Solar Maverick Podcast

Episode Summary In this episode of Solar Maverick Podcast,  Benoy is interviewed by Logan Chipkin about Solar and Bitcoin and how Solar Energy can be used for Bitcoin Mining.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and he is also an advisor for several solar startup companies.  He has extensive project origination, development, and financial experience in the renewable energy industry and in the environmental commodities market.   This includes initial site evaluation, permitting, financing, sourcing equipment, and negotiating the long-term energy and environmental commodities off-take agreements. He manages due diligence processes on land, permitting, and utility interconnection and is in charge of financing and structuring through Note to Proceed (“NTP”) to Commercial Operation Date (“COD”). Benoy composes teams suitable for all project development and construction tasks. He is also involved in project planning and pipeline financial modeling. He has been part of all sides of the transaction and this allows him to provide unique perspectives and value. Benoy has extensive experience in financial engineering to make solar projects profitable. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the Environmental Commodities Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity which merged with Tesla in 2016.  He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of Tesla to move into the east coast markets.  Benoy was the Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners which is a national solar installer where he focused on project finance solutions for commercial scale solar projects.  He also worked for Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund, where he analyzed potential investments in renewable energy projects and worked on maximizing the financial return of the projects in the portfolio.  Benoy also worked on the sale of all of the renewable energy projects in Ridgewood’s portfolio.   He was in the Energy Structured Finance practice for Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. He has a MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at New York University.  Benoy was an Alumni Scholar at the Stern School of Business.     Logan Chipkin Logan Chipkin is a writer in Philadelphia. His work has appeared in Physics World, Bitcoin Magazine, History Magazine, Quillette, and Gizmodo. He is passionate about the future of energy, Bitcoin, and physics.   Stay connected: Benoy Thanjan Website: www.reneuenergy.com Email: info@renewenergy.com LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Facebook: Reneu Energy   Logan Chipkin Website: www.loganchipkin.com Twitter:  @ChipkinLogan   Previous Episodes that Sazmining has been on the Solar Maverick Podcast   https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-86-how-renewable-energy-is-partnering-with-crypto-mining/   https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-125-solar-expert-discusses-bitcoin-and-the-great-opportunity-for-solar/   Benoy on the Sazmining Podcast https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9C8-RGl3oZo   Solar Maverick Podcast and Reneu Energy Summer Solstice Party It is almost Summer Solstice which is the longest day of sunlight of the year!! Reneu Energy and the Solar Maverick Podcast will be celebrating the Summer Solstice on Thursday, June 21rd from 6pm to 10pm in Jersey City. It will be held at Hudson Hall which is a beer hall and Benoy is  one of the owners of Hudson Hall. The details are below.  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/summer-solstice-networking-event-tickets-629223292807   Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on iTunes, Podbean, YouTube, and most of the major podcast platforms.   This episode was produced and managed by Podcast Laundry.  

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Nathan Jovanelly who is the head of business development from Enerflo and the owner of Jovanelly LLC.  Enerflo is a platform for Solar Sales and Operations and has processed $2 Billion in solar transactions to date.  Nate speaks about his 2023 solar predictions and how technology is going to accelerate solar deployment.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and he is also an advisor for several solar startup companies.  He has extensive project origination, development, and financial experience in the renewable energy industry and in the environmental commodities market.     This includes initial site evaluation, permitting, financing, sourcing equipment, and negotiating the long-term energy and environmental commodities off-take agreements. He manages due diligence processes on land, permitting, and utility interconnection and is in charge of financing and structuring through Note to Proceed (“NTP”) to Commercial Operation Date (“COD”). Benoy composes teams suitable for all project development and construction tasks. He is also involved in project planning and pipeline financial modeling. He has been part of all sides of the transaction and this allows him to provide unique perspectives and value. Benoy has extensive experience in financial engineering to make solar projects profitable.   Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity which merged with Tesla in 2016.  He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity to move into the east coast markets.    Benoy was the Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners which is a national solar installer where he focused on project finance solutions for commercial scale solar projects.  He also worked for Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund, where he analyzed potential investments in renewable energy projects and worked on maximizing the financial return of the projects in the portfolio.  Benoy also worked on the sale of all of the renewable energy projects in Ridgewood’s portfolio.     He was in the Energy Structured Finance practice for Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. He has a MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at New York University.  Benoy was an Alumni Scholar at the Stern School of Business.     Nathan Jovanelly Nathan Jovanelly is the head of business development at Enerflo.  Nate joined Enerflo because he believes everyone should have access to affordable green energy. At Enerflo they are helping their solar partners increase efficiencies and cut costs by creating a seamless customer journey from lead to PTO. Enerflo gives your reps the most unified solar sales process in the industry. One platform, one login, one seamless experience across the entire solar customer journey. They’re on a mission to help democratize solar energy and spread it across the globe, one well-executed deal at a time.   Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   Nate Jovanelly Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/natejov/ Website:  https://enerflo.com   Solar Maverick and Reneu Energy Summer Solstice Networking Event https://www.eventbrite.com/e/summer-solstice-networking-event-tickets-629223292807     Press release regarding Nate joining Enerflo. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nathan-jovanelly-joins-enerflo-as-head-of-business-development-301463017.html   Nate’s other interviews on the Solar Maverick Podcast SMP 131:  How Technology and Software are innovating the Solar Industry? https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-131-how-technology-and-software-is-innovating-the-solar-industry/ SMP 100: US Residential Solar, Storage, and Electric Vehicle Trends https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-100-us-residential-solar-storage-and-electric-vehicles-trends/ SMP 74: Impact on COVID-19 on Residential Solar https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/smp-74-impacts-of-covid-19-on-residential-solar/id1441876259?i=1000475840259 SMP 58:  Residential Solar Financing and Other Interesting Topics https://podcasts.apple.com/tc/podcast/smp-58-residential-solar-financing-other-interesting/id1441876259?i=1000459212910 SMP 20:  The Solar Intrapreneur Story:  How Nate helped IGS become one of the biggest solar asset owners in the US https://podcasts.apple.com/tc/podcast/smp-20-solar-intrapreneur-story-how-nate-helped-igs/id1441876259?i=1000432329129

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Gregory Wetstone who is the President and CEO of American Council on Renewable Energy (“ACORE”).  Greg gives an update on  the Inflation Reduction Act(“IRA”) and talks about current policy issues in renewables.  He also talks about how ACORE is leading as a trade organization in the equitable transition of renewables with the Accelerate Program and partnership with the National Urban League.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and he is also an advisor for several solar startup companies.  He has extensive project origination, development, and financial experience in the renewable energy industry and in the environmental commodities market.   This includes initial site evaluation, permitting, financing, sourcing equipment, and negotiating the long-term energy and environmental commodities off-take agreements. He manages due diligence processes on land, permitting, and utility interconnection and is in charge of financing and structuring through Note to Proceed (“NTP”) to Commercial Operation Date (“COD”). Benoy composes teams suitable for all project development and construction tasks. He is also involved in project planning and pipeline financial modeling. He has been part of all sides of the transaction and this allows him to provide unique perspectives and value. Benoy has extensive experience in financial engineering to make solar projects profitable. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the Environmental Commodities Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity which merged with Tesla in 2016.  He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of Tesla to move into the east coast markets.  Benoy was the Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners which is a national solar installer where he focused on project finance solutions for commercial scale solar projects.  He also worked for Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund, where he analyzed potential investments in renewable energy projects and worked on maximizing the financial return of the projects in the portfolio.  Benoy also worked on the sale of all of the renewable energy projects in Ridgewood’s portfolio.   He was in the Energy Structured Finance practice for Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. He has a MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at New York University.  Benoy was an Alumni Scholar at the Stern School of Business.     Gregory Wetstone Gregory Wetstone is President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE), a national nonprofit organization that unites finance, policy and technology to accelerate the transition to a renewable energy economy. Since assuming this role in January of 2016, he has led the way to dramatic improvements in ACORE’s organizational health, prominence and effectiveness in pursuit of its mission. Greg oversees ACORE’s strategic planning and core activities, including government affairs, communications, research and analysis, executive programs, market expansion priorities, signature events and fundraising. Prior to joining ACORE, Greg served as Vice President for Terra-Gen Power LLC, a renewable energy company with utility-scale wind, solar and geothermal energy facilities. Prior to his six-year term with Terra-Gen, he served as Senior Director for Government and Public Affairs at the American Wind Energy Association and Director of Programs at the Natural Resources Defense Council, where he founded the legislative program. Earlier in his career, Greg was Senior Counsel to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and played an important role in crafting a number of important laws, including the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. Prior to joining the Committee staff, Greg was Director of the Air and Water Pollution Program at the Environmental Law Institute. Greg is a forceful advocate for the policies and financial structures essential to renewable energy growth, and has been widely published and quoted on energy and environmental issues over the span of his career. He has a Juris Doctor degree from the Duke University School of Law and a bachelor’s degree in biology from Florida State University. Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   To Learn More about ACORE: https://acore.org/   ACORE Finance Forum June 7-8, 2023 in New York https://acorefinanceforum.org/   ACORE Accelerate Program https://acore.org/accelerate/

