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The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems. Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com

Clean Energy News LIVE - Tim Montague | Clean Power Hour LIVE Mar 3, 2022 Mar 11, 2022

Show notes

Clean Power Hour LIVE with Tim Montague | March 3, 2022

Check out these events:

April 5-7 Oakland, CA - Solar Plaza: SAMNA Solar Asset Management North America

Jun 20-22 Minneapolis, MN - Midwest Solar Expo

Simon Moores is coming on the Clean Power Hour LIVE show next week for our LIVE on Thursdays. Watch that interview here.

Elon Musk is right. We should go to Mars and spend a small percentage (~1%) of our GDP on establishing an outpost and then full-blown colony on Mars. The big rock that will snuff out life on earth yet again is somewhere out there.

Check out all of our content: www.CleanPower.group/podcast

Please subscribe to the Youtube channel too. Give the podcast a rating and review.

In the clean energy news today:

The Guardian: IPCC issues ‘bleakest warning yet’ on impacts of climate breakdown.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/feb/28/ipcc-issues-bleakest-warning-yet-impacts-climate-breakdown

Greenest Steel in America coming to Colorado powered by 300 mw solar farm

https://www.constructiondive.com/news/worlds-largest-solar-powered-steel-mill-breaks-ground-in-colorado/619381/

Clean Power Hour
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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Thomas Folker, CEO of Leap Energy | The One-Stop Shop for Grid Services Ep.76 Mar 08, 2022

Show notes

Thomas Folker describes Leap as the Stripe for energy.

The same way that Stripe provides the infrastructure for online payment processing, Leap allows anyone with energy resources (battery or EV companies, for example) to connect to the grid and trade energy as if they were a power plant.

In other words, Leap is a one-stop shop for grid services.

Thomas is the Cofounder and CEO of Leap Energy, a virtual power plant that connects EV, solar storage, battery and smart thermostat companies to the grid. To date, Leap serves customers in California, Texas and New York, with plans to expand and decarbonize electric grids across the US and internationally.

On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Thomas joins Tim to share his background building wind farms in the Netherlands and explain how he realized the value in selling grid services to utilities.

Thomas walks us through the concepts of demand response and demand flexibility, describing what differentiates Leap from traditional DRMS.

Listen in for Thomas’ insight around the legislation that allows virtual power plants like Leap to exist and learn what Leap can do to make global energy markets accessible to you.

Key Takeaways

How Thomas developed an interest in renewable energy and grid services

Why the Dutch were early adopters of wind technology and what inspired Thomas’ move to the US

How Thomas realized the value in selling grid services to utilities

How Leap functions as a virtual power plant to connect EV, solar storage, battery and smart thermostat companies to the grid

Leap’s ideal customer and how the company makes money

The concepts of demand response and demand flexibility

What differentiates Leap from traditional demand response aggregators (DRMS)

The 3 markets where Leap is active now and Thomas’ plans to expand to all relevant US markets

The legislation in the US that allows virtual power plants like Leap to exist

How Thomas navigates friction with utility companies (e.g.: the net metering fight in CA)

Connect with Thomas

Connect with Tim

Email tgmontague@gmail.com

California Independent System Operator

Resources

Enphase

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

Electric Reliability Council of Texas

Sponsor

Clean Power Consulting Group

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Matt Campbell of Terabase Energy on Building the Platform for Terawatt-Scale Solar Ep.75 Mar 01, 2022

Show notes

Less than 1% of the solar that’s going to be built has been built. And in the wake of climate change, it’s imperative that we build solar plants faster and make the process cheaper.

But what will it take to achieve terawatt-scale solar power?

Matt Campbell is the Cofounder and CEO of Terabase Energy, a technology solutions company on a mission to reduce costs and accelerate deployment by digitizing the solar power plant. Prior to Terabase, Matt spent 15 years at SunPower, and his experience spans 200-plus projects in 20 countries representing $10B in project investment.

On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Matt joins Tim to explain why digitization and automation are key in unlocking the full potential of PV technology and explore how close we are to seeing a robotized solar construction site.

Matt shares the thinking behind his cost-reduction goal of one cent per KWh of solar energy and describes how Terabase is addressing the two biggest constraints to reaching terawatt scale—cost and scalability.

Listen in for Matt’s insight on leveraging narrow AI to make solar farm design more efficient and learn how Terabase is reducing the carbon footprint of solar construction and minimizing its impact on the land while building the platform for terawatt-scale solar.

