Factor This!

Jeff Waters is always looking for a challenge. He thrives on chasing growth and the rush that comes by solving hard problems. And a maturing market often signals the need for a fresh start.

So it may come as no surprise that Waters found his way to battery storage, and one of its darlings, Oregon-based Powin Energy. The company, with 3 GWh of assets in operation, and another 12 GWh in production, is steadily separating its...

Solar, wind, and battery projects are displacing fossil fuel assets in an urgent push to address the threats of climate change.

But the race to decarbonize has created a new problem: In the absence of clear reliability standards, inverter-based resources are misbehaving and messing up the grid, despite repeated warnings.

Episode 67 of the Factor This! podcast features Ryan Quint, who oversees engineering and secu...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less.

This week’s episode features Washington Post climate reporter Shannon Osaka, who reports why car dealer skepticism could be one of the biggest threats to electric vehicle adoption.

This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Sarah Chatterjee, Director of Electrification S...

George Hershman's term as chair of solar's leading trade group began with optimism and excitement.

He stepped into the role with the Solar Energy Industries Association, or SEIA, in January 2020, when the industry's meteoric rise was all but cemented. Today, we know the tumultuous stretch that quickly followed.

A pandemic, supply chain constraints, and a potentially existential tariff fight made eve...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less.

This week’s episode features The Hill energy and environment reporter Zack Budryks for a deeper look at Maine's public power referendum.

This Week in Cleantech  — Nov. 10, 2023

This week's Cleantecher of the Week is Karl Shinn, the Site GM at Soluna’s Project Dorot...

What does AI really mean for clean energy? These days, the answer is increasingly hard to find.

The AI craze, fueled by the popularization of tools like ChatGPT, has produced a frothy layer of contenders and pretenders.

But under it all are applications that could have a big impact on the energy transition. And we need all the help we can get.

To make sense of what's what, Albert Hofeldt, the seni...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less.

This week’s episode features Semafor climate and energy editor Tim McDonnell.

This Week in Cleantech — Nov. 3, 2023

Congratulations to Lauren Glickman, and the Encore Renewable Energy team, for being named the first "Cleantecher of the Week!" Earlier this week, Enco...

Corporate demand for renewables, and the urgency of fighting climate change, fueled a decade of meteoric growth in clean energy.

But the facilitator of that surge — cheap capital — has all but disappeared. Inflation, high interest rates, and insufficient tax equity now call into question whether the growth trajectory can continue.

Episode 64 of the Factor This! podcast features Thomas Byrne, CEO of CleanCapital, a...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less.

This week’s episode features Bloomberg senior reporter for climate Akshat Rathi, author of the forthcoming book Climate Capitalism.

This Week in Cleantech — Oct. 20, 2023

1. The Great Cash-for-Carbon Hustle — The New Yorker
2. Why Arizona is threatening to pull the plug ...

More than 100 years ago, the electric grid was built by, and for, large industrial companies. What started with on-site power supply evolved into a network of factories that would later extend to nearby homes.

But along the way, the focus, at least for utilities, changed. Expensive upgrades, prolonged timelines, and reliability shortfalls are now fueling a trend of industrials taking back their power.

Episode 63 o...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less.

This Week in Cleantech — Oct. 13, 2023

1. Vermont Utility Plans to End Outages by Giving Customers Batteries — The New York Times
2. Saudi oil giant Aramco announces pilot project to suck CO2 out of the air, but some scientists are skeptical — CNBC
3. Siemens Energy consider...

Monetizing clean energy tax credits is already tough enough. Critical to clean energy deployment, tax equity financing is both inefficient and undersupplied. And it could get a lot worse.

A rule proposed by banking authorities could have big impacts on the few remaining tax equity financiers by upending how they weight project risk. Simply put, the rule would quadruple capital requirements for banks holding tax equity inve...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less. Produced by Renewable Energy World and Tigercomm, This Week in Cleantech will air every Friday in the Factor This! podcast feed wherever you get your podcasts.

This week’s episode features Wall Street climate finance reporter Amrith Ramkumar who breaks down a major fundraising deal for green h...

40,000? 50,000? More? Whatever the number, there were a lot of people at this year's RE+ in Las Vegas.

While the event's exhibits are a focal point of the event — especially for pros sourcing solar modules, inverters, and batteries — the real action takes place in the side rooms, restaurants, and bars.

Episode 61 of the Factor This! podcast features Standard Solar president and CEO Scott Wiater, who take...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less. Produced by Renewable Energy World and Tigercomm, This Week in Cleantech will air every Friday in the Factor This! podcast feed wherever you get your podcasts.

This week’s episode features Washington Post business reporter Evan Halper who shares insights from his reporting on forced labor conc...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less. Produced by Renewable Energy World and Tigercomm, This Week in Cleantech will air every Friday in the Factor This! podcast feed wherever you get your podcasts.

This week’s episode features Bloomberg energy reporter Mark Chediak who breaks down solar's growing pains and experiencing RE+ fo...

The stakes couldn't be higher.

The Inflation Reduction Act launched a market for green hydrogen. But more than a year later the Treasury Department is still working out the details for critical tax incentives.

The delay has provided room for a multi-million-dollar battle to flare up between trade groups and environmentalists. And nothing less than a pillar to achieving the Biden administration's ambitiou...

This Week in Cleantech is a new, weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in cleantech and climate in 15 minutes or less. Produced by Renewable Energy World and Tigercomm, This Week in Cleantech will air every Friday in the Factor This! podcast feed wherever you get your podcasts.

This week’s episode features MIT Tech Review climate and clean energy reporter Casey Crownhart, who shares insights around the Biden a...

Clogged interconnection queues and an inefficient permitting process have the attention of federal policymakers. At last. But even big recent wins leave much work to be done.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Order 2023 is a positive first step, advocates say, despite its favoring utility interests. Siting guidelines for transmission and clean energy projects on federal land, meanwhile, remain cumbersome and ...