36 min
SMP 67: Investor/Developer's Perspective on the Indian Solar Market and Other International Markets Solar Maverick Podcast
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- Ciências naturais
Episode Summary
In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Kushagra Nandan provides a unique international perspective on the solar industry that comes from his early days in the United States solar market, starting his company, SunSource, in India, and his experience working on over 300 solar projects across many countries throughout India, Asia, and Africa. While talking about his journey with SunSource, Kushagra gives an in-depth overview of the entire Indian solar market from its inception to its future.
Benoy Thanjan
Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities. Reneu Energy has brokered $27 million in environmental commodity transactions.
Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.
Kushagra Nandan
As Co-Founder and President of SunSource, Kushagra has guided the company’s strategy, project execution, technology and engineering efforts, with a primary focus on client-specific solar solutions and international market development. He has played an active role in helping shape SunSource’s offerings for domestic and international markets. Kushagra has pioneered efforts towards providing end-to-end engineering solutions beginning from initial scoping and capacity building to actual project design, engineering, supervision, and construction. Kushagra is actively engaged in building the capability to handle a challenging portfolio of solar projects and focused on deeply entrenching the philosophy of minimizing the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE).
Kushagra brings a vast amount of experience in leading teams that have developed, designed and installed multi-megawatt solar PV projects. Prior to SunSource, Kushagra worked with global solar majors including SunPower and GE. As one of the core members of the SunDurance Energy team, he led the technical group and helped grow the team and capability to develop, engineer-build projects ranging from 100’s kilowatt to multiple megawatts. Kushagra has also had roles at New Energy Options, Inc., AstroPower Inc. (currently GE Energy), and the Center for Sustainable Energy at the University of Massachusetts.
Kushagra holds a Master’s degree in Solar Energy Engineering from the University of Massachusetts. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology. Kushagra has also successfully completed a Solar PV Technology Assessment Certification from Florida Solar Energy Center & Villanova University along with Electrical Safety for Qualified Electrical Workers Certificate from Louisiana Tech University. He is a Lifetime Member of the Solar Energy Society of India and was a member of the interconnection group at the Mid-Atlantic Solar Energy Association to assist New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities to help define State’s solar policy implementation.
Insights from this episode:
Details on SunSource, their future growth plans, and ownership targets that will allow further international expansion.
Strategies for deciding what solar projects SunSource invests in and, more importantly, when and where to invest.
De
Episode Summary
In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Kushagra Nandan provides a unique international perspective on the solar industry that comes from his early days in the United States solar market, starting his company, SunSource, in India, and his experience working on over 300 solar projects across many countries throughout India, Asia, and Africa. While talking about his journey with SunSource, Kushagra gives an in-depth overview of the entire Indian solar market from its inception to its future.
Benoy Thanjan
Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, as well as an advisor for several solar startup companies. Reneu Energy is a premier international solar energy consulting firm and developer, and the company focuses on developing commercial and industrial solar, as well as utility-scale solar plus storage projects. The company also sources financing for solar projects and hedges both energy and environmental commodities. Reneu Energy has brokered $27 million in environmental commodity transactions.
Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity, which merged with Tesla in 2016. He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity, to move into the east coast markets. Benoy also worked at Vanguard Energy Partners, Ridgewood Renewable Power, and Deloitte & Touche.
Kushagra Nandan
As Co-Founder and President of SunSource, Kushagra has guided the company’s strategy, project execution, technology and engineering efforts, with a primary focus on client-specific solar solutions and international market development. He has played an active role in helping shape SunSource’s offerings for domestic and international markets. Kushagra has pioneered efforts towards providing end-to-end engineering solutions beginning from initial scoping and capacity building to actual project design, engineering, supervision, and construction. Kushagra is actively engaged in building the capability to handle a challenging portfolio of solar projects and focused on deeply entrenching the philosophy of minimizing the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE).
Kushagra brings a vast amount of experience in leading teams that have developed, designed and installed multi-megawatt solar PV projects. Prior to SunSource, Kushagra worked with global solar majors including SunPower and GE. As one of the core members of the SunDurance Energy team, he led the technical group and helped grow the team and capability to develop, engineer-build projects ranging from 100’s kilowatt to multiple megawatts. Kushagra has also had roles at New Energy Options, Inc., AstroPower Inc. (currently GE Energy), and the Center for Sustainable Energy at the University of Massachusetts.
Kushagra holds a Master’s degree in Solar Energy Engineering from the University of Massachusetts. He also holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology. Kushagra has also successfully completed a Solar PV Technology Assessment Certification from Florida Solar Energy Center & Villanova University along with Electrical Safety for Qualified Electrical Workers Certificate from Louisiana Tech University. He is a Lifetime Member of the Solar Energy Society of India and was a member of the interconnection group at the Mid-Atlantic Solar Energy Association to assist New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities to help define State’s solar policy implementation.
Insights from this episode:
Details on SunSource, their future growth plans, and ownership targets that will allow further international expansion.
Strategies for deciding what solar projects SunSource invests in and, more importantly, when and where to invest.
De
36 min