Suncast

Six leading clean energy advocates join me and my friend https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikecaseytigercomm/ (Mike Casey) on Episode 6 of our quarterly Cleantech Podcaster’s Roundtable.  The rich, one-hour discussion about energy trends, developments, challenges and opportunities is brought to you by https://www.tigercomm.us/home (Tigercomm), a cleantech public relations and marketing firm, and my company, https://mysuncast.com/ (SunCast Media). What are the leading trends in renewables and clean energy? Tune in for insights from the hosts of notable podcasts like https://www.grnesolar.com/wattsup (Watts Up), https://climate-positive.simplecast.com/ (Climate Positive), https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/ (Clean Power Hour), https://www.freeingenergy.com/podcasts/ (Freeing Energy), https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-solar-coaster/about/ (The Solar Coaster), https://www.politicalclimatepodcast.com/ (Political Climate), https://www.tigercomm.us/insights (ScalingClean) and, of course, https://mysuncast.com/suncast

I like to believe that SunCast opens the door for both you and our guests to be vulnerable with the stories that drive us forward. Today’s episode is one of the more vulnerable and impactful stories I’ve had the privilege of recording, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to help our guest, Nobel Chang, discuss the underlying motivations and life lessons that inform how he lives, works and seeks to better the world around him. A special thank you to Nobel for trusting me with his story, and to you dear listener for trusting that we will honor your most important investment, your time.  https://www.linkedin.com/in/nobelchang/ (Nobel Chang) is a co-founder and managing partner of Jacksonville, Florida-based https://www.pd46energy.com/ (Palladium Energy), a utility-scale solar investor and developer. Since its founding in 2019, the company has built upon the track records of its principals to develop, finance, construct, and operate solar, wind, gas and biomass projects in the US and internationally. Pallad

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffressler/ (Jeff Ressler) explained how he learned to leverage data and software to improve customers' lives in SunCast https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/221?rq=jeff%20ressler (Episode 221). He returns for today's Tactical Tuesday to tell us how his company's cloud software services are powering the energy transformation. Jeff is the CEO of https://www.cleanpower.com/ (Clean Power Research), which provides cloud solutions for utility workflow automation, customer engagement and solar data services. I reconnected with Jeff and met his company's product manager, https://www.linkedin.com/in/akanksha-bhat-a53a4710a/ (Akanksha Bhat), at the September 2022 https://www.re-plus.com/ (RE+) conference in Anaheim, California.  RE+ is the clean energy industry's largest and most comprehensive event in North America, and SunCast was proud to sponsor its PowerUp Media Zone. Before taking the CEO role in 2017, Jeff spent 10 years leading the company's software team. He built Clean Pow

It's no surprise that Sandhya Ganapathy describes herself as a passionate proponent of clean energy. Sandhya is the CEO of https://www.edpr.com/north-america/ (EDP Renewables North America) (EDPR NA) and a member of the Management Team of https://www.edpr.com/ (EDP Renewables) (EDPR). EDPR is a global leader in renewable energy and the world's fourth-largest wind energy producer. Working there, Sandhya said, is a chance to constantly uncover new ways to put "seed into the ground" — and "harness the powers of the sun and the wind and make a difference for a better tomorrow." Sandhya joined EDPR in 2012 as Head of Investments and Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) North America. It was a pivot from her earlier roles in banking. "I wanted to be where the world was moving towards in terms of not only energy but also focus and infrastructure investment. And then I started thinking about renewables, obviously," she recalled. From 2017 to her CEO appointment in early 2022, she served as Global Head of Investments an

The American-Made program is your fast track to the clean energy revolution. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, it incentivizes innovation through prizes, training, teaming, and mentoring, connecting the nation’s entrepreneurs and innovators to America’s national labs and the private sector. The prize, now in its 6th round, recently awarded the 5th round of innovators with millions of dollars to help bring their startup ideas to the world. James Nagel and David Penalva, Co-Founders of HelioVolta were two of the American-Made Solar Prize winners. They joined Nico Johnson and Sarah Gomach on the PowerUp Media Zone stage at RE+ in Anaheim, CA on September 21st. The founders discussed the purpose of HelioVolta and how they plan to use the cash award (and non-cash prizes) to continue building their company. SolarGrade, developed by HelioVolta, is a field work management software that helps decrease downtime and increase uptime. They plan to grow the team and continue to implement their technology in the fiel

