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Staff Report

Cincinnati State Technical and Community College will co-host a seminar next month concerning Ohio's fast-evolving energy industry and the state's financial incentives to retool its manufacturing plants and retrain workers to help Ohio companies take advantage of new opportunities in advanced energy production.

Titled "Accelerating the Advanced Energy Supply Chain in Ohio,'' the seminar will be held Jan. 8 at the Sharonville Convention Center. The target audience: manufacturers interested in the advanced energy market. To that end, the seminar will include presentations by representatives of Cincinnati State, the Ohio Department of Development, the Ohio Air Quality Development Authority and the City of Sharonville.

The seminar's title is a salute to the energy bill passed by the Ohio General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. Ted Strickland in May, 2008. It requires Ohio's investor-owned electric utilities to generate at least 25 percent of their retail sales from "advanced energy sources'' by 2025. The law also stipulates that at least 12.5 percent of their retail electric supply come from renewable sources.

Because of this mandate, and because of the emerging commercial demand for alternative energy sources and energy conservation expertise, Cincinnati State has been developing a curriculum devoted to energy efficiency and renewable energy.

In addition to traditional programs and courses at its Clifton main campus, the college is offering specialized training to corporate customers through its Workforce Development Center in Evendale. The ambition is to serve companies and workers who want to capitalize on these potential markets.

At the Jan. 8 seminar, Larry Feist, program chairman of the energy efficiency and renewable energy program at Cincinnati State, will discuss training opportunities available through the college, as well as the available "ready to work'' workforce newly graduated from Cincinnati State.

The seminar will also include presentations concerning Ohio's Advanced Energy Job Stimulus Program; its Industrial Efficiency "EnVinta'' Program; and other state funded grant programs available to companies that want to plug into wind, solar, biomass and biofuels and other renewable energy production and supply chains.

The seminar is free and open to the public, but advance registration is required. To register, follow this link:

http://development.ohio.gov/AdvancedEnergySupply/