Insight
How US policy shifts could dampen green tech congress business
AS US POLICY SHIFTS AWAY FROM SUBSIDISING THE GREEN AGENDA, NEW TARIFFS COULD MAKE US-BASED GREEN TECH EVENTS A MUCH TOUGHER SELL
Above: Mike Silver
The collective impact of these policy changes is a challenging environment for the green tech sector.
This new situation makes it increasingly tricky for congress organisers operating in the sector to secure long-term commitments and for exhibitors to justify their spend. We could, potentially be seeing a marked reduction in both international interest and domestic participation at what were once key events.
T he US green technology
space is bracing for a potential downturn as the current administration’ s policy shifts threaten to undercut a once-thriving market. A clear pivot away from renewable energy, marked by significant subsidy cuts and the introduction of sweeping new tariffs, is poised to inject a damaging level of cost and uncertainty that could make US-based green tech events a much tougher sell for organisers.
“ At the moment, I don’ t think anyone is 100 % certain how these policy shifts and new tariffs will impact the field’ s congresses and exhibitions. I suspect that it will be more a question of a shift in focus, a pivot towards‘ what do we do now that the paradigm has shifted’, as opposed to cancelling events”, says Mike Silver, US partner of Booth Exhibits.
What are the policy shifts affecting the industry? President Donald Trump’ s recent actions underscore a direct change in course. An Executive Order was issued by the White House in July to“ eliminate subsidies for unreliable‘ green’ energy sources like wind and solar” and“ terminate the clean electricity production and investment tax credits”.
The Executive Order directed the secretary of the interior to“ revise regulations and policies to eliminate preferential treatment for wind and solar facilities compared to reliable, dispatchable energy sources”.
The move, part of a broader Republican tax and policy bill, directly slashes big clean energy credits from the Inflation Reduction Act. With one Princeton University estimate projecting a potential $ 500 billion cut in US clean fuel and electricity investment over the next decade, the financial foundation for many green tech businesses is being shaken.
Compounding this legislative recalibration are new tariffs that threaten to disrupt the very supply chains the industry relies on.
Bentley Allan, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University and codirector of the Net Zero Industrial Policy Lab told TIME magazine,“ For just the batteries and the solar panels and the wind turbines that we want to build in the US, we ' re going to need international parts and components and materials … and they all just got more expensive.”
Events in the firing range Several key congresses take place in the US annually, notably the US Clean Energy Transition Conference, which attracts policymakers, state-level energy officials, and innovators. The ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit, hosted by the Department of Energy’ s Advanced Research Projects Agency, and thhe NREL Industry Growth Forum( IGF), organised by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
All of these events have published their 2026 event dates, but Silver believes they could be scaled down, as the dearth of investment and incentives for the industry starts affecting business.
“ As Booth Exhibits plans for RE +, where many of our global and US-based clients will be exhibiting – the focus will be less on flashy bright lights( excuse the pun) and more on the facilitation of an experience that encourages substantive conversations that drive the commercial needle in these uncertain times,” Silver concludes. n
ISSUE 138 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / 27