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Bill Jordan and John Moran about Let’s Share the Sun Foundation.  Since 2010, Let’s Share the Sun Foundation has been installing solar across Haiti, Honduras, and Puerto Rico.  The Foundation has partnered with local solar installers, equipment manufacturers, and US solar companies to bring solar to communities in need around the world.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for Tesla. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Bernadette(“Bernie”) Jordan Bernie is the executive director of Let’s Share the Sun.  She is a versatile professional with over 5 years of experience in innovating the current business approach and addressing social challenges, in a variety of industries including non-profit. Bernie has exceptional leadership skills and has had many experiences abroad that have shaped her vision. She is driven to learn the position inside and out to maximize contributions and support business and customer objectives.   Bill Jordan  Bill is the Founder and CEO of Jordan Energy. He brings over 13 years of solar development experience with a focus in agricultural installations. Prior to starting Jordan Energy, Bill served as a Special Assistant to the New York State Commissioner of Agriculture & Markets from 2002-2007. Prior to Ag & Markets, Bill received a Master's degree from Cornell University in Applied Economics with a thesis on Manure Management in the dairy industry.   Previous experiences include over six years working to improve Chilean agricultural profitability, efforts which were recognized by the President of Chile, and five years in marketing and sales for GAF Materials Corporation, the largest roofing company in the United States. Bill is a graduate of Cornell University, Maryknoll School of Theology, and University of Notre Dame. Concurrent with the founding of Jordan Energy, Bill and his wife Nancy Brennan-Jordan co-founded the Let's Share the Sun Foundation to bring solar energy to communities in need around the world.     Stay Connected:   Benoy Thanjan  Email: info@reneuenergy.com   Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   Bernie Jordan Email:  Bernie@letssharethesun.org Phone Number:  +1 (518) 326-1104 Bernie@letssharethesun.org Bill Jordan Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-jordan-235295a/  Email:  bill@letssharethesun.org   How to donate to Let’s Share the Sun Foundation.   https://www.letssharethesun.org/contribute     Let’s Share the Sun Foundation and Wood MacKenzie Documentary about Proyecto Cucubano   https://woodmac.wistia.com/medias/33ia64ab9u   Let’s Share the Sun Foundation and fighting for renewable energy   https://fightingfor.nd.edu/2022/fighting-for-renewable-energy/    

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Nathan Jovanelly who is the head of business development from Enerflo and the owner of Jovanelly LLC.  Enerflo is a platform for Solar Sales and Operations and has processed $2 Billion in solar transactions to date.  Nate speaks about many interesting topics like how technology and software is innovating the solar industry, how data is helping with lowering energy usage and using renewables more efficiently, and other solar trends and predictions. Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Nathan Jovanelly Nathan Jovanelly is the head of business development at Enerflo.  Nate joined Enerflo because he believes everyone should have access to affordable green energy. At Enerflo they are helping their solar partners increase efficiencies and cut costs by creating a seamless customer journey from lead to PTO. Enerflo gives your reps the most unified solar sales process in the industry. One platform, one login, one seamless experience across the entire solar customer journey. They’re on a mission to help democratize solar energy and spread it across the globe, one well-executed deal at a time.   Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   Nate Jovanelly Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/natejov/ Website:  https://enerflo.com   Press release regarding Nate joining Enerflo. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nathan-jovanelly-joins-enerflo-as-head-of-business-development-301463017.html   Nate’s other interviews on the Solar Maverick Podcast SMP 100: US Residential Solar, Storage, and Electric Vehicle Trends https://solarmaverick.podbean.com/e/smp-100-us-residential-solar-storage-and-electric-vehicles-trends/ SMP 74: Impact on COVID-19 on Residential Solar https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/smp-74-impacts-of-covid-19-on-residential-solar/id1441876259?i=1000475840259 SMP 58:  Residential Solar Financing and Other Interesting Topics https://podcasts.apple.com/tc/podcast/smp-58-residential-solar-financing-other-interesting/id1441876259?i=1000459212910 SMP 20:  The Solar Intrapreneur Story:  How Nate helped IGS become one of the biggest solar asset owners in the US https://podcasts.apple.com/tc/podcast/smp-20-solar-intrapreneur-story-how-nate-helped-igs/id1441876259?i=1000432329129  

