Dana Olson accepts DNV GL leadership position

Global quality assurance and risk management company DNV GL recently selected Dana Olson as the company’s new Global Solar Segment Leader.

“Dana’s focus on reducing operational risk by increasing the performance and reliability of PV technologies is ideal for our customers as the solar industry is facing exponential growth globally,” Ditlev Engel, CEO of DNV GL – Energy, said. “This aligns with projections regarding the decarbonization of the energy sector overall, and the role we believe that solar will play in it. Dana’s leadership and expertise in the solar sector will enable the acceleration of this trend.”

Having accumulated a vast amount of experience at the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), DNV GL officials said Olson brings a deep understanding of the evolution, performance, and reliability of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology to the company.

Before joining DNV GL Olson was a Technology Manager in the DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office, where he created and managed industrial consortia on PV technology development and led an extensive portfolio of development programs focused on novel PV module technologies to improve the performance and reliability of PV systems while reducing system and energy costs.

Before working with the DOE, officials said Olson was a senior scientist at NREL, leading a diverse team of scientists toward the development and demonstration of novel PV materials and device architectures based on carrier selective contacts.

Olson is currently based in DNV GL’s Arlington, Va. office, officials noted, but anticipate his relocation to the company’s San Diego, Calif., site.