Interchange Recharged

The solar industry is talking about battery storage almost as much as solar these days.On this week's Interchange, we're addressing the shift toward storage in residential solar. Sunrun, a top installer, is at the forefront of the trend. In California, the company is adding storage to 20 percent of rooftop PV systems — and it believes other states will soon catch up. Sunrun now thinks of itself as a grid services provider. We'll talk with Sunrun Chief Policy Officer Anne Hoskins about how this broadened focus influences the way it interacts with utilities, regulators and customers. Shayle and Stephen will also talk about how batteries are changing the way consumers shop around for solar.This podcast is supported by Wunder Capital, the easiest way to invest in large-scale solar energy projects across the U.S. With Wunder, you can help finance renewable energy projects while earning up to 7.5 percent annually. Get started here to diversify your portfolio and support American solar projects.This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.Recommended reading:Sunrun white paper: A B​etter System Created by the People, for the PeopleGTM: Sunrun Keeps Growing, While Prepping for a Whole New Grid Services BusinessSubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Europe was once the world's biggest solar spender, until the region's PV market fell into a structural decline after subsidies were pulled back. Now Europe is on the upswing once again — this time, with far less government spending. As European countries embrace competitive auctions, the Old World of solar is getting new attention. The region is expected to install 10-17 gigawatts a year through 2022, bringing cumulative installs from 111 gigawatts to 182 gigawatts, according to GTM Research. A good portion of that capacity won't see any direct government support.Competitive auctions will make solar growth much more sustainable. But will it be enough to make up for the tens of gigawatts of coal and nuke plants closing around the region?Tom Heggarty, a senior global solar analyst with GTM Research, joins us on The Interchange to grapple with that question. We'll put the new trends into a historical and macro-economic context.This podcast is supported by Wunder Capital, the easiest way to invest in large-scale solar energy projects across the U.S. With Wunder, you can help finance renewable energy projects while earning up to 7.5 percent annually. Get started here to diversify your portfolio and support American solar projects.This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.Recommended reading:GTM Research: Europe Solar PV Market Outlook 2018GTM: Here Are Solar’s Next Gigawatt-Scale MarketsGTM: Germany's Course Correction on Solar GrowthSubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Shell, the world’s sixth biggest oil and gas company, just published a future "sky" scenario that's getting a lot of attention. That potential future: By 2050, renewables could overtake oil, gas and coal as the primary energy source; by that date, it could be “impossible” to purchase a new internal combustion car; and by 2070, there could be 10,000 carbon capture plants operating globally.Shell's energy transition report is receiving mixed reaction. Many energy experts are hailing Shell for putting together such an ambitious document. A lot of environmentalists are cynical, since oil and gas still play a prominent role in the company's future vision.In this week's episode, we're going to walk through the different scenarios outlined by Shell. We'll also discuss what Shell's business might look like beyond 2050, as the company acquires more electricity retailers, EV charging assets and renewable energy developers.This podcast is supported by Wunder Capital, the easiest way to invest in large-scale solar energy projects across the U.S. With Wunder, you can help finance renewable energy projects while earning up to 7.5 percent annually. Get started here to diversify your portfolio and support American solar projects.This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.Recommended reading:Shell: The Energy Transition reportShell: The New Energies businessWashington Post: Shell Just Outlined a Radical Scenario for What It Would Take to Halt Climate ChangeSubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Blockchain is largely untested compared to its potential. We know it’s likely transformative — we just don’t know exactly how.There are hundreds of potential applications in the electricity business. Which ones will win out?To kick off this week's show, Shayle, Scott and Stephen will examine different pathways for the technology. We'll answer:Of all the scenarios for the future of blockchain in energy, which one is most likely?Imagine a future in which blockchain doesn’t take off. What is the likely reason?Are there any pilots or trends underway now that push us in any of these directions?In the second half of the show, we’ll talk with Kristen Brown, a business technology expert at Commonwealth Edison, about how the regulated utility sees blockchain influencing operations.We’ll also talk