Media Advisory: Energy Officials from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal to Visit UB Technology Incubator

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A delegation of energy officials from four South Asian countries will visit the University at Buffalo Technology Incubator on Friday afternoon to learn about UB's efforts to create jobs and support the growth of high-tech businesses in Western New York.

The visit, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development and hosted by the U.S. Energy Association, will take place starting at 2 p.m. in Room 206/208 at the incubator at 1576 Sweet Home Road in Amherst. Activities will include a tour, a brief discussion on the benefits of business incubation, and short presentations by incubator companies whose work has implications for the energy and clean-tech industries.

To make arrangements for attending, members of the media should contact Charlotte Hsu in UB's Office of University Communications at chsu22@buffalo.edu or 510-388-1831.

Delegates in attendance are scheduled to include two energy economists from India's Bureau of Energy Efficiency; a sustainable energy development official from Bangladesh; representatives from Bhutan's Department of Energy and the Bhutan Power Corporation; and representatives from Nepal's Ministry of Energy and the Nepal Electricity Authority. All are in Buffalo Niagara to attend an American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy's conference in Niagara Falls this week.

The UB Technology Incubator, run by UB's Office of Science Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach (STOR), supports the creation of new technology-based businesses by providing affordable business services to entrepreneurs.

The incubator has assisted dozens of tenant and client companies that have employed hundreds of people and gone on to launch successful products and services. Its programs also include Directed Energy, a New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)-funded incubator program that fosters the growth of Western New York renewable energy businesses.

"The world has an energy problem, and solving it will require conservation, new technologies and businesses offering much needed goods and services," says Martin Casstevens, director of Directed Energy and business formation and commercialization manager for STOR. "Business incubators help people shape strong, viable ideas into growing businesses. These businesses are an important part of a competitive, knowledge-based economy and, increasingly, are the 'feedstock' of larger companies that have found traditional R&D to be too expensive."

The U.S. Agency for International Development South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy (SARI/E) program, which is sponsoring the South Asian delegation's visit to STOR, promotes energy security in South Asia through three focus areas: cross-border energy trade, energy market formation, and regional clean energy development. Through these activities, SARI/Energy facilitates more efficient regional energy resource utilization, works toward transparent and profitable energy practices, mitigates the environmental impacts of energy production, and increases regional access to energy. SARI/Energy countries include Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.