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, it is introduction of pilot episode of a new podcast from Spencer from Enerflo and Benoy where they speak about topics of interest. Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Spencer Spencer is the co-founder of  Enerflo and the company is helping their solar partners increase efficiencies and cut costs by creating a seamless customer journey from lead to PTO.   Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   Spencer Oberan Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/spencer-oberan-3734902b/ Website:  https://enerflo.com   Reneu Energy and Solar Maverick Podcast Holiday Event with Young Professionals in Energy of NYC and Women of Renewable Energy in NJ on Thursday, December 1st at Hudson Hall in Jersey City, NJ.  Below is the eventbrite with more details.   https://www.eventbrite.com/e/a-holiday-networking-event-hosted-by-reneu-energy-ype-nyc-and-wrise-nj-tickets-450844186097    

Episode Summary   In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Bill Jordan and John Moran about Let’s Share the Sun Foundation.  Since 2010, Let’s Share the Sun Foundation has been installing solar across Haiti, Honduras, and Puerto Rico.  The Foundation has partnered with local solar installers, equipment manufacturers, and US solar companies to bring solar to communities in need around the world.     Benoy Thanjan   Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities.    Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Bill Jordan   Bill is the Founder and CEO of Jordan Energy. He brings over 13 years of solar development experience with a focus in agricultural installations. Prior to starting Jordan Energy, Bill served as a Special Assistant to the New York State Commissioner of Agriculture & Markets from 2002-2007. Prior to Ag & Markets, Bill received a Master's degree from Cornell University in Applied Economics with a thesis on Manure Management in the dairy industry.   Previous experiences include over six years working to improve Chilean agricultural profitability, efforts which were recognized by the President of Chile, and five years in marketing and sales for GAF Materials Corporation, the largest roofing company in the United States. Bill is a graduate of Cornell University, Maryknoll School of Theology, and University of Notre Dame. Concurrent with the founding of Jordan Energy, Bill and his wife Nancy Brennan-Jordan co-founded the Let's Share the Sun Foundation to bring solar energy to communities in need around the world.   John Moran John Moran is the Chief Development Officer at Solar Landscape. Solar Landscape is a leading developer, installer and operator of community solar and commercial solar energy systems. Based in Asbury Park, NJ, Solar Landscape has served as a designer and installer of commercial solar panel systems across eight states totaling around 150 megawatts.  John has 16 years of experience in the solar industry with various roles at enXco, Suntech, sPower, and Goldman Sachs.   Stay Connected:   Benoy Thanjan   Email: info@reneuenergy.com    Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com       Bill Jordan   Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bill-jordan-235295a/   Email:  bill@letssharethesun.org     John Moran   Linkedin:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-moran-03a3b3a/details/experience/       How to donate to Let’s Share the Sun Foundation.   https://www.letssharethesun.org/contribute     Let’s Share the Sun Foundation and Wood MacKenzie Documentary about Proyecto Cucubano   https://woodmac.wistia.com/medias/33ia64ab9u     Let’s Share the Sun Foundation and fighting for renewable energy   https://fightingfor.nd.edu/2022/fighting-for-renewable-energy/        

Episode Summary In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy speaks with Spencer who is the co-founder from Enerflo.  Enerflo is a platform for Solar Sales and Operations and has processed $2 Billion in solar transactions to date.  Spencer speaks about many interesting topics like how lowering soft costs is the next big thing in solar, Enerflo’s software simplifies the solar process, selling residential solar online will become more popular, and other solar trends and predictions.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Spencer Spencer is the co-founder of  Enerflo and the company is helping their solar partners increase efficiencies and cut costs by creating a seamless customer journey from lead to PTO. Enerflo gives your reps the most unified solar sales process in the industry. One platform, one login, one seamless experience across the entire solar customer journey. They’re on a mission to help democratize solar energy and spread it across the globe, one well-executed deal at a time.   Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com   Spencer Oberan Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/spencer-oberan-3734902b/ Website:  https://enerflo.com

