Shows / SunCast
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…
Episodes
- SunCast
980: From Policy to Power: What It Takes to Get Energy Built
America needs more electricity. But between recognizing that need and actually putting new power on the grid sits a complicated mix of policy, manufacturing…
- SunCast
979: The Scariest Question in Solar Finance: What If Your EPC Fails? | Gage Kellogg
Lenders spook easily. And for good reason. Their job is to protect capital, so a solar project can have solid economics, proven technology, and an EPC that…
- SunCast
978: Solar + Farming, Part 2: How Developers Earn Lasting Community Trust | Lauren Glickman
Getting a solar project approved is one thing. Building enough trust that the community welcomes the next project is another. In this Part 2 of Nico Johnson’s…
- SunCast
977: Solar + Farming, Part 1: How Solar Can Help Save American Farmland | Lauren Glickman
For years, the solar industry has defended development on agricultural land by arguing that solar can help keep farms in the family and protect them from more…
- SunCast
976: AI Can Pay 100X More for Power. Is This Clean Energy's Moment? | Hans Royal, David Siap, & Peter Kelly-Detwiler
AI is changing electricity demand faster than the grid was built to accommodate it. But the more interesting question may not be how much power data centers…
- SunCast
975: Powerful Branding: How to Build a Brand Your Team Can Actually Use | Aimee Tuck
A strong brand should do more than make your company recognizable. It should help your people understand what the company stands for, who it serves, and how to…
- SunCast
974: How to Make the Case for Solar + Storage to People Who Don’t Speak Energy
What if the difference between winning support and losing your audience isn’t better data, but knowing how to tell the story? In this episode, the tables are…
- SunCast
973: 11 Years of SunCast: What Changed, What We Missed, What’s Next | Nico Johnson & Josh Beck
After more than two decades working in clean energy and 11 years behind the mic at SunCast, Nico Johnson has had a front-row seat to an industry that looks…
- SunCast
972: How Smart Solar Developers Treat Land as Growth Capital | Laura Pagliarulo
Could the land beneath your solar project help finance the next one, without giving up equity in your company? Laura Pagliarulo, CEO and co-founder of…
- SunCast
971: The Hidden Bottleneck Slowing Solar Automation | Nick de Vries, Matt Campbell & Frédéric Laure
If robotic automation is becoming inevitable in utility-scale solar, where does that thesis run into the realities of actually building a power plant? That's…
- SunCast
970: 11 Years, 3 Pivots, and a Successful Exit | Jason Kaminsky
What does it actually take to build a company someone else eventually wants to buy? For Jason Kaminsky and kWh Analytics, the answer was 11 years, three major…
- SunCast
969: Could Data Centers Pay for Your Rooftop Solar? | Barry Cinnamon
Data centers need enormous amounts of power, and apparently they need it fast. What if some of the outrageous sums of money they’re willing to spend to get…
- SunCast
968: How to Make Better Building Technology Investable | Dermot & Aiden Sweeny
Buildings consume an enormous amount of energy. We have plenty of technologies that could make them perform better. So why is the real estate industry often so…
- SunCast
967: Why U.S. Solar Costs 2–3x More Than Australia | Barry Cinnamon
In Australia, residential solar and storage can be installed for about $2 a watt. In the U.S., a comparable system can cost more than twice that. Why? Barry…
- SunCast
966: When Solar Works But the Savings Don’t | Charlotte Meerstadt
When Charlotte Meerstadt put solar on her Amsterdam home, the numbers made sense. Then Charlotte moved to the U.S. and rented out the apartment. The solar…
- SunCast
965: 3 Lessons From Germany’s Plug-In Solar Boom | Stephan Scherer
Germany has turned plug-in solar from a fringe idea into a mainstream energy product found in millions of homes. And the biggest lessons for the U.S. aren't…
- SunCast
964: Why the Best Energy Technology Doesn't Always Win | Sass Peress
The best technology does not always win. Sass Peress has spent nearly four decades learning why. Since entering solar in 1988, he has built companies…
- SunCast
963: How Exact Solar Keeps Growing in a Shrinking Market | Aaron Nichols
While many solar companies are fighting to stay afloat, Exact Solar is flying. After growing 23% and then 50% in the previous two years, the Pennsylvania…
- SunCast
962: What If We Paid Households to Power the Grid? | Ari Matusiak
America needs more power. Data centers are accelerating demand, utilities are planning billions of dollars in new infrastructure, and households will…
- SunCast
961: Latinoamérica 2026: Dónde Poner Tiempo, Capital y Capacidad de Ejecución (Español)
