people are in place to match the research ingenuity with political and corporate backing.

In our meetings with Chancellor Kent Hance and top research and economic development leaders from City Hall, Texas Tech, and the region's top business and economic development leaders, we were further impressed by the collaboration taking place in Lubbock.

The road map to the 21st Century economy in Texas is teamwork and innovation, and West Texas is poised to maintain a leadership role in global alternative energy and in developing the standards defining the future of the sector.

From the mayor's desk to the Texas Tech laboratories on the campus and in the field, Lubbock is demonstrating that collaboration and innovation, above all else, will ensure we remain a leader in alternative energy both nationally and globally.