The
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (
NREL), located in
Golden, Colorado, is the
United States' primary laboratory for
renewable energy and
energy efficiency research and development. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is a government-owned, contractor-operated facility, and is funded through the
United States Department of Energy (DOE). This arrangement allows a private entity to operate the lab on behalf of the federal government under a prime contract. NREL receives funding from Congress to be applied toward research and development projects. NREL also performs research on
photovoltaics (PV) under the National Center for Photovoltaics. NREL has a number of PV research capabilities including research and development, testing, and deployment. NREL's campus houses several facilities dedicated to PV research.