with Michael Horwitz, a partner with Greentech Capital Advisors, about how he evaluates investment opportunities in the space.If you missed the companion episode, listen here.This podcast is supported by Wunder Capital, the easiest way to invest in large-scale solar energy projects across the U.S. With Wunder, you can help finance renewable energy projects while earning up to 7.5 percent annually. Get started here to diversify your portfolio and support American solar projects.This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.Recommended reading:GTM Squared: Does the Energy Industry Need Its Own Blockchain?GTM Squared: The Live Broadcast From Our Blockchain in Energy ForumSubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Out of the 122 startups (and counting) that GTM Research is tracking in the energy-blockchain space, 22 are focused on peer-to-peer energy trading.Sharing electrons directly with peers sounds cool, but why do it in the first place? Would it help the grid? Will it be a catalyst for more distributed energy? Or is it just a novel application?In this episode of The Interchange, we're exploring the potential of peer-to-peer trading. We'll start with a segment of Consensus, where we explore a specific blockchain tech or concept.Later in the show, we'll talk with Colleen Metelitsa, a grid edge analyst with GTM Research, about investment trends and emerging applications in the energy-blockchain space.Finally, we'll talk with three blockchain startups -- Electron, Leap and Omega Grid -- about their experiences building partnerships with incumbent energy companies. This podcast is supported by Wunder Capital, the easiest way to invest in large-scale solar energy projects across the U.S. With Wunder, you can help finance renewable energy projects while earning up to 7.5 percent annually. Get started here to diversify your portfolio and support American solar projects.Recommended reading:GTM Research: Blockchain for Energy 2018: Companies & Applications for Distributed Ledger Technologies on the GridGTM: Energy Blockchain Startups Raised $324 Million in the Last Year. Where’s the Money Going?Subscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Gina McCarthy isn't happy watching Scott Pruitt dismantle the climate plan that she helped President Obama build. But she doesn't think Pruitt will be successful."They've made a lot of announcements, they haven't made a lot of progress," she said in an interview on The Interchange podcast. McCarthy predicted that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt will keep getting "slapped back" by legal challenges.And even if Pruitt makes progress, the markets have spoken against him. "The market has already dictated that strategy, and it's a clean energy future," she said. In this week's podcast, we talk with McCarthy about the EPA under the Trump Administration. We'll talk about the viciousness of environmental politics, the coal industry's impact on politics, shifts in the energy markets, and why she's optimistic about the future. "The clean energy train has left the station and it's moving," she said. McCarthy is currently the director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard University. This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.This podcast is brought to you by Fiveworx, a turnkey customer engagement platform for utilities. Find out more about how Fiveworx can help your customer engagement program succeed -- and get you beyond the meter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Last year was a tough one for many U.S. solar companies. For the first time, America's solar market saw a decline in growth and solar employment.What gives? In this podcast, we're going to walk through the sector-specific factors that threw solar off its axis in 2017. Some of the questions we address in this episode:Residential customer acquisition: why is it getting so much harder to find new customers?Solar-plus-storage: where are batteries getting the most traction?Utility-scale solar: what's the latest data on pricing?Sunrun and Tesla: why is Sunrun doing so well, while Tesla keeps shrinking?Non-residential: why is this sector outshining others in terms of growth?Don't forget to come to our 11th annual Solar Summit in San Diego, where we'll be dissecting data in the top solar markets around the world. This podcast is brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.This podcast is brought to you by Fiveworx, a turnkey customer engagement platform for utilities. Find out more about how Fiveworx can help your customer engagement program succeed -- and get you beyond the meter.Recommended reading:GTM: US Residential and Utility-Scale Solar Markets See Installations Fall for the First TimeGTM Research: U.S. Solar Market Insight reportSubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Since 2015, large corporations have signed deals for more than 7 gigawatts of renewable energy. As activity picks up, these companies are grappling with increasingly complex deals. They're no longer just thinking about renewable energy credits or average consumption over the year; they're now looking