Technology

Factor This

Launched in 2022, the Factor This Podcast has featured many of the most influential leaders driving the energy transition. From solar and battery storage executives to utility CEOs, the Factor This Podcast brings unique insights and answers to the energy industry’s most pressing challenges. Go beyond high-level trends and mainstream talking points with actionable takeaways.

The Factor This Podcast grew in 2023 with the addition of This Week in Cleantech, a weekly roundup of the biggest stories in climate and clean energy in 15 minutes or less. With new episodes every Friday, Factor This content director Paul Gerke and Mike Casey, a cleantech commentator and president of Tigercomm, bring listeners the most important headlines of the week while featuring the leading journalists behind the stories.

The all-new FactorThis.com is your best source for news, commentary, and analysis of renewable energy and the power grid.

Latest Episodes:

From reactive to predictive: Reimagining wildfire mitigation efforts for utilities Mar 09, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

The energy landscape has entered a volatile era of climate disruption. Regions once considered safe now face the devastating reality of escalating wildfires and extreme weather. In this episode, we sit down with Don McPhail, VP of Market Development at eSmart Systems, to discuss why traditional, asset-focused mitigation is no longer enough for utilities across the United States.

We explore the critical shift to community-first resilience models, where protecting life-sustaining infrastructure takes priority over mere compliance. How exactly are digitization and AI-powered digital twins transforming grid safety? What does it mean to use high-resolution imagery to identify minute defects like upside-down cotter pins in a way that creates quantifiable value? Don provides a roadmap for utility leaders ready to trade siloed data practices for predictive insights that save time, money, and lives.

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (03/06/2026) - Is the MAGA movement warming up to solar? Mar 06, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Evan Halper from the Washington Post, who wrote about some MAGA figures who are warming to solar despite Donald Trump’s longstanding criticism of it.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is David Jankowsky, CEO of Francis Energy. Francis Energy provides ultra-fast charging stations for EVs, and focuses on expanding charging access to underserved and rural communities to ensure no community is left behind in the transition to electric vehicles. Congratulations, David!

This Week in Cleantech — March 06, 2026

Don’t Look Now, but the Green Transition Is Still Happening — The New York Times
What Trump’s war on Iran means for the US energy crunch — The Verge
What AES’ $33.4 billion take-private says about energy and AI — Latitude Media
Europe Is Learning An Uncomfortable Truth About Local Battery Production — InsideEVs
Why Katie Miller and other MAGA influencers suddenly love solar power — The Washington Post

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (02/27/2026) - Clean energy bans 'skyrocket' Feb 27, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Elizabeth Weise from USA Today, who wrote about how clean energy bans are "skyrocketing" under the second Trump administration.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Gonzalo Castro de la Mata, Executive Director at Earthna, who recently published an op-ed about how the climate conversation is now shifting from goals to implementation, focused on energy security, finance, and scalable solutions, especially as surpassing 1.5°C appears more likely. He pushes for us to move faster from climate agreements to execution.

This Week in Cleantech — February 27, 2026

Data centers done right? Xcel and Form Energy team up to power Google operation in Minnesota — Factor This
US particle accelerators turn nuclear waste into electricity, cut radioactive life by 99.7% — Interesting Engineering
Clean Energy Manufacturers Set to Muddle Through Fresh Tariff Turmoil — The Wall Street Journal
Data Center Outlook: Half of 2026 Pipeline May Not Materialize — Sightline Climate
Clean energy bans skyrocket under Trump, USA TODAY analysis finds — USA Today

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

How utilities are transitioning from short-term battery applications to long-term BESS planning Feb 23, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

With global energy demand at an all-time high, battery storage is evolving from a flexible filler into a critical grid resource. Success in this new era depends less on the hardware itself and more on the digital intelligence used to run it. By leveraging a digital layer to optimize the economics of battery assets, utilities are now rethinking BESS as a high-value, GW-scale engine for reliability and market participation.

To understand what this means on a practical level, we sat down with Brian Fellon, the Senior Vice President of Power Solutions at Xpansiv. He explains why battery energy storage systems are no longer an optional add-on but a critical backbone for grid operators. We also explore how utilities are moving from small-scale pilots to gigawatt-scale operations, the role of batteries in managing volatile demand from data centers, how real-time market participation demonstrates measurable value to regulators and ratepayers and much more.

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (02/20/2026) - Putting retired EV batteries back to work Feb 23, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Arcelia Martin from Inside Climate News, who wrote about how Texas is using hundreds of retired, repurposed EV batteries as grid-connected energy storage.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is David Kirkpatrick, Managing Director at SJF Ventures. David recently published a piece titled, “Climate Tech is Not Endangered” on LinkedIn. The piece argues that even with the Trump Administration rolling back federal climate policy, market and global momentum toward electrification and decarbonization will continue. Congratulations, David!