Key Takeaways

How the desire to drive innovation in utility-scale solar inspired Matt to build Terabase Energy

Why digitization and automation are key in unlocking the full potential of PV technology

The thinking behind Matt’s cost reduction goal of 1 cent per KWh of solar energy

Why Matt is a true believer in green hydrogen (and why we can’t get to full decarbonization without it)

How Terabase is addressing the 2 biggest constraints to reaching terawatt scale—cost and scalability

The Mammoth Solar Project and how narrow AI makes large-scale solar farm design more efficient

The benefits of automating solar construction

Matt’s perspective on scaling the US labor force in clean energy and clean tech

How close we are to seeing a robotized solar construction site

How to reduce the carbon footprint of solar construction and minimize its impact on the land

Connect with Matt

Connect with Tim

Email tgmontague@gmail.com

Mammoth Solar Farm Project

Resources

SunPower

RE|Plant Solutions

PlantPredict

Ultra Low-Carbon Solar Alliance

Solar Power International

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

LIVE from RE+ Northeast | Solar & Storage News | Clean Power Hour Feb. 23, 2022 Feb 24, 2022

Show notes

Solar & Storage News LIVE from Boston at RE+ Northeast

Reducing the cost of solar - John Weaver gives us some perspective as the owner of Whaling City Solar a residential solar installer in MA and RI. How does Australia and Germany achieve dollar a watt solar pricing? Standardization and streamlining of the permitting and installation. Check out SolarApp if you are an installer or AHJ for streamlining solar installation in the US.

What’s the purpose of attending these clean industry events? Ask Nico Johnson!

The challenges and opportunities of large format solar panels

Vertical, East-West racking for agrivoltaics in Alaska - Next2sun

EV and stationary storage - cost per kWh, cooling and temperature modulation

Moss Landing BESS has more technical fire safety challenges - Vistra is the owner with some large scale energy storage headaches.

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence CEO Simon Moores is coming on the show March 10, 2022 to talk lithium, batteries, EV supply chains and more! Join us!
Connect with Tim

Clean Power Hour

Email tgmontague@gmail.com

Clean Power Hour
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Review Clean Power Hour on Apple Podcasts
The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Aaron Berndt of Google Nest on Speeding Adoption of Smart Thermostats Ep.74 Feb 22, 2022

Show notes

Smart thermostats help us achieve a more flexible and resilient grid. And yet, only 10% to 20% of US households use a Nest or similar device to automate energy savings.

What can we do to speed the adoption of smart thermostats? How can companies like Google partner with utilities, inspiring residential customers to take action on energy efficiency?

Aaron Berndt is the Head of Industry Partnerships at Google, where he has served on the energy efficiency team for six years. Prior to Google, Aaron spent another six years at Pacific Gas and Electric, acquiring a deep knowledge of how demand-side management programs work.

On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Aaron joins Tim to share his definition of a smart thermostat and discuss the energy efficiency targets Google believes the Nest ecosystem can achieve.

Aaron explains what it means for an investor-owned utility to partner with Google, describing how a utility marketplace makes it much easier for consumers to participate in IOU demand response programs.

Listen in for Aaron’s insight on how DR aggregators work to automate demand response (with the consumer’s blessing) and learn what we can do to increase the number of residential energy efficiency incentive programs and accelerate the adoption of smart thermostats like Nest.

Key Takeaways

The energy efficiency targets Google believes the Nest ecosystem can achieve

How Google is overcoming the challenge of getting residential customers to take action on energy efficiency

How Aaron defines a smart thermostat in terms of its ability to automate energy savings

What it means for an investor-owned utility (IOU) to partner with Google

How a utility marketplace simplifies the process of participating in demand response programs

How DR aggregators work to automate demand response (with the consumer’s blessing)

The statistics around smart thermostat adoption in the US

Why we’re seeing an exponential increase in the number of residential demand response programs

The relative importance of residential vs. commercial and industrial participation in demand response programs

What we can do to accelerate the adoption of smart thermostats like Nest

Connect with Aaron

Aaron on LinkedIn

Email aaronberndt@google.com

Connect with Tim

Clean Power Hour

Email tgmontague@gmail.com

ENERGY STAR Certification

Resources

Nest Renew

Uplight

EFI

AM Conservation Group

EVERSOURCE Demand Response Program

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Clean Energy News | Clean Power Hour LIVE Feb 17, 2022 Feb 20, 2022

Show notes

Illinois clean energy boom is back
10-20 GW electrolyzer coming to California?
World’s largest wind turbine blade looks like a skate park
John bought a Hyundai Ionic 5 - yes!
Check out all of our content at www.CleanPowerHour.com
Subscribe to our youtube channel: https://bit.ly/cph-sub

Illinois Clean Energy Boom is back on
https://electrek.co/2022/02/15/egeb-illinois-to-shut-all-fossil-fuel-plants-by-2045-and-invest-580m-a-year-in-renewables/

Southern California Gas Company is submitting an application to build a 10 to 20GW electrolyzer and 25 to 35GW of new and curtailed wind and solar, along with 2GW of energy storage, to deliver green hydrogen to the Los Angeles Basin.

