8:15 a.m., April 9, 2010----A delegation from the Korea Energy Economics Institute (KEEI) was on campus Monday, March 22, to sign a research agreement between the institute and the University of Delaware's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy (CEEP), extending a working relationship between the two that dates back nearly 21 years.

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The research contract, titled “Global and Regional Prospects for a Secure and Green Energy Economy,” specifies joint projects to be carried out between KEEI and CEEP during fiscal year 2011, with the option of extending the contract to multiple years.

Through the agreement, CEEP will receive $470,000 to conduct research related to energy, climate and the sustainable energy utility (SEU), a new model for developing energy efficiency and alternative energy projects created at CEEP.

Delaware is the first state in the nation to implement an SEU.

Washington, D.C., has also recently adopted an SEU, and the model is currently being investigated for adoption by several other jurisdictions in and beyond the United States. KEEI is evaluating the SEU model for South Korea, as well.

“We are happy to build on our long-term relationship with CEEP and the University of Delaware,” said KEEI president and CEO Ki-Yual Bang at the signing ceremony. “We want to be able to try the sustainable energy utility idea in Korea. The combination of analyzing energy policies and their economic impacts is why this partnership is so important. It is essential to develop good policies and to ensure that they are widely used around the world to encourage what our country's president has termed 'green growth'.”

The contract also specifies that CEEP, in collaboration with KEEI, will organize an international conference and publish a book based on CEEP's research and selected articles presented at the conference.

John Byrne, Distinguished Professor of Energy and Climate Policy and director of CEEP, observed that “the project is a terrific opportunity for our University to participate on the world stage in formulating the path to a low-carbon and high-quality way of life.”

Article by Beth Chajes
Photo by Ambre Alexander