The Energy Gang

It’s been a bad couple of weeks for two of Silicon Valley’s top car companies. After a pedestrian was killed by one of Uber’s autonomous cars in Arizona, the company’s AV operations were suspended. Other driverless car companies are now weighing the consequences to the technology, and regulators are asking if we need to slow down real-world testing. Tesla is dealing with two crashes of its own. The crash of a Model X is raising questions about autopilot mode, and its stock has crashed 25 percent this month as investors worry about Model 3 delivery problems. We'll look at the latest for Uber and Tesla in this week's episode. Then, we'll return to Washington. It was also a bad week for Trump, who didn’t get his cuts to energy programs in the latest federal budget. We’ll look at why the GOP is so out of step with the White House on clean energy cuts. This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Recommended reading:GTM: Arizona Suspends Uber’s Autonomous Cars After a Death. What’s Next for Driverless Cars?GTM: Tesla Hit by Executive Churn, Model 3 Quality ConcernsGTM: The President’s Own Party Still Doesn’t Back His Attempts to Dismantle Clean EnergySubscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

In the early 2000s, investors weren't very interested in SunEdison's business plan to finance solar with power purchase agreements. "No one wanted to hear about physical infrastructure," said Jigar Shah, who drafted the business plan and co-founded the company. It took until 2006 to raise venture capital. But soon after, PPA customers started rolling in: Staples, Ikea, then Whole Foods. "It was an idea who's time had come," said Shah. The PPA is now the backbone of solar. In this week's edition of the live podcast series Watt It Takes, Shah sits down with Powerhouse CEO Emily Kirsch to discuss his career in solar -- from Astropower to the Department of Energy to BP Solar and, eventually, to founding (and leaving) SunEdison. Jigar talks about why he left SunEdison, why he thinks Goldman Sachs was a terrible board member, and why cleantech entrepreneurs are taking really dumb money. Watt It Takes is a live interview series produced by Powerhouse in partnership with GTM. The conversation was recorded live in Oakland, California. This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Listen to our other 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 ClavennaSungage's Sara Ross on Starting a Solar Loan CompanyLike 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.

There are three forces coming together in the transportation sector: vehicle autonomy, vehicle sharing, and vehicle electrification. On their own, app-based sharing and electric vehicles are powerful agents of change. Together with automation, "they're revolutionary," argues Dr. Dan Sperling, author of a new book on the subject. "It will change our lifestyles, it'll change the automobile industry, it'll change land use and cities, it'll change energy," he explains on this week's podcast. Sperling is the author of Three Revolutions: Steering Automated, Shared, and Electric Vehicles to a Better Future. He joins us on The Energy Gang for a conversation about whether these revolutions will reinvent -- or ruin -- the way we get around. In the second half of the show, we'll talk about the continued realignment of global energy giants. We’ll run through some of the recent strategy shifts at the world’s top energy companies as they grapple with the clean energy, customer-centric transition. This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Recommended reading:Amazon: Three Revolutions -- Steering Automated, Shared, and Electric Vehicles to a Better Future.Bloomberg: Only Carpools Can Keep the Driverless Future From Becoming a NightmareGTM: Statoil Is Now Equinor, in a Rebrand for the Energy TransitionGTM: E.ON and RWE Merger to Create New European Giants in Renewables and Retail EnergyGTM: Engie Advances ‘Energy Transition’ Plan With Major Stake in Electro Power SystemsSubscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

Amazon's analytical approach to understanding the customer allowed it to move beyond books and dominate the retail space. Entire industries are getting upended and transformed as a result. This story about disruption is a familiar one. We’ve seen how it plays time and time again – and it’s not pretty for the incumbents who fail to catch up with technology.  It's a compelling narrative in the utility space, where we are smack in the middle of an Amazon moment. Electricity consumers want choice. They respond to personalization. And there’s a new generation of technology providers who think they can give consumers what they want – better than traditional brick and mortar utilities. And that’s why Tendril CEO Adrian Tuck sees the importance of talking about Amazon as a model. “How did they go from one thing to this broad level of disruption? They massively focused on the customer and what the customer wants. They looked at every piece of the chain and they tried to make everything easier for the customer. They’re really looking at all those pieces and innovated rapidly to make the buying experience compelling and simple to use," said Tuck. In this podcast, we'll talk with Tuck about the future of data acquisition, personalization, demand-side management and utility business models. Recommended reading:Tendril e-book: The Amazon Effect: Energy in the On Demand Era and What It Means for UtilitiesGTM: Utilities Have the Tools to Unleash the Power of Customers This podcast is brought to you by Tendril, the industry’s leading DSM data analytics software provider. 

Last June, comedian John Oliver devoted a long segment to the struggling coal industry on his HBO show Last Week Tonight.  He turned his attention to Robert Murray, the CEO of Murray Energy, one of the most bombastic advocates of coal. And then Murray sued Oliver for defamation. That defamation lawsuit was thrown out by a judge last week. But the saga tells us a lot about Robert Murray, one of the most influential figures behind the Trump Administration's coal policies. In this week's episode, we'll discuss Murray's approach to promoting coal and silencing critics. Then, a look at some new documents from the Seminar Network, a group created by Charles and David Koch, claiming big wins on killing climate policy. The group is planning to spend up to $400 million on mid-term elections. We'll talk about how the Kochs killed America's climate conversation over the last decade. Finally, Trump is now claiming he saved the solar industry with tariffs. We discuss the truth.  This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Recommended reading:The Times-Picayune: How John Oliver and a Giant Squirrel Had Their Day in Court -- and WonNew York Times: How a Coal Baron’s Wish List Became President Trump’s To-Do ListThe Intercept: Koch Document Reveals Laundry List of Policy VictoriesGTM: Trump Claims Solar Tariffs Are ‘Reopening Plants.’ They’re Not

If storage is the Swiss Army Knife of the electric grid, then U.S. energy regulators are breaking out their tool belts. Last week brought a historic ruling at FERC. Commissioners told regional grid operators to create rules valuing the grid services of energy storage. Will it screw natural gas peakers – or maybe cut, saw, file, prune, hook, or crimp them? Later in the podcast, an infrastructure redux. The White House’s infrastructure plan is out. When it comes to energy, the Trump Administration is making pipelines a priority, and largely bypassing clean energy. We’re heading down to Mexico for our final segment. GTM was there for our solar summit last week, and we’ll share a bit of insight into the forces behind one of the hottest -- and cheapest -- solar markets in the world. This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Recommended reading:GTM: FERC Allows Energy Storage to Play in Nationwide Wholesale MarketsFERC: Final Rule on Electric Storage Participation in Regional MarketsGTM: The Trump Infrastructure Plan Is ‘a Big Nothing Burger’ for Clean EnergyWaPo: Trump's Infrastructure Plan Would Make It Harder to Challenge PipelinesGTM: Mexico’s Solar Market Is Booming, but Still Has Key Hurdles to ClearSubscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

Since the White House slapped penalties on solar panels made outside America, a handful of companies say they’re likely to ramp up production in the U.S. In recent weeks, two Asian producers -- Jinko Solar and United Renewable Energy -- said they're planning to set up new module assembly plants. Other domestic producers are making plans to hire new employees. How should we interpret this activity? Does this mean the tariffs are working?  On this week's Energy Gang, we're joined by GTM Senior Editor Julia Pyper, who outlines the latest activity as the tariffs become law. Then, it’s the news circuit. We’ll explore Puerto Rico’s utility privatization plans, Tesla’s virtual power plant in Australia, the Northern Pass transmission rejection, and Arizona’s conservative clean energy plan. This podcast is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Stories referenced in this podcast:Did Trump’s Solar Tariffs Just Launch a US Manufacturing Renaissance?JinkoSolar Set to Build a US Factory, the First Planned in Response to TariffsPuerto Rico’s Utility Moves Toward Privatization, With Strained CooperationNew Hampshire Rejects Northern Pass Transmission Line PermitArizona Regulator Proposes Biggest Storage and Clean Energy Target Yet Subscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

There are tens of thousands large-scale wind turbines scattered across America. That means over a million and a half households are located five miles from a turbine. And they’re actually inching closer to homes on average, according to government researchers. So how do those machines impact our property values, our soundscapes, and our quality of life? The Lawrence Berkeley National Lab has a slew of new data on the impact of wind turbines on our lives. In this week's podcast, we’re going to dive into it. (Spoiler: the majority of people like them. We'll explain why.) Then we’re going to talk about the president’s State of the Union Address. Why did Trump duck away from the coal renaissance narrative? And finally, we'll explore the controversy around Massachusetts' deal with Northern Pass to supply 17 percent of its electricity with Canadian hydro. Recommended reading:LBNL: National Survey of Attitudes of Wind Power Project NeighborsGTM: Trump Touts the End of the ‘War on American Energy’GTM: The Controversy Surrounding Massachusetts’ $1.6B Hydropower Transmission LineVox: Reckoning With Climate Change Will Demand Ugly Tradeoffs The Energy Gang is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions.

The Trump Administration just imposed 30 percent tariffs on imported solar cells and modules. How much will it stunt solar growth in America? Will it spark a broader trade war? There are a lot of questions about the impact. In this podcast, we’re giving you the answers – or, as many answers we have, just a day after the decision. This week, we'll bring together our teams from The Interchange and The Energy Gang together to answer listener questions about the tariffs. We'll also talk with GTM Research's Cory Honeyman about how (and where) the 30 percent penalty will impact projects around the U.S. Thanks to sponsor, C Power Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. In this episode, we address:What does a 30 percent tariff mean for project economics in the residential and utility-scale sectors?How will the 2.5 gigawatt cell quota work?Will the decision help domestic U.S. manufacturing? Will it hurt domestic installation jobs?What kind of challenges will we see at the World Trade Organization?Is there a pathway toward a negotiation with China?How could local policy blunt the negative impact of these tariffs? Read all our previous coverage and analysis of the Trump Administration's solar tariffs:GTM Research: New Tariffs to Curb US Solar Installations by 11% Through 2022GTM: Trump Administration Issues 30% Solar Panel Import TariffGTM: Foreign Solar Manufacturers Weigh Opening US Facilities as Tariff Decision Looms 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.

The next sector ripe for electrification: aviation. Electric airplanes could completely make over the regional airline sector -- fundamentally changing the way we move around the country and creating new economic opportunities. On this week's Energy Gang, we'll talk with Ashish Kumar, the CEO of Zunum Aero, about the company's electric propulsion system and hybrid-electric airplane model. We'll discuss design challenges, battery requirements, immediate market opportunities, and the long-term economic consequences of electrified aviation. Then, a look at the latest global figures on renewables investment. China had another explosive year in 2017, while America had an anemic one. We'll tease out the latest global numbers that broke over the last week. The Energy Gang is brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. Recommended reading:Zunum Aero technology and designGTM: Zunum Aero, an Electric Airplane Startup Backed by Boeing and JetBlue Ventures, UnstealthsGTM: Global Renewable Energy Prices Will Be Competitive With Fossil Fuels by 2020GTM: China More Than Doubles America’s 2017 Investments in Clean Energy, in a ‘Runaway’ Year Subscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

Nearly one year after President Trump was sworn into office, we’re re-examining the state of energy politics in Washington. Our post-election episodes were some of our most popular shows of last year. This week, we’re returning to the subject now that we’ve got experience, and not just speculation. Amy Harder, an energy and climate reporter with Axios, joins us to talk about a wide range of topics: Rick Perry's NOPR rejection, deregulation, solar tariffs, ANWR drilling, carbon taxes, an infrastructure bill, and the future of climate negotiations. The podcast is also brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions.  Recommended reading:GTM: FERC Rejects Energy Secretary Rick Perry’s Coal and Nuclear Energy Market Bailout PlanAxios: Eight Climate and Energy Issues to Watch in 2018Politico: White House Preparing for Trade CrackdownSubscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

What's it like inside the Environmental Protection Agency as the Trump Administration dismantles it from the top down? This week, ProPublica’s Talia Buford joins us on The Energy Gang to talk about how Scott Pruitt’s aggressive regulatory rollback agenda is changing the agency’s relationship to science, to industry, and to the staffers who've worked there for decades. An abandoned rule on effluent from power plants tells us a lot about Pruitt's approach to disassembling the EPA. Then, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo unveiled his latest energy vision, which features big targets for offshore wind and energy storage. Is New York suddenly the country’s hottest storage market? And finally, we’ll wrap up with a glance at two once-mighty companies in solar that are re-emerging after tough times: BP Solar and SunEdison.  The podcast is also brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions.  Recommended reading:ProPublica: What It’s Like Inside the Trump Administration’s Regulatory Rollback at the EPAGTM: Andrew Cuomo Throws Political Weight Behind Offshore Wind and Energy StorageGTM: SunEdison Emerges From Bankruptcy a Shadow of Its Former SelfGTM: BP Jumps Back Into Solar With a $200 Million Investment in Europe’s Biggest Project Developer Subscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

