Mike DellaGala: Getting to NTP – Using Development Capital To Boost Projects To Completion

Mike DellaGala has been in solar for a long time and we’ve known each other about that long. I wanted to have Mike on the podcast to talk about the change in his business model. For many years, Mike was a sponsor in the market, his goal was to buy projects with as little risk as possible at the highest returns he could find.

Today, he has shifted DGEP Management to get into projects as early as possible and provide the capital needed to get to NTP. With developers using their networks and capabilities to dream up a project, the large interconnection fees are sometimes hard to find and this void is his target.

We talk about the 201 petition, market inefficiencies and policies that work for solar.

Make sure to check out SolarWakeup Live! in Boston on 10/31 and D.C. on 12/6. Tickets available but selling fast.

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Amory Lovins – Founder of Rocky Mountain Institute and Electricity Grid Visionary

Now that the DOE grid has been released, we speak with the visionary Amory Lovins of RMI. Amory is the founder of RMI which recently celebrated its 35th anniversary.

I asked Amory about his thoughts on the study and some more questions.

Can we blame LED lightbulbs for stagnating demand or is it something else?
What is the most dangerous conclusion in the study?
Why do you think Connecticut and Texas agree that energy markets should be deregulated?
Will there ever be another coal or nuclear plant built in the US?
If you were to write this grid study, what would be the biggest difference in the report?

This is one of the biggest names to join EnergyWakeup to date and we are thankful to have Amory’s leadership in the clean energy space.

Costa Nicolaou – PanelClaw CEO With A Decade Of Profitable Solar Experience

I interview a great friend, Costa Nicolaou, the CEO of PanelClaw. PanelClaw has the leading market share in the rooftop racking market and has been in business for over a decade. Having raised very little money, PanelClaw shows that success can be achieved if you operate your business efficiently.

Rebecca Cantwell, CO SEIA Executive Director, about settling with Xcel and moving solar forward

Rebecca Cantwell is the Executive Director of COSEIA, one of the best State level trade associations. Rebecca has been the director for 5 years and brought COSEIA through a multitude of regulatory issues. With a small budget of about $250,000, COSEIA brings results in a true David versus Goliath fight.

COSEIA is an independent entity. It may be listed as an affiliated partner, COSEIA does not report to or receive funding from SEIA. This is a separation that has been made clear to SolarWakeup by many State SEIA groups.

Most recently, COSEIA was in the room where it happens. Negotiating with Xcel Energy in Colorado has been a nearly yearlong effort. Through many full days of sitting in Xcel conference rooms, COSEIA was an intervenor in all three solar related dockets. The group came to a settlement which had some positive effects which Rebecca covers in great specificity in our conversation.

What struck me is that even though COSEIA was an intervenor, SEIA also deployed resources by intervening in two of the dockets. That means COSEIA and SEIA were duplicating efforts, representing their own memberships. I would see it more effective to send capital to the State and align the interests of both SEIA entities.

In the coming weeks, we will be speaking with more State level directors on how the State level chapters are driving their markets forward.