NECEC (Northeast Clean Energy Council and NECEC Institute) tonight announced the winners of the 2018 Green Tie Gala Awards, honoring BlueWave Solar, XL, and Clean Energy Ventures for their leadership and contributions to the region’s leading clean energy economy.

“The need for clean economy solutions is driving significant changes in the clean energy industry,” said NECEC President Peter Rothstein. “We are proud to honor three companies tonight at the forefront of this transformation. Congratulations to the winners for their contributions of innovative business models, leading technologies, and deployment of clean energy in our region.”

2018 Green Tie Gala Company Award Winners & Finalists:

Startup Supporter of the Year Winner: Clean Energy Ventures

2018 Startup Supporter of the Year Finalists:

• Fraunhofer TechBridge
• Thorne Sparkman, Slater Technology Fund

Emerging Company of the Year: XL

2018 Emerging Company of the Year Finalists:

• EnergySage
• Pika Energy

Clean Energy Company of the Year: BlueWave Solar

2018 Clean Energy Company of the Year Finalists:

• Borrego Solar
• Enel

NECEC’s 11th Annual Green Tie Gala was held at the Seaport Hotel in Boston and brought together more than 400 business leaders and stakeholders in the clean energy industry, including company CEOs, government officials, service providers, academics, venture investment firms, labor and large commercial end-users, and area utilities. Enel X CEO Mike Storch introduced the awards ceremony with remarks on how the industry at large, including Enel X, is transforming to drive clean economy solutions. He also presented the Emerging Company of the Year award.

The event included a speaking program kicked off by Avangrid Networks CEO Bob Kump, followed by a keynote conversation between AVANGRID, Inc. CEO Jim Torgerson and Vineyard Wind CEO and Copenhagen Offshore Partners co-CEO Lars Pedersen. Moderated by NECEC Executive Vice President, the conversation explored opportunities and challenges facing the offshore wind industry and how to build successful partnership models to advance the sector.

“We’re trying to build a new industry in the United States — one with tremendous potential, but we’re still very early,” said AVANGRID, Inc. CEO Jim Torgerson. “As this industry gets off the ground, there are long-term economic opportunities available, and the competition to go first or be first will deliver jobs and supply chain benefits for decades, as well as increasingly competitive energy prices for customers.”

NECEC’s 11th Annual Green Tie Gala was sponsored by the following companies and organizations. Thank you to our sponsors.

Platinum Sponsors: Avangrid and Enel

Gold Sponsors: Ameresco, CLEAResult, Gallagher, MassCEC, and Wells Fargo

Silver Sponsors: E4TheFuture, Eversource, National Grid, Natixis, Schneider Electric, Solect Energy, and Veolia