The University of Minnesota is announcing its partnership with a new state program aimed at expanding the electricity industry.
The University's Travis Thul says the launch of the Minnesota Center for Electrification Opportunity has gained several major corporate partners including Toro and Polaris. Those come in large part because research shows Minnesota is a industry leader.
"Minnesota in particular is a national and world leader in the electrification space and the list of industrial partners goes on and on and on," says Thul. "To really be successful, we need to work together as a collaborating technology cluster."
The inaugural debut for the initiative will be the Electroposium at the the McNamara Center on the Twin Cities Campus October 9.
This first-of-its-kind event will serve as a multimodal platform, combining elements of a recruitment event, technology demonstration exposition, training seminar, and long-term planning forum. Students from regional high schools, the Minnesota State system, the University of Minnesota, and other universities and colleges will have the invaluable opportunity to attend the Electroposium at no charge.
“The conversion of fossil fuel technologies to electric and hybrid power systems promises to be a decades-long process requiring enormous talent and organization,” said Allison Hubel, Director of TLI. “MN CEO is going to be a very important player in building the electrification infrastructure in this state.”
Across the United States, billions of dollars are being invested in electrification innovation and infrastructure as the industry changes. The program is hoping to reskill technical professionals and inspire the next generation to pursue the education needed to succeed in the electric future.