23rd EU PVSEC Closing Session: 2008 Becquerel Prize Awarded

[Valencia, Spain]

Mechtild Rothe becomes the first woman awarded the Becquerel Prize.

After Conference General Chairman Daniel Lincot kicked off the 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition (EU PVSEC) closing session, the 2008 Becquerel Prize for Outstanding Merits in Photovoltaics was awarded to Mechtild Rothe (Deutsch) by Professor Dr. Adolf Goetzberger, Chairman of the Becquerel Prize Committee, and Dr. Wolfgang Palz.

Mechtild Rothe is Vice President of the European Parliament where she has been a Member since 1984 and belongs to the German SPD (Social Democratic Party or Sozialdemokratischen Partei Deutschlands). Ms. Rothe has been a longtime champion for renewables and photovoltaics in the European Parliament, and her accomplishments include leading the successful effort to establish the 3 GWp (GigaWatt-peak) by 2010 target for photovoltaics in the European Union.

Per this bio:

“Mechtild Rothe was e.g. Rapporteur in the EP for the Directive on the promotion of electricity produced from renewable energy sources (2001/77) and Rapporteur of the Directive on energy services and energy efficiency.”

Today, Ms. Rothe is leading the opposition to a “harmonized” European wide green certificate trading system in lieu of and undermining the successful Feed-in Tariff model for fostering and scaling renewable energy technologies to compete with entrenched and subsidized legacy conventional energies such as fossil fuels and nuclear.

In her acceptance speech, Ms. Rothe called for an EU Treaty for Renewable Energy Sources to displace the Euratom Treaty in the 21st century. She also trumpeted the German initiative to create an International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA):

to provide practical advice and support for industrialized and developing countries seeking to expand their renewable energy sectors, and to work toward improved regulatory frameworks.

Also serving as President of EUFORES (European Forum for Renewable Energy Sources) and Vice-President of EUROSOLAR e.V. (The European Association for Renewable Energy), Ms. Rothe said the prize had given her “renewed energy” for the fight.

Next up from the 23rd EU PVSEC closing session will be the conference technical highlights.