“By integrating alternative energy and traditional energy, the world can benefit from substantial carbon savings while deploying renewable energy at unprecedented scale.”

FREMONT, Calif. & MUSCAT, Oman--(BUSINESS WIRE)--GlassPoint Solar, the leading supplier of solar to the oil and gas industry, today announced it was named as one of the World Economic Forums Technology Pioneers, a selection of the worlds most innovative companies. GlassPoint was selected by an expert committee for its development of a solar energy solution that delivers low-cost steam used to produce crude oil more sustainably and economically.

"It is an honor to be recognized and included alongside some of the most innovative companies in the world. This recognition further substantiates the increasing convergence between traditional and renewable energy. Our solar technology was specifically designed to meet the needs of one of the worlds largest consumers of energy—the oil and gas industry itself," said GlassPoint President and Chief Executive Rod MacGregor. "By integrating alternative energy and traditional energy, the world can benefit from substantial carbon savings while deploying renewable energy at unprecedented scale."

The World Economic Forums Technology Pioneers program was started in 2000 to recognize global companies that can significantly impact business and society through new technologies. GlassPoint was selected from among hundreds of candidates to join a special group of companies with transformative solutions across the IT, health, energy, environment, food and financial services sectors. Previous recipients of the honor include Google, Twitter, SoundCloud and Airbnb.

Technology Pioneers will also participate in the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2017 in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland.

Fulvia Montresor, Head of Technology Pioneers at the World Economic Forum, said, "We welcome GlassPoint to this extraordinary group of pioneers. They are among a list of companies that are helping to shape the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a technological revolution that will fundamentally alter the way we live, work and relate to one another. Through the platform of the World Economic Forum, they will be able to scale and share their technology in order to achieve a larger impact."

The companys solar steam generators harness sunlight to produce steam for the process of extracting heavy oil, replacing natural gas typically burned to generate steam. GlassPoints solar oilfield projects are unlocking a tremendous opportunity to deploy solar energy in the global oil and gas industry.

GlassPoint is one of the fastest-growing solar companies in history. In the past five years, GlassPoint has gone from commissioning the worlds first commercial solar enhanced oil recovery (EOR) project to building one of the largest solar projects of any kind. Last year, GlassPoint partnered with Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), the largest producer of oil and gas in Oman, to build Miraah, which will generate in excess of one gigawatt of solar thermal energy.

Once complete, Miraah reduce emissions by 300,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) each year, the equivalent of removing 63,000 cars from the road. The project will generate 6,000 tons of solar steam each day for oil production, saving 5.6 trillion British Thermal units (BTUs) of natural gas each year. The gas saved can instead be exported as liquefied natural gas (LNG), used for power generation or redirected to the private sector to power new industries and create jobs.

GlassPoints unique enclosed trough technology enables the use of lightweight, readily available materials that are a fraction of the cost of alternative technologies. The companys proven technology demonstrates the massive opportunity for the traditional and renewable energy industries to work together and develop economically viable solutions to todays energy challenges.

About GlassPoint Solar

GlassPoint Solar is the leading supplier of solar to the oil and gas industry. The global oil and gas industry consumes an amount of energy equal to 10% of its own production, making it one of the biggest markets for renewable energy. Operating worldwide from the Middle East to California, GlassPoints enclosed trough technology delivers the lowest cost energy to power oilfield operations. By harnessing sunshine, instead of burning natural gas or other fuels, GlassPoint helps oil producers reduce operating expenses while significantly cutting greenhouse gas emissions.

GlassPoint is one of the fastest-growing solar companies in the world with more than one gigawatt of solar oilfield projects under construction. The World Economic Forum recently recognized GlassPoint as a 2016 Technology Pioneer for its role in enabling more economical and sustainable oil production. For more information, visit GlassPoint.com.

About the World Economic Forum

The World Economic Forum, committed to improving the state of the world, is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. The Forum engages the foremost political, business and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas.