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PODCAST

SunCast

Nico Johnson takes you into conversations with those at the forefront of Renewable Energy. SunCast gives an inside look into what is happening in renewable energy. From conversations with the biggest Solar Panel manufacturers in the world to the small startups creating the future of renewable energy, such as carbon capture and battery technology breakthroughs. SunCast is dedicated to providing the knowledge, research, tools and expert guidance you need to understand, grow and be ahead of the

science natural sciences

All Episodes

01:04:11

840: Rethinking Battery Storage: Domestic BMS,...

SunCast ·

2025/08/01

In a market flooded with cheap imports and geopolitical risk, one company is standing its ground.Did you know there’s only one North American battery management system (BMS) provider at utility scale—despite growing pressure from subsidized Chinese competitors offering systems at zero cost? Michael Worry, CEO of Nuvation Energy, joins Nico to share how his company became that lone provider.But the core of this episode brings a critical warning: what happens when over 80% of the U.S

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34:52

839: BREAKING: Nextracker Just Bought This AI...

SunCast ·

2025/07/30

Nextracker just made yet another bold move…What if a robot could detect a solar failure before it happens—and build the repair plan to deploy the right resources to the precise location, in real time?That’s not science fiction. It’s what OnSight Technology is already doing on numerous utility-scale solar farms across the US. And Nextracker have officially acquired OnSight Technology! So, if you’re here because you’re asking yourself “What the heck? Why did NXT Buy this company, and what

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42:29

838: Cutbacks, Consolidation & Energy Chaos: Will...

SunCast ·

2025/07/26

Is This The Reality Check We All Needed?Layoffs. Shrinking margins. Policy gut punched. If you’ve been wondering how the solar industry will make it through this, hang tight - I’ve got a 20+ yr veteran who’s seen enough dips & turns on the SolarCoaster to provide ample insight.Barry Cinnamon returns to SunCast for a brutally honest conversation with Nico Johnson about what’s unraveling in the solar and storage space—and what smart companies are doing to stay ahead.From Capitol Hill

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01:41:05

837: One Tiny Detail That’s Saving Solar Developers...

SunCast ·

2025/07/24

What if the smallest line item in your solar project budget could unlock millions in financing?Solar projects don’t get financed on hope—they get financed on data.Meet Ann Will, founder of GroundWork Renewables, the company solving one of utility-scale solar’s biggest pain points: uncertainty. GroundWork has quietly enabled over 1,000 met campaigns and helped developers secure billions in funding with high-accuracy irradiance and resource assessment data.In this episode, you’ll discover

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17:06

836: The Battery Paradox: Why C&I Solar Isn’t...

SunCast ·

2025/07/22

Commercial & Industrial solar is no longer just about getting panels up on the roof (Or over the parking lot, as the case may be). I wanted to explore something that’s been bugging me…given the increase in C&I traction lately, what’s still holding the sector back from adopting batteries at scale?For the answer, I turned to Jayson Smith, Solutions Engineer at CPS America, to better understand how footprint, lead times, and complexity have historically stalled C&I battery

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42:16

835: Nextracker Is Rewiring Utility-Scale Solar |...

SunCast ·

2025/07/17

Nextracker has proven its market dominance for more than a decade, and has practically rewritten the playbook on utility-scale solar globally. Lately, they’ve been on an acquisition spree, further fueling their market dominance and diversifying to better serve their customers. If you, like us, are on the outside looking in wondering “how they heck do they do it?”, then this episode will give you a glimpse inside the magnificent machine that is NXT!Jonathan Eastwood, Nextracker’s SVP of

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46:25

834: The New Solar Standard You Should Know About |...

SunCast ·

2025/07/15

What happens when a solar technician calls themselves a “Level 2,” but no one knows what that actually means?For years, solar O&M has lacked the structure and standardization seen in other trades. The result? Confusing job titles, wage inflation, inconsistent training, and safety risks. But that’s all about to change.In this Tactical Tuesday episode, Nico Johnson is joined by Amanda Bybee, CEO of Amicus O&M Cooperative, and Karo Fernandez, Technical Training manager at AES Clean

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01:11:30

833: 73% of Solar Damage from One Threat? Inside...

SunCast ·

2025/07/10

Your solar project is one storm away from financial disaster!That’s not just fear-mongering—it’s the reality many developers are waking up to. In this episode, Nico sits down with Jason Kaminsky, CEO of KWH Analytics, the data-driven company reshaping how solar projects are financed and insured. You’ve probably already read this year’s Solar Risk Assessment—that’s the genius and hard–work of Jason’s team on full display, and the latest SRA dropped in Mid-June, so we’re here to cover the

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26:28

832: Solar After the Megabill: Tax Credits, Tariffs &...

SunCast ·

2025/07/08

Is the “Big Beautiful Bill” about to choke the life out of solar & wind? Can energy storage be solar’s savior? Isn’t Solar inevitable? We don’t need no stinking subsidies, right? Right?If you haven’t had a chance to catch up yet on all that the bill implies, keep reading (seriously at the bottom I’ve linked a ton of recommended reading!)In this episode, policy analyst, Christian Roselund, returns to SunCast to unpack the real implications of the recently passed Megabill—a sweeping

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01:17:24

831: The Secret to Saving Your Solar Project From...

SunCast ·

2025/07/03

Solar projects getting canceled? Clean tech CEOs burned out doing their own PR? Amanda Foley has seen it all.As the CEO of Kiterocket, Amanda leads one of clean energy’s most influential PR firms, helping clients go from misunderstood to market-ready. Recorded live at CleanPower 2025, this conversation dives into why even great technology companies struggle with messaging—and what to do about it.From overcoming community opposition to engineers writing their own press releases (spoiler:

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54:21

830: Inside the AI Power Race: How Data Centers &...

SunCast ·

2025/07/01

The AI boom isn’t just reshaping tech—it’s redefining the energy grid.As data center demand skyrockets, clean energy providers are scrambling to keep up with unprecedented power needs, speed requirements, and reliability expectations. In this special live panel, hosted by Jessica Fishman of Kiterocket, we hear directly from leaders at Equinix, Clayco, QTS, and MGM Transformer—key players shaping the future of power-hungry infrastructure.From fuel cells as primary power sources to

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45:04

829: Dean Solon Unfiltered: What the Shoals Founder...

SunCast ·

2025/06/26

What would you do after taking your company public and becoming a billionaire?If you’re Dean Solon, you start over—with even bigger ambitions.The outspoken founder of Shoals Technologies is back with his new venture, ReCreate Energy, and a mission to tear down the solar industry’s bloated, outdated playbook—and rebuild it from the ground up with speed, precision, and American grit.In this unfiltered live keynote from Midwest Solar Expo, Dean reveals:The real story behind Shoals’ rise to a

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28:46

828: Why The Grid’s Not Ready for Renewables - And...

SunCast ·

2025/06/24

How do you bridge the gap between fast-moving renewables and slow-moving utilities? Brian Nelson has spent the last two decades doing exactly that—from building house-sized transformers to now leading ABB’s renewables segment. At ACP 2025, he sat down with Nico to pull back the curtain on how utilities think, why they’re cautious, and what it really takes to bring innovation to the grid.In this episode, you’ll hear why Brian believes in the future of smart substations, 2,000-volt

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24:23

827: Can Microsoft Solve Solar’s Hardest Problems...

SunCast ·

2025/06/21

Can one of the world’s biggest tech companies actually go carbon-free, not just today, but retroactively, all the way back to 1975?In this powerhouse keynote from Intersolar 2025, Hanna Grene, leader of Microsoft’s Global Energy and Resources team, lays out a bold vision for this tech giant’s energy future. She makes one thing clear: Microsoft isn’t here to play catch-up. They’re partnering with the clean energy industry to lead. From ditching diesel in data centers to using AI to

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01:06:58

826: Behind the Scenes of Electrical Code Writing: An...

SunCast ·

2025/06/19

What if the biggest threat to your solar business wasn’t competition—but compliance?Rebekah Hren has spent over 20 years helping the solar industry avoid costly mistakes and dangerous shortcuts - by writing the very codes and standards that govern it. From fieldwork and training at SEI to consulting for AirBnB and now co-founding Solar Tech Collective, Rebekah has seen it all—and helped shape how we do solar safely and at scale.In this episode, Nico dives deep with Rebekah to uncover the

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23:03

825: How Interest Rates, Tariffs, & Utility Rates...

SunCast ·

2025/06/17

Inflation, interest rates, tariffs—most markets flinch. But according to Josh Goldberg, commercial solar doesn’t blink. In this Tactical Tuesday, Josh pulls back the curtain on how Sunstone Credit is adapting—and thriving—by making it easier than ever to finance clean energy upgrades for America’s businesses.You’ll hear why commercial solar might be more resilient than resi, how to decode confusing lease structures, and why every building owner should be thinking like a telecom landlord

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45:58

824: Sheldon Kimber on Data Centers, Hybrid...

SunCast ·

2025/06/12

“AI is the greatest threat to your business ever.” That’s how Sheldon Kimber opens this episode—and it only gets bolder from there.Live from the Kiterocket Lounge during ACP CleanPower 2025, Sheldon returns to SunCast to unpack the real story behind energy-hungry data centers, the rise of hybrid power solutions, and why clean energy is no longer about purity—it’s about pragmatism.As CEO of Intersect Power, Sheldon’s built one of the most forward-thinking development firms in the sector

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30:15

823: The Battle for AI Power: Data Centers vs. The...

SunCast ·

2025/06/10

Forget what you thought you knew about data centers.Ryan Abbott of Clayco (a major datacenter design/build firm) joins Nico to explain how today’s hyperscale data centers are flipping traditional construction and energy planning on their heads. With AI workloads multiplying and compute demand skyrocketing, the real constraint isn't land—it’s power. And not just any power. Reliable, sustainable, redundant power systems that can handle 24/7 cooling, compute, and connectivity.In this

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22:31

822: Unlock National Media Coverage with These...

SunCast ·

2025/06/08

What makes someone actually care about solar? It’s not the data. It’s the story.On this special “SundayCast”, Nico sits down with the Reverend himself—Aaron Nichols (okay, not officially a Reverend, but the story behind that title is worth tuning in for). Aaron has made waves as a marketing & advocacy specialist at Exact Solar, helping the company thrive in a time when many others in solar are shrinking. His secret? Telling stories that spark action.From a school greenhouse in Philly

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01:02:30

821: AI and Solar Power: Making Renewable Energy...

SunCast ·

2025/06/05

What if a renewable energy power plant could achieve capacity factors above 70%? Wouldn’t that make it, finally, FIRM baseload power, dispatchable and “reliable” for the grid? Can ai help? What else is required?The simple answer is hybridization, but a long-time industry pioneer is here to tell us more.Martin Hermann has spent the last 2 decades pioneering the future of utility-scale solar. From founding 8minutenergy, one of the first to bring Utility-scale solar parks to the US, to

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