Maribel Cruz-Brown

Maribel Cruz-Brown, the senior vice president for customer solutions at the New York Power Authority, will be a featured speaker at the Retool’24 Conference on June 11 at the Chautauqua Harbor Hotel.

The one-day conference will concentrate on clean energy sector opportunities for small and medium manufacturers and is being organized by the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities.

Additional presenting sponsors are NextCorps, a Rochester-area business development organization, and Scale for ClimateTech and SecondMuse, two of its programs focused on commercializing clean technologies and solutions. All three groups work with entrepreneurs and startups to assist with their development in advanced manufacturing.

Cruz-Brown’s responsibilities at NYPA include working with municipal entities and state agencies to identify comprehensive clean energy solutions and service offerings to the public and the business sectors its serves. Her work blends well with the conference focus on clean energy opportunities. Cruz-Brown will speak about NYPA’s economic development programs allocating cost-competitive hydropower to foster job creation, retention and capital investment in New York State.

The NYPA executive has served in a number of positions at the Power Authority, including Vice President of Economic Development and Key Account Management and as a Project Director. Her appearance is part of the noontime agenda for Retool’24.

Jamestown BPU General Manager David L. Leathers noted the importance of NYPA to this region’s economic development efforts.

“I am pleased that Maribel Cruz-Brown can attend our Retool’24 event and speak about the importance of renewable energy for advanced manufacturing in our region. She has been part of critical discussions and policy-making decisions at NYPA about economic development initiatives that include allocations of hydropower,” Leathers said.

Leathers pointed to the decision of Electrovaya to locate its first US production facility in the town of Ellicott due to low-cost renewable power from the BPU and an allocation of hydropower from NYPA as one reason to explore the topic further. Electrovaya’s first US plant will be located in the former Acu-Rite building in the Joseph Mason Industrial Park, just outside of Jamestown. Assembly operations are expected to commence in 2025 with full production planned for 2026. Employment could reach 200 at that plant.

“This is a great example of organizations working together to help with the region’s economic revitalization,” he added.

Leathers said he is pleased with the other conference presenters and the overall agenda for the June 11th event.

“We are looking forward to an exciting and valuable day of information-sharing for our attendees.”

Three business leaders will be featured on the agenda as “Success Stories in Clean Energy.” They include Jon M. Williams, CEO of Viridi, an advanced battery/energy storage manufacturer in Buffalo; Ethan Brewer, master electrician and co-founder of Stepwise, and Lee Gilmore, general manager of Electrovaya’s US operation.

Viridi is located on the east side of Buffalo and produces lithium-ion battery packs for industrial and commercial use. Stepwise is a startup company that won $1 million in last fall’s 43 North Competition in Buffalo. Their product enables electrification technologies to be added to any home, regardless of panel capacity. Stepwise units have been rolled out in parts of the New England states.

In addition to these speakers, there will be panel discussions on supply chain opportunities in clean energy, as well as on the availability of resources through the national Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) to create clean energy success stories, and assistance available to companies looking to manage increasing energy challenges.

A vendor showcase featuring a number of companies and organizations linked to clean energy opportunities, will round out the conference agenda.

Pre-registration is required for the event. The registration site is: Retool24Event.eventbrite.com More information is available by contacting the Jamestown BPU’s Business Development Coordinator Ellen Ditonto at 716-661-1686 or email businessdev@jamestownbpu.com.