Welcome to Chatter with BNC, Business North Carolina's weekly podcast, serving up interviews with some of the Tar Heel State's most interesting people.

In today's Chatter with BNC podcast, we talked with Matt Abele, director of marketing and communications at the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association. The Appalachian State University graduate describes the debate over whether North Carolina should join a regional transmission organization to improve the reliability of electricity and hold down rate increases. State lawmakers are proposing a study that proponents say could lead to annual savings of as much as $600 million annually. Abele also explains the increasing economic impact of the state's sustainable energy sector.