SunCast Nico Johnson

What if solar installers could easily integrate energy storage with any inverter on the market? LG Energy Storage Systems (ESS) makes that possible, and in an important and elegant way. 
At the 2024 NABCEP Conference, Jim Brown, Senior National Sales Manager at LG ESS, highlighted  LG's new "Home 8" AC-coupled energy storage system, a game-changing product for solar installers. In today’s episode, Jim and Nico discuss AC vs. DC-coupled systems, homeowner misconceptions, and a new technology that will help homeowners maximize the their solar plus storage investment. . Expect to learn:
Why some homeowners are still buying energy storage systems without solarWhat installers can do to better educate and prepare homeowners for power outages How LG engineered the Home 8 to work with any inverter on the marketThe importance of “frequency watt control”How to get the power of Home 8 for your customers
Still reading? Come on, hit play! It’s what the cool kids are doing…
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

We often take access to electricity, refrigeration, and running water for granted. In many parts of the world, these are luxuries. 
In today’s episode, Andi Kleissner and Kurt Kuhlmann, Co-founders and Co-CEOs of Amped Innovation, discuss how they’re changing lives by installing high-performance off-grid solar systems and appliances across Asia and Africa. Nico visited with the pair in their CA headquarters; Seated on two of their high-efficiency solar freezers, they share insights from making solar products that empower impoverished families in the “developing world” to earn stable incomes. 
Expect to learn:
Amped Innovation’s strategies to encourage productive use of power in emerging marketsHow Amped Innovation designs products with affordability and repairability in mind to make clean energy accessible to the most remote communities. How Amped Innovation leverages microfinance and Pay-as-You-Go systems to overcome financial barriers for families.About Amped’s full suite of products, from TVs and freezers to generators
Their entrepreneurial journey is inspiring; we hope you feel the same!
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

New York set an ambitious goal for a zero-emission electricity sector by 2040.
What will it take to get there? 
Turns out, hydrogen may be a key component to New York's climate strategy, especially for difficult-to-electrify sectors.
Haiyan Sun is the program manager and team leader for hydrogen and clean fuels at the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).  With over a decade of experience in the power sector (much of which was in GE’s gas division), she has valuable insights to offer on hydrogen’s potential to fuel NY’s clean energy goals, so listen up!
Expect to learn:
How hydrogen can decarbonize hard-to-electrify industries like the transportation, power gen, and high temperature industrial sectors (ie, Steel).The importance of including disadvantaged communities in the energy transition.New York's strategy for making hydrogen as successful as solar and battery storage. 
Curious about how hydrogen fits into the green energy puzzle? Press play!
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

Is solar plus storage magically going to fix our grid? If you listen to many of the conversations I’ve heard the last 2+ years, you’d easily assume “we got this, just throw some batteries out there and we’re well on our way to 100% RE!” 
Turns out it’s not that simple. 
Building hybrid power (solar+storage) projects requires a deep understanding of the unique challenges they present, from how to forecast revenue to  building integrated software solutions that can handle massive complexity.  Leigh Zanone, an 18-year solar industry veteran, shares his insights and experience from working in leadership roles at meteocontrol and Avantus (formerly 8Minute Energy) plus a long tenure in the monitoring & asset management side of the business long before that was even the terminology. Leigh’s expertise spans the technical, legal, and financial aspects of solar project management, and his perspective on what it takes to finance and build these projects will challenge your conventional wisdom. 
Expect to Learn:
Why deploying hybrid projects is far more complex than solar-only projects.Why comprehensive software solutions for forecasting and optimization are currently lacking (and how we can solve this issue).How we can better educate investors to help them understand hybrid project risks.The hidden complexities that actually require longer diligence periods for hybrid projects.What factors make solar plus storage almost three times more volatile than traditional solar projects
Press play, get smarter.
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

How do we solve yesterday’s interconnection problems with today’s technology? 
Alexina Jackson, Vice President of Strategic Development at The AES Corporation, pulls back the curtain to show us how AES is using cutting-edge technology to integrate MORE renewable energy into the grid. Because we need to add new energy fast and our current grid isn’t up to the challenge, AES is inventing solutions as they go.
Expect to learn:
How AES’s new technology can push more power through existing wiring when the conditions are rightWhy more battery storage will add flexibility to the energy grid.AES’s method for turning distributed resources (separate windmills, solar farms, etc.) into “virtual power plants” 
AES is the leading developer for commercial and industrial customers in the US. They’re on the front lines, inventing technologies to augment the efficiency of existing utility assets. 
Ready for the most useful fifteen minutes of your week? Hit play!

If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus

As our Secretary of Energy says, deploy deploy deploy! It’s incredible to see how hard we’re pushing to modernize the grid, but, we also must maintain and ensure solar projects are delivering on every kilowatt hour that we promised. Today’s guest has been delivering on those promises for nearly two decades. 
Josh Fraughton, a renewable energy veteran with nearly two decades of experience in the solar industry, has seen firsthand the increasing need for a stable supply chain for solar O&M. So Josh collaborated with RNWBL at the founding of R7 Supply, a venture so immediately successful that it scaled to meet to start filling the gaps within 18 months and continues strong today under RNWBL.
Today, he shares his entrepreneurial journey with us. 
Expect to learn:
Josh’s story of going from boots-on-the-roof as an installer to orchestrating O&M and supply chain operations for industry giants.A business idea to address a need in the solar industry that Nico and Josh both believe will be hugeJosh’s plan to tackle obsolescence in solar components and ensure that systems remain efficient and viable over time.How well-intentioned entrepreneurs are creating their own inflation in the solar industry. 
Don't miss out – press play to learn more about optimizing the O&M side of the solar industry and Josh’s extensive experience solving the industry’s problems.
If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.
SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar.
You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors.
Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 650 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com.
Subscribe to Valence, our weekly Linkedin Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/
You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on:
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo
LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus