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In this bonus episode of Factor This!,  we introduce you to the RENWABLE+ Series™ from Renewable Energy World. Don't worry, we'll get back to tackling solar's biggest stories on Monday.

In this +Series discussion, panelists from EDP Renewables, Generate Capital, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory break down what's next for green hydrogen— the energy transition's secret weapon. 

• Bryan Pivovar, Senior Research Fellow I-Materials Science, NREL
• Ana Quelhas, Managing Director for Hydrogen, EDP Renewables (EDPR)
• Brandon Moffatt, VP, Generate Capital

While green hydrogen’s versatility offers potential answers to some of the energy transition’s most challenging questions, factors such as scale, scope, and affordability remain daunting challenges.

Show notes:
-Read the roundtable recap article here
-You can watch this +Series webinar on-demand here and check out the full +Series archive here.
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter here 

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Around 70% of solar systems in the U.S. are less than five years old, and with a lifespan of 30 years or more, recycling may not seem urgent. 

But multi-gigawatt demand for solar recycling awaits the industry in the decades to come. The International Renewable Energy Agency estimates global solar PV waste will reach 78 million tonnes by 2050—with those raw materials worth $15 billion.  

How can solar recycling scale to meet the need, and who’s going to capture that market? 

On Episode 11 of the Factor This! podcast, Suvi Sharma – the solar veteran who co-founded Solaria and Nextracker – shares how his latest startup, SOLARCYCLE, is taking on solar’s recycling imperative.

Show notes:
-Read the article: Can solar avoid a recycling problem? Suvi Sharma is convinced it can
-Register for the free RENEWABLE +Series on green hydrogen, featuring panelists from Generate Capital, EDP Renewables, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

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Think back to June. President Biden had just paused new tariffs on solar modules imported from Southeast Asia—a lifeline for the solar industry after months of tumult caused by the Auxin Solar tariff petition. 

 Shipments resumed. Projects restarted. Stability returned. 

 Then came rising interest rates, record inflation, and recession anxiety, all complicating the buildout of clean energy infrastructure. 

 In Episode 10 of the Factor This! podcast, Pine Gate Renewables CEO Ben Catt breaks down what's going on in clean energy capital markets, fresh off raising $500 million for his utility-scale solar and storage development company. 

Show notes:
-Register for the free RENEWABLE +Series on green hydrogen, featuring panelists from Generate Capital, EDP Renewables, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of the show!

Up until a few days ago, Congress had been a frequent disappointment to clean energy advocates. Even the current optimism around budget reconciliation is... cautious. 

But a few blocks north of Capitol Hill, seismic change has been underway.

In June, FERC laid out a set of proposed rules to address what possibly is the biggest threat facing clean energy deployment goals in the US: interconnection delays.

The notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) identified ways to tackle widespread challenges that have led to years-long interconnection request backlogs across the country.

Jeff Dennis, managing director for the advocacy group Advanced Energy Economy, and a former FERC policy staffer, joined Episode 9 of Factor This! to break down what's in the FERC interconnection NOPR and what comes next.

Show notes:
-Register for the free RENEWABLE +Series on green hydrogen, featuring panelists from Generate Capital, EDP Renewables, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of the show!

In a shocking turn of events late on the afternoon of July 27th, Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia announced that he had reached a deal with Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on a budget reconciliation package that includes $369 billion.  

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes: 

• 10-year extensions of the ITC for residential and commercial solar
• A new ITC for standalone energy storage 
• Credits for domestic solar manufacturing 
• Credits for new and used EVs 

Jose Zayas, EVP of Policy and Programs, American Council on Renewable Energy, joined the Factor This! podcast for a rapid reaction to the reconciliation news. You can read our recap of the legislation at Renewable Energy World here.

Show notes:
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter. 

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In Episode 7 of the Factor This! podcast, Nextracker founder and CEO Dan Shugar explains his company's decision to invest heavily in U.S. manufacturing amid supply chain constraints and trade disputes facing the solar industry.

Plus, he gives a sneak peek at Nextracker’s next manufacturing announcement.

Enjoying Factor This!?  Leave a rating and review. Programming note: Factor This! will publish every Monday beginning Aug. 1. 

Show notes: 

• 'Big Horn' green steel solar farm in Colorado
• Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.
• Email me! john.engel(a)clarionevents.com and let me know what you think of Factor This

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of the show!

In Episode 6 of the Factor This! podcast, rooftop solar's biggest fight — California's net energy metering reform process — is back on. The California Public Utilities Commission has reopened the docket for NEM 3.0, which rooftop solar advocates warn could have a devastating impact on the industry nationwide.

Vote Solar's new executive director, Sachu Constantine, takes Factor This! to the frontlines of the policy fight and shares how he plans to move one of the leading solar advocacy groups to its next chapter.

Show notes:
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Are you enjoying Factor This? Please leave a rating and review wherever you get your podcasts. Show notes and an episode transcript are available here.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of the show!

How to manage and monetize distributed energy resources is one of the most rapidly changing pieces of the energy transition.

Every few weeks it seems a new software startup has raised tens (sometimes, hundreds) of millions of dollars in pursuit of those challenges. Meanwhile, utilities are watching the electricity distribution model that has stood up for a hundred years get turned on its head.

In a special edition of Factor This!, live from DISTRIBUTECH and POWERGEN International in Dallas last May, hear from Jim Walsh, who leads GE Digital’s grid software business, about the enabling forces behind the energy transition.

Show notes:
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Tell us what you think of the show!

In Episode 4 of the Factor This! podcast, Abigail Ross Hopper, CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association trade group, shares how the solar industry swayed President Joe Biden to pause new tariffs on module imports from Southeast Asia, while also boosting domestic manufacturing.

And later in the episode, Intersect Power CEO Sheldon Kimber discusses the early days of Recurrent Energy, tariffs, and solar's path forward.

This is the fourth and final episode of the Factor This! Auxin Solar tariff petition series. The full series is available wherever you get your podcasts.

Show notes:
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This! is a production of Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy, and is hosted by John Engel. 

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In Episode 3 of the Factor This! podcast, Rhone Resch, the CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association from 2004-16, looks back at solar’s “boom” and his regret as the former head of the industry’s leading trade group of not prioritizing domestic solar manufacturing. He explains why now is the time to invest in a domestic supply chain.

Plus, Martin Pochtaruk, CEO of North American solar manufacturer Heliene, joins the podcast to talk about the Solar Energy Manufacturing for America Act and how proposed incentives for domestic manufacturing would impact production in the U.S.

Finally, Michael Parr, executive director of the Ultra Low Carbon Solar Alliance discusses how focusing on solar’s carbon footprint could spur domestic manufacturing. For show notes, visit here. 

This episode is the third installment of a four-part series on the Auxin Solar tariff petition. If you missed our exclusive interview with Auxin Solar CEO Mamun Rashid, listen here.

Show notes:
-Subscribe to the free Renewable Energy World newsletter to stay up-to-date on the latest news in solar, wind, energy storage, green hydrogen, and more.

Factor This!  is produced by Renewable Energy World and Clarion Energy. Connect with John Engel, the host of Factor This!, on LinkedIn and Twitter.