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This Week in Solar
A weekly look at what's new in solar, brought to you by Exact Solar. Clean energy news, policy updates, and stories that matter. exactsolar.substack.com
Episodes
This Week in SolarMaryland Governor Plans to Lower Energy Bills With Solar
What’s new: On January 27th, Maryland Governor Wes Moore announced the “Lower Bills and Local Power Act” (LBLPA), a legislative package designed to provide…
This Week in SolarWe Don't Need China to Make Batteries: Brett Simon
In this episode of This Week in Solar, host Aaron Nichols sits down with Brett Simon, Director of Commercial Strategy at e-Zinc, a long-duration battery…
This Week in SolarNJ Governor Declares Energy Emergency On Day One
What’s new:New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill wasted no time Wednesday, signing six executive orders before she finished her inaugural address. Two of them were…
This Week in SolarHow to Make Legislators Listen to You: Dan Crawford
Aaron sits down with Dan Crawford, Senior Vice President at Echo Communications Advisors, a policy-first communications firm that works exclusively with…
This Week in Solar60 Scientists Say We're in the Solar Century
What’s new More than 60 top scientists from around the world just released a report on Nature.com (linked in today’s sources) saying that solar power is taking…
This Week in SolarAbby Hopper: What's Next for SEIA's CEO?
In this episode, Aaron talks with Abby Hopper, President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). Reflecting on her nine-year tenure, Abby…
This Week in SolarStates are Stepping In to Fix Solar Policy
There’s something I haven’t stopped thinking about for nine months. At the American Solar Energy Society’s conference last summer, one of the speakers…
This Week in SolarHow We Fix Solar's Education Gap: Annalisa Farrell
Aaron talks with Annalisa Farrell, a solar data and monitoring specialist.Annalisa has spent years troubleshooting the gap between how solar energy systems are…
This Week in SolarFive Solar Stories That Defined 2025
1. The “One Big, Beautiful Bill.” The biggest news of the year for the solar industry happened with the Trump Administration signing the so-called “One Big…
This Week in SolarSolar Developers Are Losing the Local Battle: Ayelet Hines
In this episode, Aaron talks with Ayelet Hines, the Community Acceptance Strategist at Tigercomm.With 30 years of experience running issue campaigns and the…
This Week in SolarHow to Listen, Read, and Engage on Substack
Eight months ago, we decided to host our little solar news channel on Substack. Now that we’re almost at 500 subscribers, we thought it was time for a…
This Week in Solar13 Years of Fighting for Solar in California: Meghan Stimmler
In today’s episode, Aaron sits down with Meghan Stimmler of Solar Hut.Meghan shares her journey from:* Sweeping floors at her dad’s solar company * Being…
This Week in SolarEnergy bills up 13% since Trump took office
What’s newA Climate Power report using U.S. Energy Information Administration data finds Americans’ electric bills are up 13% nationwide in 2025. That’s the…
This Week in SolarHow We Fix The Solar Service Crisis: Sean Swentek
In this episode of This Week in Solar, host Aaron Nichols talks with Sean Swentek, Vice President of Marketing at Omnidian, about one of the solar industry’s…
This Week in Solar59% of Americans Don't Understand Their Electric Bills
According to a report released by the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative earlier this year, 59% of Americans surveyed agreed that “it sometimes seems like…
This Week in SolarSolar Installers Are Sitting On a Goldmine: Hervé Billiet
Aaron Nichols talks with Hervé Billiet, co-founder of SunVoy and former CEO of Ipsun Solar, about how frustration with off-the-shelf tools led him to build a…
This Week in SolarTrump Administration Rebrands National Renewable Energy Laboratory
What’s new: Earlier this week, the Department of Energy rebranded the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, or NREL, as the National Laboratory of the Rockies…
This Week in SolarSolar Gives People Their Power Back: Matthew Britt
Aaron Nichols talks with Matthew Britt, a Canadian entrepreneur at the intersection of renewable energy and regenerative food systems.Matthew explains how his…
This Week in SolarEnergy Bills Going Up Again in 2026
Energy bills in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware are going up again in 2026. Here is our detailed article explaining why.In June 2025, ratepayers in our…
This Week in SolarWe Can Fix Solar's Recycling Problem: Kate Collardson
In today’s episode, Aaron talks with solar recycling advocate and industry veteran Kate Collardson.Kate shares how asking the simple question, “What are we…
This Week in SolarData Center Demand is Worse Than We Thought
What’s new: According to a new report released by Grid Strategies on Tuesday, U.S. utilities now project that we’ll need 166 GW of extra peak demand by 2030…
This Week in SolarEvery Non-Profit Can Go Solar: Dave Hammes
Aaron Nichols talks with Exact Solar’s own Dave Hammes, a 20-year clean-energy veteran who specializes in helping non-profit organizations go solar. Dave…
This Week in SolarQCells Furloughs 1000 Workers Because of Solar Cells Stuck at Customs
What’s newQcells is temporarily furloughing approximately 1,000 workers and reducing hours and pay at its Dalton and Cartersville, Georgia, factories due to…
This Week in SolarSolar's Perfect for Conservatives: Jim Gregory and Justin Mason
Aaron Nichols talks with Jim Gregory and Justin Mason of the Conservative Energy Network (CEN). Jim is a former Pennsylvania state representative and now…
This Week in SolarPro-Solar Governor Wins in New Jersey
What’s newNew Jersey just elected Mikie Sherrill as governor. During her campaign, she promised to use clean energy to lower bills and strengthen the grid. Her…
This Week in SolarOff-Grid Solar Never Needed Incentives: Kenny Grigar
Aaron Nichols sits down with off-grid specialist Kenny Grigar, who started living in an off-grid home powered by solar in the early ’90s. This was long before…
This Week in SolarBillie Eilish Helps Philly Nonprofit Go Solar
Note: We experienced technical difficulties that resulted in audio issues during this episode. We apologize for the inconvenience!Happy Halloween from Exact…
This Week in SolarThe Future of Solar is Local: Dhanur Grandhi
Aaron Nichols talks with Dhanur Grandhi, CEO of Wattbot and a 15-year veteran of working with national residential solar companies. They cover why Dhanur…
This Week in SolarU.S. Will Save $1.2 Trillion Going Solar if We Fix This
The big idea:If cities and states cut solar permitting costs, families nationwide could save up to $1.2 trillion over 25 years.Why it mattersSolar permits are…
This Week in SolarBuild a Great Career By Leading With Love: Emmitt Muckles
Today on This Week In Solar, Aaron Nichols welcomes Emmitt Muckles. He’s a solar trainer, consultant, DJ, and self-described “social nerd.” We focused this…
This Week in SolarCancelling Solar for All Hurts Vulnerable Communities
What’s New:Back in August, the EPA pulled funding for Solar for All, which we spoke about in a previous video.The grants would have helped more than 900,000…
This Week in SolarWhy Pennsylvania Lags Behind in Solar Energy: Ron Celentano
In this episode of This Week in Solar, Aaron Nichols sits down with Pennsylvania solar pioneer Ron Celantano, a consultant, engineer, and long-time policy…
This Week in SolarRenewables Have Generated More Energy Than Coal in 2025
What’s newIn the first half of 2025, wind and solar made more electricity than coal worldwide for the first time ever. Clean power grew faster than the world’s…
This Week in SolarThe $100 Billion Opportunity in Aging Solar Systems: Cesar Barbosa
This week, I sat down with Cesar Barbosa, founder & CEO of Nulife Power Services. I’ve been curious (and admittedly undereducated) about solar recommissioning…
This Week in SolarSolar + Wind Dominate New U.S. Power Deployment in Q2
What’s new:90% of new U.S. power plant capacity added from January–July 2025 came from solar + wind. In July, solar provided 96% of new capacity.Why it…
This Week in SolarWhy the Outlook for Large-Scale Solar is Still Hopeful: Joe Tassone
This week, Aaron Nichols sits down with Joe Tassone, co-founder of Oncore Origination.Joe shares how Oncore carved out a niche by sourcing land for solar…
This Week in SolarGovernor Shapiro Threatens to Pull PA Out of PJM
What’s NewGovernors from 11 states across the mid-Atlantic and Midwest are fed up with PJM, the non-profit entity that manages the region’s electricity grid…
This Week in SolarWhat Losing Tax Credits Means for Solar: Zoë Gaston
This week, Aaron Nichols sits down with Zoë Gaston, Principal Analyst for Distributed Solar at Wood Mackenzie, to dig into her data. Zoë shares what her team…
This Week in SolarHow Are We Doing?