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/17/la-could-soon-be-home-to-the-nations-largest-green-hydrogen-infrastructure-system/

World’s largest wind turbine blade - here’s the mould, it looks like a skate park

https://www.offshorewind.biz/2022/02/10/vestas-installs-mould-for-worlds-longest-wind-turbine-blades/

John bought an Ionic 5

https://twitter.com/SolarInMASS/status/1493937420764696577

Europe is building a massive number of battery factories - everywhere:

https://twitter.com/pogechi/status/1492422415800061952

5.4 TWh of battery manufacturing capacity in the pipeline by 2030

https://twitter.com/sdmoores/status/1493590988329213955

Complementing the above reality is a great chart of mining for lithium - expect it to POP

https://twitter.com/ProfRayWills/status/1492457305216262151

Tesla charging network is now available for all companies in the Netherlands, if this comes to the USA that’s real nice

https://electrek.co/2022/02/14/tesla-expands-access-supercharger-network-all-electric-car-all-stations-netherlands/

Article of mine: List of rejected solar power plants, 17 of them since 2017 - but we’ve built over 2600 - this guy is just a hater though, and I think that we’ve built so many he actually underscores his logic

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/16/they-love-me-they-love-me-not-a-tale-of-solar-power-romance/

Solar corporate PPA procurement is up massively, but pricing of PPAs is up as well over the last year or more

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/14/solar-power-pricing-is-up-and-so-is-demand/

Cool chart showing solar jobs and salaries

https://solarpower.guide/solar-energy-insights/which-solar-jobs-pay-most

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Clean Power Hour LIVE | Electrification of Everything is Truly Disruptive | Feb. 3, 2022 Feb 16, 2022

Show notes

The Energy Transition is Going to Require a Staggering Growth in Electrification and Enabling Technologies https://www.powermag.com/the-energy-transition-will-require-staggering-growth-in-electrification-and-enabling-technologies/

Long duration energy storage procurement - more than 4 hours, up to 8, won by - surprise - lithium ion versus other sources https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/long-duration-energy-storage/lithium-ion-batteries-beat-novel-long-duration-tech-in-california-contest

PA politician introduces legislation that says state must sell its RECs to fund capping oil/gas wells https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/01/solar-indulgences-for-fossil-sins-in-pennsylvania/

Beer company capturing CO2 from the air to feed its beer carbonation https://twitter.com/SolarInMASS/status/1487110715169292290

Someone thinking about building a robotic network somewhere between the moon and the earth https://www.theverge.com/2022/2/3/22914873/quantum-space-lunar-robotic-outpost-nasa-artemis

Some politicking - suggestions that the Biden admin will keep trump solar panel tariffs in place, but let the bifacial ones lapse https://twitter.com/JarrettRenshaw/status/1486778461930799111

Most interesting solar panel purchase agreement I’ve seen before - 250 MW a year, 25% of Heliene’s product, but Altus also has to invest $5 million in Heliene's soon public launch

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/01/us-solar-module-manufacturer-nets-5-million-investment-250mw-supply-deal/

Polysilicon manufacturing technology - GCL poly, one of largest making this product, has first granular poly facility come online - two cool data points, 15% higher gross margin, and 35% less CO2 https://www.pv-tech.org/gcl-poly-confirms-completion-of-its-granular-silicon-facility-expects-us850m-net-profit-in-2021/

Hydrogen electrolyzers installed going to grow 4X in 2022, thats an S Curve https://about.newenergyfinance.com/blog/hydrogen-10-predictions-for-2022/

And an example - 150 MW project online, world’s largest by 5X https://www.rechargenews.com/energy-transition/record-breaker-world-s-largest-green-hydrogen-project-with-150mw-electrolyser-brought-on-line-in-china/2-1-1160799

An oil tanker burning https://twitter.com/JavierBlas/status/1489153976620756993

CO2 free lithium mining

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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Clean Power Hour LIVE | US Military Going Carbon Neutral | Feb. 10, 2022 Feb 16, 2022

Show notes

US military starts 24-7 clean electricity procurement
First real big Flow battery utility discussion
Import tariffs extended…cmon joe?
SpaceX rocket fully stacked
PV Mag reports that the US Military is doubling down on carbon-free energy

https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2022/02/10/the-u-s-army-commits-to-using-100-clean-electricity-by-2030/

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III: “We face all kinds of threats in our line of work, but few of them truly deserve to be called existential. The climate crisis does. Climate change is making the world more unsafe and we need to act.”

