Established in October, 1974 by President Gerald Ford, NREL was originally called the Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI). The establishment of SERI marked the first time the U.S. tackled energy issues through a center of innovation to create and market renewable energy technologies, versus through policy. At the same time he started the Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA).
In 1976 the Midwest Research Institute (MRI) in Kansas City, Missouri partnered with Colorado Governor Richard Lamm and the state legislature to issue its ERDA proposal, which included a 300-acre site on top of South Table Mountain in Golden, as the future home of SERI.
On July 5, 1977, SERI, the first federal facility dedicated to developing solar power, opened with Princeton-based photovoltaic researcher Paul Rappaport as director. A small staff moved into temporary facilities in the Denver West Office Park near South Table Mountain.
On May 3, 1978, President Carter visited South Table Mountain to celebrate Sun Day, a new holiday commemorating the dawn of a new solar age. In addition to addressing the gathered crowd, President Carter reviews some of SERI's work, including solar photovoltaic systems, wind turbines, a biomass converter, and a model of a solar power plant.
On Sept. 16, 1991, President George H.W. Bush elevated SERI to national laboratory status and renamed it the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to more accurately reflect its range of work.
In 2017 NREL's economic impact topped $1 billion nationwide, according to a study by the University of Colorado Boulder's Leeds School of Business.
This week’s rebranding is the latest in a series of steps the White House has taken to roll back past administrations’ support for renewable energy and return the nation’s energy focus to fossil fuels.
According to a press release on the website, "The new name reflects the current administration's broader vision for the lab's applied energy research, which historically emphasized alternative and renewable sources of generation, and honors the natural splendor of the lab's surroundings in Golden, Colorado."