Hello readers and listeners of This Week In Solar! I’m out on vacation, so I thought now would be the perfect time for a check-in. We just published our 28th…
This Week in SolarHow to Pay for Solar Without the 30% Tax Credit: Nicole Burford
This week, Aaron Nichols sits down with Nicole Burford, VP of Market Development and Sustainability at Clean Energy Credit Union. Here’s her LinkedInExpect to…
This Week in SolarGreat News for Homeowners Interested In Batteries
Enphase’s New EV Charger Turns Your Car Into a Home BatteryWhat’s new:Enphase announced that its EV charger, which can fill your electric car and let your EV’s…
This Week in SolarMy Experience Going Solar With a Great Local Installer: Thomas Crookham
This week, Aaron Nichols sits down with homeowner and clean energy enthusiast Thomas Crookham, who shares his journey of going solar with Exact Solar in 2024…
This Week in SolarCourt OKs Billions In Retroactive Solar Tariffs
Trade Court Okays Retroactive Tariffs on 2022–24 Solar ImportsWhat’s new: The U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that President Biden’s 2022 two-year…
This Week in SolarAdvice from a 40-Year Energy Career: Liz Robinson
Quick Note: Due to technical difficulties during the interview, today’s episode will be available as audio only. You can still listen to this episode as a…
This Week in SolarPosiGen Lays Off Hundreds of Employees
Listen to today’s episode here, or on:* YouTube* Apple Podcasts* SpotifyPosiGen Halts Most Operations What’s new:Residential solar installer PosiGen has ceased…
This Week in SolarWhy Great Clean Energy Leaders Study Storytelling: Spenser Meeks
Show Notes: Spenser Meeks is the Founder and Principal Consultant at Apex Presentations, where he’s helped more than 1000 clean energy leaders get everything…
This Week in SolarEvery Solar-Related Policy Change Since January
Quick note: I’ve designed today’s episode to be an overview that you can send to friends and family to show them the policies of this administration that…
This Week in SolarStarting and Scaling a Values-Based Company: Dara Bortman
Show Notes: Dara Bortman is a Returned Peace Corps Response Volunteer and former co-owner and Senior VP of Marketing & Sales at Exact Solar. Over 15 years, she…
This Week in SolarIRA Repeal Driving Massive Interest in Solar Energy
EnergySage Reports Busiest Month EverWhat’s newThe solar lead generation platform EnergySage says July was their busiest month since their founding in 2009…
This Week in SolarHow Solar Can Thrive In This Administration: Nico Johnson
Show Notes: Nico Johnson is the founder and host of SunCast, where he’s interviewed more than 800 clean energy leaders about the future of solar, storage, and…
This Week in SolarEPA Tries to Claw Back Solar for All Funding
EPA Trying to Cancel Solar for All Funding What’s newThe Environmental Protection Agency is drafting letters that would void $7 billion in Solar for All grants…
This Week in SolarPJM Auction Raises Bills in PA and NJ Again
PJM Capacity Auction 22% Higher Than Last Year’s What’s new:PJM Interconnection’s latest capacity auction cleared at its $329.17 per MW-day price cap. This is…
This Week in SolarUN Says Fossil Fuel is "Fading and Flailing"
UN Declares “Energy Transition is Unstoppable” What’s new: Two companion reports issued by UN agencies and the International Renewable Energy Agency conclude…
This Week in SolarNational Security Investigation Launched Into Imported Polysilicon
U.S. Opens National‑Security Probe Into Solar‑Grade PolysiliconWhat’s newThe Trump administration, in collaboration with the Bureau of Industry and Security…
This Week in SolarTrump Signs Executive Order to Make Claiming Remaining IRA Credits Difficult
What’s newOn July 7, President Trump signed an executive order that does two things: * Directs the Treasury to tighten the “begin-construction” safe-harbor…
This Week in SolarHow the OBBB Will Affect Solar Companies
Senate Passes OBBB, Scales Back Solar Tax CreditsWhat’s newOn July 3rd, the House passed the One Big, Beautiful Bill into law 218-214, after Speaker of the…
This Week in SolarBattery Storage Sets New Q1 Record
Record-Breaking Battery Deployment in Q1 What’s new:The U.S. battery market rang in 2025 with its strongest first quarter on record. Developers added more than…
This Week in SolarSolar Jobs Threatened by Senate Overhaul
What's New:Republican lawmakers in the Senate released their draft of the "One Big, Beautiful Bill" this week. They kept most of the House's clean-energy…
This Week in SolarMajor Solar/Storage Companies File for Bankruptcy
If you’ve been enjoying This Week In Solar, please share today’s episode with a friend! Solar Industry Leaders Show Up in WashingtonWhat’s new: Yesterday…
This Week in SolarFive Republican Senators Support Clean Energy
What's newThe clean energy industry is holding its breath as we wait for the Senate’s version of the “One Big, Beautiful Bill.” Five Republican senators are…