at matching wind, solar and hydro supply directly with their on-site demand in a more granular way. Consequently, energy storage is becoming more attractive.This week, we're talking with two leading buyers of renewable energy, Google and Microsoft.We'll talk with Neha Palmer, Google's head of energy strategy, about hitting 100 percent renewable energy. Then, we'll talk with Brian Janous, Microsoft's general manager of energy, about how deals around the world are structured.We'll also grapple with a bigger question that corporate buyers are facing: what happens to their procurement when the gigawatts and gigawatts of renewables they’re buying literally reshape how markets function?This podcast is also brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.This podcast is brought to you by Fiveworx, a turnkey customer engagement platform for utilities. Find out more about how Fiveworx can help your customer engagement program succeed -- and get you beyond the meter.Recommended reading:GTM: The Latest Trends in Corporate Renewable Energy ProcurementGoogle: We’re Set to Reach 100% Renewable Energy -- and It’s Just the BeginningMicrosoft: Transitioning to Zero-Carbon EnergySubscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ryan Hanley is convinced that the distributed electric grid will create vastly more economic, security and societal value than today's centralized system.Over the course of his career as a civil engineer -- working at Pacific Gas & Electric, SolarCity, Tesla and now Advanced Microgrid Solutions -- Hanley has worked to understand and extract that value. "A macro theme that I've been tracking in my career is that exchange of value over the grid [that] I'm convinced will only become more transactive over time. More value will be exchanged in markets as the system relentlessly tries to take out economic fat from the system."In this week's conversation, Shayle Kann talks with Hanley about the tools at hand to re-engineer the distributed, transactive grid system. Topics addressed in this interview include:What distributed energy resources actually look like to utility distribution engineers and planners.The ultimate outcome of net metering battles and the market's natural "equilibrium."How markets can extract maximum value from solar, storage and load control.What it takes to build a 100-megawatt battery in South Australia in 100 days based on a tweet from Elon Musk.The role of blockchain in future electricity marketsPlus, we'll play a bonus round of "who said it" and quiz Hanley on quotes from executives from PG&E, SolarCity, Tesla and Advanced Microgrid Solutions.This podcast is also brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.This podcast is brought to you by Fiveworx, a turnkey customer engagement platform for utilities. Find out more about how Fiveworx can help your customer engagement program succeed -- and get you beyond the meter.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 2009, Sara Ross and her husband bought a dilapidated farmhouse in Massachusetts, intending to turn it into a net-zero home.Solar was an important part of the plan. And then came the price tag: $81,000 in cash. Their local solar installer had no financing options at that time.Ross cobbled the money together, but she became obsessed with the buying process: "How are other members of our family going to do this? How are our friends supposed to do this? How is this supposed to work? How are we going to scale this awesome thing if it's so very hard?"Finally, she harnessed that obsession (and her six-year-old daughter's college fund) and started a solar loan company, Sungage Financial. This was before anyone was serious about loans. Today, more rooftop solar in the U.S. is financed through loans than leases. In this week's edition of the live podcast series Watt It Takes, Ross sits down with Powerhouse CEO Emily Kirsch to discuss how she built Sungage -- evolving from solar customer to solar entrepreneur. Watt It Takes is a live interview series produced by Powerhouse in partnership with GTM. The conversation was recorded live in Oakland, California.Listen to our other episodes of Watt It Takes:Previous episodes of Watt It Takes: Nancy Pfund’s Pro Tips for Getting Started in CleantechSunPower Founder Dick Swanson’s Guide to Launching a Cleantech StartupLessons From the Fall of SungevityDan Shugar, the K​ing Midas of SolarA History of Greentech Media With Scott ClavennaThis podcast is also brought to you by Shoals, the gold standard for solar and storage balance-of-systems solutions. Learn more about how Shoals can make your project operate at the highest level.This podcast is brought to you by Fiveworx, a turnkey customer engagement platform for utilities. Find out more about how Fiveworx can help your customer engagement program succeed -- and get you beyond the meter.Like our shows? Make sure to give The Interchange and The Energy Gang a rating and review on Apple podcasts. And make sure to subscribe to both shows on Apple podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, or anywhere you get your podcasts.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.