SMA has been a cornerstone of renewables for nearly four decades. While their counterparts, like Tesla, didn’t have solar divisions until much more recently, SMA has gradually built one of the largest install-bases of solar customers in the world. With all those installs come hundreds of thousands of satisfied homeowners, many of whom are now eager to embrace the future of the electrified home. How do they remain relevant in this new modern solar+ economy where every manufacturer is tempted to expand its offerings, in an effort to increase share of wallet, extend brand value, and keep up in an ever-changing industry? This and more are part of the discussion in today’s RE+ PowerUp Media Zone replay, which was recorded live from the Anaheim show floor only a couple of weeks ago on September 21st, 2022.  In Jan Van Laethem’s own words, it all started in 1981 with three university students who wanted to do things differently. They wanted to do electronics with a good cause. The mission of protecting and serv

Many of you have heard one of my close friends & repeat podcast guest, Mike Silvestrini, on how he “and his team” grew Greenskies to be the largest C&I Player in the US (then successfully sold it to Goldman.) However, the story yet-told is the other half of that team, the guy down in the dirt actually drumming up all those sales to iconic companies like Wal-Mart and Target Corporation…Mr. Andrew Chester.  He’s been on my Must-Get list for about 5 years now (seriously, it takes the patience of Job to podcast these days! hah), but I’m so grateful that Andrew has finally opened up to the interview, and I promise you won’t be disappointed. Andrew spent nine years growing the Greenskies Renewable Energy portfolio into the country's largest commercial and industrial solar company, successfully exiting the company with Mike after its 2017 acquisition. He’s never talked about it publicly, until now. In today’s founder profile, we get to journey with Andrew through the highs & lows of entrepreneu

Today’s guest is a veritable expert on solar and climate change, and has recently served as a lead author for the IPCC’s 6th assessment report. He made his name a few years ago in the energy sector writing a book which explains how we got to the level of low-cost solar we presently enjoy - what was the combination of entrepreneurial effort, technology, and policy that got us here?  Further, he explores how that is relevant for future solar & whether the lessons learned can extrapolate to other technologies.  Gregory Nemet is an author and a professor at the University of Wisconsin, where he teaches courses in energy systems analysis, policy analysis, and international environmental policy. His research focuses on understanding the process of technological change and how public policy can affect it.  Dr. Nemet received a master’s and Ph.D in energy and resources from the University of California, Berkeley, and a BA in geography with economics from Dartmouth College. From 2013-18 he chaired U

Start each day with the Daily Roundup as we bring you the trends and conversations unfolding in Anaheim at the RE+ 2022 conference formerly known as SPI. If you are in Anaheim, visit us at the PowerUp Media Zone, booth 438. You can also watch the show stream live from https://www.suncast.live (suncast.live). SunCast is presented by https://www.mysuncast.com/sungrow (Sungrow), the world’s most bankable inverter brand. You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you, here: https://www.mysuncast.com/sponsors (www.mysuncast.com/sponsors) Remember you can always find the resources and learn more about today’s guest, recommendations, book links, and more than 520 other founder stories and startup advice athttps://www.mysuncast.com/ ( www.mysuncast.com). You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo (Twitter), https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus/ (LinkedIn) or email.

We are in Anaheim! Start each day with the Daily Roundup as we bring you the trends and conversations unfolding in Anaheim at the RE+ 2022 conference formerly known as SPI. If you are in Anaheim, visit us at the PowerUp Media Zone, booth 438. You can also watch the show stream live from https://www.suncast.live (suncast.live). SunCast is presented by https://www.mysuncast.com/sungrow (Sungrow), the world’s most bankable inverter brand. You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you, here: https://www.mysuncast.com/sponsors (www.mysuncast.com/sponsors) Remember you can always find the resources and learn more about today’s guest, recommendations, book links, and more than 520 other founder stories and startup advice athttps://www.mysuncast.com/ ( www.mysuncast.com). You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo (Twitter), https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus/ (LinkedIn) or email.