Pentagon last week started soliciting contractors to learn about 24-7 clean electricity

https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/pentagon-kicks-off-bid-for-round-the-clock-renewable-energy

Project of the week from Weaver - we got final approvals, starting site clearing
https://twitter.com/SolarInMASS/status/149108663567268659
Form Energy working together to build what could be one of the largest batteries by storage capacity in the world:

https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/long-duration-energy-storage/iron-air-battery-maker-form-has-an-unexpected-new-customer-georgia-power
The spaceship is atop a rocket at SpaceX
https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1491817170258563080

Rivian Vans
https://twitter.com/reillybrennan/status/1490340505435222024
Solar panel import tariff extended for four more years, bifacials officially exempted

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/biden-extends-solar-tariff-4-years-easing-trump-era-requirements/618408/
These seven powerlines, costing $1.8 billion, would enable 28 to 53 GW - $30 to at least $50 billion worth - of wind solar and storage to be deployed.

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/spp-miso-identify-seven-cross-seam-transmission-projects-renewable-wind/618152/
Opinions on polysilicon pricing - most everyone thinks pricing is falling, but the rate is what matters

https://twitter.com/SolarInMASS/status/1490026475873001472

Solar Canals in Cali

The Hill: First-in-the-nation project will cover canals with solar panel canopies | TheHill.

https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/energy/593694-first-in-the-nation-project-will-cover-canals-with

35 GW of USA offshore wind capacity in the pipeline, and it doens’t include west or gulf coast capacity

https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/wind/chart-how-11-states-are-building-the-us-offshore-wind-industry-from-scratch

Clean Power Hour
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The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

Live from Starbase: Clean Energy News with Weaver & Montague Ep.72 Feb 08, 2022

Show notes

Tesla’s Q4 numbers are among the top stories in clean energy this week, so it’s only appropriate that this recording coincide with Tim's pilgrimage to SpaceX. So, what’s it like to spend time at Giga Texas, the Tesla manufacturing facility near Austin? Or the rocket production facility and spaceport near Brownsville?

On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Tim and John come to you live from Starbase in Boca Chica, Texas, to discuss the latest in clean energy news. They explain the significance of PG&E’s plan to procure 1.6 GW of battery storage in California and share the latest DOE research on how many terawatt hours of storage are needed for the US to reach Zero Carbon by 2050.

John describes the game-changing technology in the new electric Airstream and offers his take on the importance of the Ford Transit EV as an accepted fleet vehicle. Listen in for insight around the current proposal to extend clean energy tax credits and learn more about the innovative offshore wind projects that are popping up all over the world.

Key Takeaways

Tim’s experience at Giga Texas and the SpaceX Starbase in Boca Chica

The significance of PG&E’s plan to procure 1.6 GW of battery storage in California

Tesla’s Q4 results and why Musk doesn’t want to promote V2G

How the latest DOE research suggests that 6.5 terawatt hours of energy storage is needed to reach Zero Carbon by 2050

The game-changing technology in Thor Industries’ new electric Airstream

Senator Tina Smith’s proposal to extend clean energy tax credits

The rooftop solar project John is doing for a customer in Rhode Island

The importance of the new Ford Transit EV as an accepted vehicle for fleets

What inspired China to build more offshore wind capacity in 2021 than the rest of the world in the last 5 years combined

ScotWind’s bid of 25 GW and the long-term potential of offshore wind

Connect with Tim

Clean Power Hour

‘PG&E Plans to Add a Lot of Batteries to California’s Grid’ in Bloomberg

Connect with John

Commercial Solar Guy

John on Twitter

John on LinkedIn

Resources

Tesla’s 2021 & Q4 Results

The Energy Show

NEM-3

‘Six Terawatt Hours of Energy Storage Needed for Zero Carbon’ in PV Magazine

‘Electric Airstream Concept Is the RV Industry’s iPhone Moment’ in Electrek

‘Senator Smith to Push Ahead on Passage of Clean Energy Tax Credits’ in Utility Dive

John’s Project of the Week

The Ford Transit EV

China’s Offshore Wind Chart

Orsted’s Offshore Charging Buoys

Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed and Fail by Ray Dalio

The Art of War by Sun Tzu