Fred Butler, a former commissioner on the New Jersey
Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) and now the chief of regulatory affairs for Petra Solar in South Plainfield, NJ, has been appointed to the U.S. Department of Energy’s Electricity Advisory Committee.

The 27-member panel advises the DOE on modernizing the nation’s electricity infrastructure, ensuring that system is secure from terrorist attacks or natural disaster, and maintaining a diverse and stable supply of reliable energy. 
Its members come from a variety of backgrounds, including state government, the energy industry, environmentalism and consumer advocacy.

During his 11 years on the NJBPU, Butler was an active member of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners. He chaired the Water, International Relations and Ad Hoc Global Climate Change Committees and consecutively served as the Association’s Second Vice President, First Vice President and President.

Petra Solar is the pioneer of SunWave™ systems, pole-mounted, distributed solar generation system that has attracted $54 million in private capital since 2007. The company is implementing a $200 million contract with PSE&G, New Jersey’s largest utility, for the installation of  200,000 of its solar cells on treet light and utility poles in 300 New Jersey municipalities. To fulfill the PSE&G contract, Petra Solar has built a workforce that has grown from 15 employees in the spring of 2009 to more than 140 employees, almost a ten-fold increase.

The company also is partnering with Atlantic City Electric on a demonstration project featuring solar photovoltaic systems mounted on utility poles in Cape May Point and Ocean City.

In September, Sandia National Laboratories awarded Petra Solar a $3 million Solar Energy Grid Integration Systems contract as part of the U.S. Department of Energy Solar Energy Technologies Program.

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