We are in Anaheim! Start each day with the Daily Roundup as we bring you the trends and conversations unfolding in Anaheim at the RE+ 2022 conference formerly known as SPI. If you are in Anaheim, visit us at the PowerUp Media Zone, booth 438. You can also watch the show stream live from https://www.suncast.live (suncast.live). SunCast is presented by https://www.mysuncast.com/sungrow (Sungrow), the world’s most bankable inverter brand. You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you, here: https://www.mysuncast.com/sponsors (www.mysuncast.com/sponsors) Remember you can always find the resources and learn more about today’s guest, recommendations, book links, and more than 520 other founder stories and startup advice athttps://www.mysuncast.com/ ( www.mysuncast.com). You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo (Twitter), https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus/ (LinkedIn) or email.

We are in Anaheim! Start each day with the Daily Roundup as we bring you the trends and conversations unfolding in Anaheim at the RE+ 2022 conference formerly known as SPI. If you are in Anaheim, visit us at the PowerUp Media Zone, booth 438. You can also watch the show stream live from https://www.suncast.live (suncast.live). SunCast is presented by https://www.mysuncast.com/sungrow (Sungrow), the world’s most bankable inverter brand. You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you, here: https://www.mysuncast.com/sponsors (www.mysuncast.com/sponsors) Remember you can always find the resources and learn more about today’s guest, recommendations, book links, and more than 520 other founder stories and startup advice athttps://www.mysuncast.com/ ( www.mysuncast.com). You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo (Twitter), https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus/ (LinkedIn) or email.

Today's entrepreneur is no stranger to the solar startup world. He was part of the early merger and acquisition activity that ultimately became the juggernaut we all remember as SunEdison. That, alone, would be worth the listen, but wait, there’s more. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-culpepper-592291/ (Mark Culpepper) has a brilliant mind and a fascinating story about transitioning from tech to the solar world. Like many of us, he became interested when he started looking at solar for his home. And through that decision, he landed in an advantageous position to watch the solar industry's explosive growth. Mark is now general manager of solar solutions for https://dronebase.com/ (DroneBase), the company that acquired his latest venture, and is the leader in intelligent aerial imaging and data analytics for the entire lifecycle of renewable energy assets.  Mark already did a deep-dive Tactical Tuesday with us on how DroneBase uses drones and human-crewed aircraft to capture thermal imaging of solar energy

I fondly remember circa 2018 (when I first debuted the Know before you go episode) I was barely at Episode 112, and I interviewed Andy Klump for the first time in my hotel room at the Hilton Anaheim!  Here we are 4 yrs and >400 episodes later, and this Pre-conference episode feels as important as ever! Each year, I try to curate the collective wisdom of 5 of my favorite industry thought-leaders (who somehow carve out time before the show to spend 10min with me) and deliver it to you as a sampling of the how/when/why/where and what to do leading up to, during and AFTER the show! In today’s episode: Danielle Danko, Sr. Director of Marketing for RE+ speaks to the Rebrand (what, it’s not SPI??) and all the fun festivities they have in store for you (yes, they rented out the entire Angels stadium y’all!)  Tom Weirich, Head of Marketing for EDPR North America, shares his Top 10 tips for getting a positive ROI out of a tradeshow when you’re sending a team Michelle Davis & Sylvia Leyva-Martinez, of W

Australian legend https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-scaysbrook-b7347914/ (David Scaysbrook) has nearly 30 years of experience in energy and renewable infrastructure. He and his partner, Rory Quinlan, co-founded https://www.quinbrook.com/ (Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners Group) — one of the industry's most lauded and recognizable renewable energy fund and development platforms.  Headquartered in London with offices on three continents, Quinbrook is an ESG-focused, "value add" investment manager focused on low carbon and renewable energy supply, storage, grid stability and related assets and businesses. And they’ve amassed one of the brightest teams and stellar track records in the marketplace, of that nobody can object. Heck, they’re building THE largest solar+battery storage project in the world! As fund managers, David and Rory have led investment teams and portfolio companies that have invested more than $2.5 billion in upward of 200 low carbon, renewable, storage and grid support projects covering a