En Latinoamérica, la oportunidad no siempre está donde se anuncia más capacidad, sino donde existe una combinación real de demanda, capital comprometido y…
- SunCast
960: Why Good Companies Still Struggle to Get Noticed | Melissa Baldwin
Good companies don't automatically get noticed. And doing good work isn't enough to ensure that customers, investors, journalists, communities, or increasingly…
- SunCast
959: The Argument for Automation: Making Solar Construction More Predictable | Cody Houser, FTC Solar
Solar construction has always depended on experienced crews adapting to whatever the jobsite throws at them. But what happens when the industry needs to build…
- SunCast
958: Australia’s Second Act: Building the Solar Service Economy | Daniel Lazarus, Industrias
Australia has spent years ahead of many markets on the distributed solar adoption curve. Now it is giving the rest of us an early look at what happens when…
- SunCast
957: How Do You Plan a Grid You Can’t Predict? | Xcel, ComEd & Ameren
Utilities used to plan around relatively predictable demand. That assumption is disappearing. In this opening keynote from Intersolar & Energy Storage North…
- SunCast
956: How Do You Prepare a Family Business for Its Next 100 Years? | Jake Pepper
Pepper Construction has survived the Great Depression, World War II, multiple recessions, and a global pandemic. As the family business approaches its 100th…
- SunCast
955: Why Some Companies Last and Others Don't | Marc Lopata
After building and selling multiple companies, Marc Lopata has learned that the decisions that shape a business are rarely the ones people celebrate. They're…
- SunCast
954: Can Clean Energy Build Mythic Power? | Tom Matzzie
We know how to build power. Every day, the clean energy industry builds more of it. But there's another kind of power that's far more difficult to generate—and…
- SunCast
953: The Hardest Part of Solar Isn't What Most People Think | Jeff Spies
Few people have had a front-row seat to the evolution of the modern solar industry quite like Jeff Spies. Over four decades, Jeff has helped shape the industry…
- SunCast
952: Plug-In Solar Is About to Change Everything | Stephan Scherer
Plug-in solar has the potential to change far more than how or where we install solar panels. I believe it could fundamentally change who gets to participate…
- SunCast
951: Most Solar Problems Start Before the Install | Greg Smith
The most expensive mistakes on a solar project usually aren't made during the install. They're made long before anyone arrives on site. Greg Smith has spent…
- SunCast
950: Dell's Big Bet on AI and the Future of Energy | with David Holmes
David Holmes has spent decades at the intersection of energy and technology, giving him a front-row seat to one of the biggest shifts our industry has ever…
- SunCast
949: The Missing Step in Battery Recycling | Sheeba Dawood
Battery recycling is about to become one of the most important pieces of the clean energy transition. But before we can build a true circular economy, there's…
- SunCast
948: Why Solar’s Speed Is Winning Over Washington | Heather Reams
Heather Reams spends her days at the intersection of clean energy and public policy, helping shape conversations with lawmakers about how the U.S. meets…
- SunCast
947: The Leadership Habit Fighter Pilots Never Skip | Jason Knapp
One of the most common assumptions in business is that responsibility should be earned only after years of experience. After more than two decades as a Navy…
- SunCast
946: What Nobody Tells You About Operating Battery Storage | Ty Fenton
A single battery cell can shut down an entire storage plant. It's one of the many operational realities that make battery storage fundamentally different from…
- SunCast
945: We're Not Alternative Energy Anymore. It's Time to Lead. | Dan Shugar & Jigar Shah
Last year, solar and storage accounted for more than 80% of all new power generation capacity added in the United States. So why does our industry still behave…
- SunCast
944: The Grid's Biggest Challenge Isn't More Power. It's Timing. | Sean Kelly
For decades, the energy industry has treated its biggest challenge as building more power. Sean Kelly thinks that's the wrong question. As CEO and co-founder…
- SunCast
943: The Data Center Deal That Could Transform Energy Affordability | Molly Bauch
Everyone agrees we need more distributed energy. The harder question is: who pays for it? That's the question Molly Bauch has been wrestling with. As North…
- SunCast
942: What Hundreds of Inspections Reveal About Battery Safety | Kathleen McCaffrey & Jeff Zwijack
What determines whether a battery project performs safely over its lifetime? According to Kathleen McCaffery and Jeff Zwijack, the answer has as much to do…
- SunCast
941: Why America Can't Build Big Things Anymore | Tom Fanning
There are 43 years of decisions compressed into this episode. And if you work in energy, utilities, infrastructure, manufacturing, or public policy, it's worth…
- SunCast
940: FTC Solar CEO Anthony Carroll on Scaling, Automation, and What's Next
Leadership transitions reveal what companies value most. When FTC Solar recently tapped Anthony Carroll as the new CEO, they chose someone who has spent more…
- SunCast
939: Former EPA Chief Michael Regan on Clean Energy and Public Health
What if the most compelling case for clean energy isn't climate change, economics, or energy independence? What if it's public health? Former EPA Administrator…
- SunCast
938: The Rare Earth Problem Nobody Talks About | Mark LaVerghetta
Rare earths are having a moment. And if you work anywhere near clean energy, batteries, EVs, data centers, defense, or domestic manufacturing, this…
- SunCast
937: What a 4-Star General Knows About Risk That Most Leaders Don't | Gen. Robert Neller
Risk looks different depending on where you're standing. In Episode 936 (Jason Kaminsky & 2026 The Solar Risk Assessment), we explored risk through the lens of…
- SunCast
936: Which Solar Risks Actually Matter? | Jason Kaminsky, kWh Analytics
Solar projects are increasingly being financed and operated as long-life infrastructure assets. That means the industry can no longer rely on assumptions about…
- SunCast
935: How (and Why) Clean Energy Wins In Red States | Monika Gerhart
A solar moratorium nearly shut down Alabama’s emerging solar market before most of the industry even saw it coming. For years, the prevailing assumption has…
- SunCast
934: What Makes Companies Investable Now | David Kirkpatrick
Climatetech is entering a different phase. The era of easy capital, oversized narratives, and growth-at-all-costs expectations is giving way to something more…
- SunCast
933: Why Facts Don’t Sell Clean Energy | Jessica Fishman
Clean energy has made tremendous progress on technology. Solar is cheaper. Batteries are scaling. Virtual power plants are becoming real grid assets…
- SunCast
932: The Battery Storage Mistakes Installers Must Avoid | Sam Buffington
Battery storage is becoming one of the most complicated sales conversations in residential solar. Installers are now navigating different sizing requirements…
- SunCast
931: Inside New York's $150B Energy Bet — And It's Bigger Than Data Centers | Doreen Harris
Electricity demand is rising fast. But New York is asking a different question than most states: What kind of demand is actually worth building for? In this…
- SunCast
930: Why AI Data Centers Demand a Responsive Grid | Jon Parrella & Anna Siefken
AI data centers are changing more than electricity demand. They are changing how the grid itself has to operate. Legacy data centers behaved with relatively…
- SunCast
929: How Kraken Is Turning Grid Chaos Into Coordination | Devrim Celal
The grid is getting more crowded. EVs. Heat pumps. Batteries. Rooftop solar. Flexible demand. What used to be a system built around a few thousand centralized…
- SunCast
928: Why U.S. Solar Costs 2–3x More Than Australia | Barry Cinnamon
Australia is installing solar and batteries for about $2 a watt. In the U.S., it’s closer to $5.50. So why do we still have this huge gap? Barry Cinnamon went…
- SunCast
927: Everyone Built Modules. He Built Cells. | Alex Zhu, ES Foundry
Rebuilding solar manufacturing in the U.S. is not just about capital or policy. It is about making the right bets at the right time. It comes down to timing…
- SunCast
926: Are Data Centers Bypassing the Grid? | Michael Thomas, Cleanview
Are data centers starting to bypass the grid? A growing share of planned projects are pairing with behind-the-meter generation, and the shift has happened…
- SunCast
925: Ahmad Chatila & Jigar Shah on Solar’s Capital Problem
Most people [who have been in the industry awhile] have opinions about SunEdison. This is one of the first times Ahmad Chatila and Jigar Shah have sat down…
- SunCast
924: From Parts to Platform: Building Solar Without Friction | Create Energy
Dean Solon has always been a pattern matcher. Across projects, conversations, and time in the field, he’s constantly picking up on what’s changing — where…
SunCast923: Plug-In Solar Is Moving Fast… But Who Sets the Rules? | Electrical Code Experts Weigh In - with Rebekah Hren & Patrick Barney
You can now plug solar panels into a wall outlet in some states. No permits. No installer or electrician even required? Just… plug it in. So who’s responsible…
- SunCast
922: From One Engineer to 1 in 6 Utility-Scale Projects | Tyler Nelson, Revamp
What does it actually take to earn trust at the highest levels of utility-scale solar? Tyler Nelson has a perspective few in the industry can claim. As founder…
SunCast921: Data Won’t Move Lawmakers—Stories Will | John Szoka & Jigar Shah
Most energy professionals believe the data will win. John Szoka did too. After a career in the military and time in the North Carolina legislature, Szoka…