This Week in Cleantech — February 20, 2026

Why Living in China Is Like ‘Living in the Future’ — The New York Times
Ford turns to F1 and bounties to build a $30,000 electric truck — TechCrunch
Data Centers and Your Power Bill — The New York Times
Supreme Court strikes down Trump’s sweeping tariffs, upending central plank of economic agenda — AP News
Retired EV Batteries Scored a New Gig: Bolstering Texas’ Grid — Inside Climate News

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (02/13/2026) - Trump removes legal basis under Clean Air Act Feb 13, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Matthew Daly from The Associated Press, who wrote about how the EPA has rescinded the 2009 “endangerment finding,” the scientific and legal basis under the Clean Air Act that allowed the federal government to regulate greenhouse gas emissions to address climate change.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Brian Hurley, executive director of Friends of Deckers Creek. He and his team are turning toxic, rust-orange acid coal mine drainage into clean water again with low-tech pond systems that bring back fish, salamanders, and frogs. And the cleanup is now helping recover rare earth minerals too, turning pollution into a resource that can fund even more restoration. Congratulations, Brian!

This Week in Cleantech — February 13, 2026

Are faked public comments about to tank an Ohio solar farm? — Canary Media
Trump Administration Is Delaying Hundreds of Wind and Solar Projects — The New York Times
Wind and solar beat fossil fuels in EU power mix in 2025, energy think tank says — Reuters
Geothermal could replace almost half of the EU’s fossil fuel power — Grist
Trump's EPA revokes scientific finding that underpinned US fight against climate change — The Associated Press

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

Prioritizing affordability while modernizing the grid, with Exelon EVP and COO Mike Innocenzo Feb 09, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

As energy demand reaches historic levels, the utility industry needs to build a 21st-century grid while also keeping monthly bills affordable for the average family. What does it mean to do so on a practical level?

To find out, we connected with Exelon EVP and COO Mike Innocenzo. Drawing on a career that began as a field engineer, he explains why affordability has become the starting point for every conversation at Exelon. He shares how the company navigates the massive costs of data center integration and EV adoption while overseeing a $38 billion capital plan. We also explore the reality of hardening the grid, the regulatory innovations needed to streamline costs, how Exelon uses AI to protect their customer’s bottom line and much more.

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (02/06/2026) - Can this safer nuclear fuel make a comeback? Feb 06, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Monika Gerhart, executive director at Gulf States Renewable Energy Industries Association, who is championing clean energy benefits and opportunities in a region well known for its fossil fuel legacy. Monika orchestrated an event last week where various businesses and trade associations held panels on several topics, one of which being how to handle energy demand for huge data centers. Erin Greeson made this nomination, and she noted to never underestimate Louisianians. Congratulations Monika!

This Week in Cleantech — February 6, 2026

China’s Solar Power Capacity on Course to Surpass Coal This Year — Bloomberg
Google Is Spending Big to Build a Lead in the AI Energy Race – WSJ
Texas’ Grid Holds Up During Winter Weather — Inside Climate News
Surge in public charging infrastructure defies EV slowdown — Axios
The Super Safe, Super Expensive Nuclear Fuel That’s Making a Comeback — Heatmap News

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

This Week in Cleantech (01/30/2026) - How much can New England really depend on Canadian hydro? Jan 30, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.

This week's episode features special guest Jon Chesto from The Boston Globe, who wrote about new questions about how dependable Canadian hydropower will be during severe winter storms.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Andrew Beebe, Managing Director at Obvious Ventures. This week, the company announced Fund 5, which closed at $360,360,360. Congratulations, Andrew!

This Week in Cleantech — January 30, 2026

EVs just outsold gas cars in Europe for the first time — Fast Company
Power Outages Could Rise as Freezing Temperatures Persist After Winter Storm — The New York Times
Michigan attorney general sues oil industry over allegations of collusion against electric vehicles and renewable energy — POLITICO
US Exits Paris Agreement: What Trump’s Withdrawal Means for Climate Change — Bloomberg
New power line provided little juice to New England during Sunday’s storm, frigid temperatures — The Boston Globe

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast

PG&E defines a new utility model for data centers, onsite gas, and community connection Jan 26, 2026

Show notes

Tell us what you think of the show!

The scale of energy demand in Northern California has reached a historic inflection point. With a 10 GW pipeline of data center demand—enough load to power more than 7.5 million homes—utility planners at Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) are navigating a high-stakes race against time, infrastructure limits, and the laws of physics.

To better understand how PG&E is turning these challenges into opportunities, we connected with two people who are doing exactly that for the company every single day. Austin Hastings is Vice President, Gas Engineering at PG&E while Mike Medeiros is Vice President, Strategic Commercial Solutions at PG&E.

Energy policy on your mind? Check out all episodes of the Factor This Policycast