Solar projects are growing exponentially — and while that's positive by almost any metric, it comes with complications. Take site selection for instance. We're running out of the easy, flat terrain in the deserts and abundant farm fields so prevalent a decade ago.  Solar developers are reevaluating rocky, hilly terrain as prices rise on the remaining prime parcels. This is where the foundation conversation meets the ground, as it were. Selecting the proper ground-mount foundation will minimize delays, lower costs, and maximize returns on your solar project. But I find that far more often than I suspected, buyers and engineering departments in development shops are unsure, apart from the obvious very rocky sites, exactly when it is both cost effective and site-appropriate to use ground screws over driven-pier (pile) foundations.  Pile foundations are the traditional option. But our guest today suggests ground screws may offer particular advantages. Mike Faraone is director of engineering at Terrasmar

Spencer Oberan — aka "a solar guy" — and Pat Bennett — "a tech guy" — discovered cumbersome and disjointed processes were slowing the growth of solar businesses. In 2018, he and Pat decided to solve the problem by creating Enerflo, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platform purpose-built for the solar industry. The Huntington Beach, California-based company promises solar installers and sales dealers "a seamless experience start to finish."  By automating tasks and bringing everything together in a cohesive sales and installation platform, Spencer said Enerflo helps people work smarter, faster and more efficiently.  Enerflo also fuels Spencer's passion for supporting the positive changes solar brings to families and the environment. Spencer shared Enerflo's success with us in https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/470 (Suncast Episode 470). He's back today to share more about his journey as a serial entrepreneur — from selling candy door-to-door with his sister as a kid to deciding to "make a differenc

Omnidian co-founders https://www.linkedin.com/in/markliffmann/ (Mark Liffmann) and https://www.linkedin.com/in/braddavismarketing/ (Brad Davis) share the stage in this final episode of our six-part https://mysuncast.com/futureofsolar (Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar) series.  Mark and Brad, CEO and CMO, respectively, define how solar businesses can maximize growth by delivering custom-centric experiences that align with their company cultures even as they scale.  A 15-year solar industry veteran, Mark co-founded SunPower's residential and light commercial business and developed a $500 million global enterprise. He previously held executive leadership positions at Clean Power Research, enerG2 and Solar Depot (Soligent).  Brad held executive leadership positions for national brands in retail, financial services, and renewable energy, successfully launching new markets worldwide. In addition to a long tenure at retail giant Target, he was CMO at Washington Mutual which became JP Morgan Chase,

In the fifth episode of our six-part https://mysuncast.com/futureofsolar (Beyond O&M: The Future of Solar) series, we examine the scalability of service teams from the perspective of two women well respected in the solar industry. Our guests, https://www.linkedin.com/in/angela-burke-8a633017/ (Angela Burke) and https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-king-489a6628/ (Julie King), are experienced leaders who built installation, customer service, and operations and maintenance teams from scratch. One thing we’ve continually heard throughout this series is that as you seek to scale outside your home service territory, one of the true bottlenecks and critical path pain points for growing your solar business comes in the form of maintenance of the already-installed fleet. Increasingly, installers & developers are seeking a reliable service partner or network they can tap into so they can focus on what they do best. Angela was a long-serving core team member at Namaste Solar before joining Pivot Energy to help bui

Everett Brewer is CEO of storage company Storz Power and COO of the solar project matching platform WattHub. He’s a serial entrepreneur who caught my attention lately as an example of someone who manages to have a modicum of balance amidst what is truly a chaotic high-growth time in our industry, despite running not one but TWO successful businesses and balancing the demands of a growing family.  From running a crew of 3,300 people at age 21 to dominating the door-to-door alarm business, his remarkable solar journey has seen him navigate successful stints at SunEdison and Evolve Solar before developing nano-printed lithium for OEM applications.  His two companies: Lehi, Utah-based Storz Power has experienced large multiples of growth year-over-year, and Watthub has developed and supported the deployment of more than $1.2 billion in projects. Recently, https://www.energytechreview.com/vendor/storz-power-redefining-power-storage-through-artificial-intelligence-cid-907-mid-70.html (Energy Tech Review)