Episode Summary In this episode of Solar Maverick Podcast, John Chaimanis and Benoy Thanjan talk about Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure (KSI), how it was founded and how it can differentiate itself from its competitors. Their conversation in this episode goes into development capital, John's ideal projects, his thoughts on frictionless close, why he discourages discounting electricity for community projects, and how he values solar projects and renewable energy.   Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and is also an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar and utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also hedges energy and environmental commodities. Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   John Chaimanis John Chaimanis is the Co-Founder and Managing Director of Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure (KSI), a leading development and asset management firm that positively impacts the world through direct investments into distributed scale sustainable infrastructure assets such as clean energy and water projects. He is a recognized thought leader, lecturer, and author. He consults regularly with sustainable business startups, investors, and institutions on the topics of sustainability and project finance and is an adjunct faculty in the finance division at Babson College.   Prior to his career in clean energy investing, Mr. Chaimanis co-founded a charter school in the greater Boston area. Mr. Chaimanis holds an M.B.A. from Babson College, a B.S. in Finance from Villanova University, and a US SIF for Sustainable and Responsible Investing (SRI) certification.   He has been featured in the 2014 Journal of Environmental Investing “Most Influential Investors” edition, the Institutional Investing in Infrastructure “In Focus” interview web series, the Family Office Review, the SunCast Podcast with Nico Johnson, the Experts Only Podcast, the Solar Maverick Podcast, the EM2U Podcast, and is the author of a graduate-level energy investment business case.   Insights from this episode:  Details about Kendall Sustainable Infrastructure (KSI) How KSI differentiates itself from other competitors Insights into development capital John's ideal projects Why John discourages discounting electricity for community projects Insights into valuing a solar project Trends in the industry (renewable energy) Insights into the value of DER (distributed energy resources)   Quotes from the show: “The first transactions are always the most difficult. If you are able to get through that, it seems like it’s a lot more scalable” -Benoy Thanjan, Solar Maverick Podcast  “It can be a very bad situation when you staff a development inside an organization that just doesn’t know how to deal with development capital and development risk” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “Development capital is very risky. If you don’t have the structure right, you don’t have the right alignment, there can be disagreement and challenges” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “There are not enough projects out there to meet investors' appetite” -Benoy Thanjan, Solar Maverick Podcast “What we see is the value of DER (distributed energy resources) to be the single most valuable kilowatt power on the system” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “We make electricity, just like anybody else that makes electricity, but we get the privilege of selling our electricity at a discount. It just does not make sense why we should be discounting it” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “A frictionless close can be done when you have trust in a relationship or a partnership” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “We have been really fortunate to find like-minded professionals that are as interested in making a good profit as they are in dealing in dignity and respect”  -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast “There is always gonna be a lot of room for a local regional developer: could be an individual, could be three people” -John Chaimanis, Solar Maverick Podcast   Stay connected:   Benoy Thanjan Website: www.reneuenergy.com Email: info@reneuenergy.com LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Facebook: Reneu Energy   John Chaimanis Website: www.kendallsustainableinfrastructure.com/ LinkedIn: John Chaimanis    Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on iTunes, Podbean, YouTube, and most of the major podcast platforms.   This episode was produced and managed by Podcast Laundry.

Episode Summary In this episode of Solar Maverick Podcast, Nigel Morris and Benoy Thanjan discuss the differences between the Australian and U.S solar markets and the varying pricing costs. Benoy highlights the high solar prices, especially in the U.S, and the factors contributing to the costs. Finally, he provides lessons that the Australian market can learn from the U.S solar industry and what he thinks is the future of the U.S solar market.    Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and is also an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar and utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges energy and environmental commodities. Reneu Energy has brokered $27 million in environmental commodities transactions.    Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.   Nigel Morris With 30 years of experience in solar energy Nigel Morris is a Solar Technology Advocate and was recently added to a list of the world's Top 20 Solar Influencers. He is an experienced and passionate solar professional and co-host of Solar Insiders, one of the world longest running and best-ranked solar industry podcasts, and Great Solar Business, a new series exploring the secrets of building solar companies. He is obsessed with electric motorcycles, vehicle to grid, and the power of data.   Insights from this episode:  Differences between the U.S and the Australian solar market Differences in pricing in the U.S and the Australian solar market Insights into why solar prices are in the U.S Insights into the competitive landscape of solar energy in the U.S What the Australian solar market can learn from the U.S   Quotes from the show: “The west of the U.S and Hawaii have a high solar radiance, so it makes a good market for residential solar” -Benoy Thanjan, Solar Maverick Podcast “Australia has relatively expensive energy prices” -Nigel Morris, Solar Maverick Podcast “The price of batteries are going down substantially, specifically lithium iron technology ”-Benoy Thanjan, Solar Maverick Podcast “We [Australia] do not have the experience that you guys [U.S] do in the large scale space, although we are chasing quickly there”  -Nigel Morris, Solar Maverick Podcast “There is so much disruption that is happening in the industry” -Benoy Thanjan, Solar Maverick Podcast “If you want that low-cost energy in Australia, if you want the cheapest energy, to top up your EV, you do that from a home solar system; you don’t do it from grid power” -Nigel Morris, Solar Maverick Podcast   Stay connected:   Benoy Thanjan Website: www.reneuenergy.com Email:  info@renewenergy.com LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Facebook: Reneu Energy   Nigel Morris LinkedIn: Nigel Morris  Facebook: Nigel Morris    Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on iTunes, Podbean, YouTube, and most of the major podcast platforms.   This episode was produced and managed by Podcast Laundry.