We spend most of our time talking about other companies. For our first podcast of the year, we're turning the tables and reflecting on GTM. In this edition of Watt It Takes, Powerhouse CEO Emily Kirsch interviews GTM Co-Founder Scott Clavenna about the origins of our company, the challenges of being a startup in the cleantech world, and our recent acquisition by Wood Mackenzie.  Watt It Takes is a live interview series produced by Powerhouse in partnership with GTM. The conversation was recorded live in Oakland, California. As we prepare for the onslaught of news in 2018, this interview will give you more insight into how we operate as a company. The podcast is also brought to you by CPower Energy Management. Find out more about CPower's demand-side energy management solutions. 

Good journalism is more important than ever. In our last episode of the year, we're choosing our favorite energy reporting of 2017. We'll start off with a conversation about a damning investigative piece on how U.S. utilities put ratepayers on the hook for $40 billion in failed coal and nuke projects. Tony Bartelme, a special projects reporter at the Post and Courier, joins us to talk about his bombshell story, "Power Failure: How Utilities Across the U.S. Changed the Rules to Make Big Bets With Your Money." He and his team talked with 50 sources in industry and government. They uncovered a systematic effort to obfuscate problems with risky coal and nuke projects -- and pay executives handsomely while doing so. In the second half of the show, we'll discuss some of our other favorite stories about microgrids, coal country, electric cars, fuel cells, politics, and the global energy transition. This podcast is sponsored by Mission Solar Energy, a solar module manufacturer based in San Antonio, Texas. You can find out more about Mission’s American-made, high-power modules at missionsolar.com. Here's a list of our favorite stories that we discussed on the show:Vox: Meet the Microgrid, the Technology Poised to Transform ElectricityNY Times: Where Wind Farms Meet Coal Country, There's Enduring Faith in TrumpMedium: The Last Auto MechanicQuartz: Amazon’s Hydrogen-Powered Forklifts Are Its Latest Attempt to Beat WalmartGTM: Global Oil Majors Are Poised for a Resurgence in Solar and WindGTM: In Storage vs. Peaker Study, CAISO’s Outdated Cost Estimates Produce Higher Price Tag for StorageGTM: The Rising Tide of Evidence Against Blaming Wind and Solar for Grid InstabilityGTM: First Solar Proves That PV Plants Can Rival Frequency Response Services From Natural Gas PeakersGTM: What Superstorm Sandy Taught Consolidated Edison, 5 Years OnTwitter: Suggestions from the energy community on the top stories Subscribe to The Energy Gang podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher or wherever you find your audio content.

Energy storage has arrived.  This year brought numerous record-breaking battery projects, dozens of acquisitions and partnerships, and over a dozen utility integrated resource plans that factor storage. Within a decade, the U.S. storage market could be 25 times bigger than it is today -- swamping natural gas peaker plants, and enabling a vast array of new grid applications. In this week's episode, we open up our vault of data and describe the state of storage in America: which sectors are dominating, how utilities are thinking about the technology, where the economics stand, and what to look for in 2018. Plus, we'll have a conversation with Green Mountain Power CEO Mary Powell about how customer-sited battery storage fits into the utility's broad culture and tech shift. This podcast is sponsored by Mission Solar Energy, a solar module manufacturer based in San Antonio, Texas. Find out more about Mission’s American-made, high-power modules. Recommended reading: ·      GTM Research: U.S. Energy Storage Monitor, Q4 2017 ·      GTM: The 10 Stories That Defined Energy Storage in 2017 ·      GTM Squared: Watch the Live Broadcast From US Energy Storage Summit 2017 Make sure to subscribe to The Energy Gang on Apple podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, or wherever you get your audio.