How solar and batteries will unlock the electric monopolies and create a clean energy renaissance
The shift from fossil fuels to clean energy may prove to be the largest and most disruptive energy transition in history. Solar and batteries will unlock the century-old electric monopolies, unleashing a new era of innovation, entrepreneurship and customer choice.
Podcast #004 – Mary Anne Hitt: Grassroots effort closes coal plants
Host Bill Nussey talks with Mary Anne Hitt, Director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign, about their inspiring success at helping close almost half the coal plants in the US over the last decade
The Green New Deal – climate salvation or too blue to be true?
Washington, DC has rediscovered the climate. Democratic rising star, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is championing the New Green Deal. We take a look inside this climate manifesto to see what’s really there and whether it can be a blueprint for a clean energy future.
January Clean Energy Headlines
Clean energy headlines from January:
* Corporate clean energy purchases in 2018 shattered all previous records.
* Tesla Model 3 outsold every other luxury vehicle in 2018.
* Germany gets more energy from renewables than coal in 2018.
* US Government predicts clean energy will dominate grid buildouts in 2019.
Podcast #003 – Chris Riley: A Coal Miner’s Son Takes on a Giant Utility
Freeing Energy host Bill Nussey talks with Guzman Energy’s Chris Riley about growing up in a coal mining town and how it shaped his thinking as he took on a giant utility.
Four questions investors should ask before funding cleantech startups (Part 4)
After the 2011 collapse of cleantech investing, the industry is starting to show signs of life once again. Investors are slowly dusting off their checkbooks. This article has four core questions and five parts of the value chain that investors should consider as they fund new cleantech companies.
Podcast #002 – Luis Reyes: David Takes on Goliath in Local Energy
How did David stand up to Goliath? In this modern-day take, hear the story about how two local energy champions in Taos, New Mexico, took on a giant utility.
A blueprint for cleantech investing (Part 3)
Cleantech is one of the biggest and most exciting technology industries today. But, despite the buzz, it remains complex and opaque. This article breaks it down into bite-sized chunks and explains how the terms and segments fit together.
Podcast #001 – Bill Nussey: Tech CEO Turned Local Energy Leader
On the inaugural episode of The Freeing Energy Podcast, co-host Sam Easterby interviews founder Bill Nussey on the details of Bill’s personal journey in the world of local, decentralized energy – and where he sees that journey taking him.
2018 was an amazing year for clean energy
Looking back, 2018 was an amazing year for clean energy. Price and installation records were shattered across the globe. EVs took off. Grid scale batteries proved they worked at scale. Even the US solar tariffs were not enough to stop the clean energy juggernaut.
How will we fund the transition to a clean energy future? (Part 2)
Even conservative estimates forecast that transitioning to clean energy will require trillions of dollars of investments. Where will all this money come from? For better or worse, most of it will come from traditional sources like banks and governments. But, even thought it’s relatively smaller, venture capital will play a critical, catalytic role by lowering the risks for every other type of investment.
How venture investors lost $10 billion in the cleantech collapse of 2011 (Part 1)
Clean energy is one of the largest business opportunities in history. But, in 2011, the US venture capital industry lost over $10 billion betting on it. What led to this cleantech collapse? And what did we learn as funding for cleantech is on the rise again?
November Clean Energy Headlines
Clean energy headlines from November:
– New renewables pull ahead of coal in cost race
– MorningStar: Coal has an ugly future
– Midterm elections were also about clean energy and clean energy lost
– California utilities under a crushing legal assault
– A radical new approach to electrical storage.
The bottom line on nuclear power – high costs and safety concerns darken its future (Part 7)
Nuclear power is the most divisive and debated of all electric generation solutions. Critics say Fukushima and Chernobyl prove it is too dangerous. Supporters say there is no other proven way to generate huge amounts of carbon-free, baseload electricity. So, what is the answer? Should we step up our adoption of nuclear power or shut it down altogether?
I learned the most important thing about wind power from climbing a turbine
I climbed a 250-foot wind turbine to learn firsthand how wind power is changing the landscape of global energy. But it wasn’t until I got to the very top that I embraced the most important truth of wind power – size matters.
Bill Nussey interviewed on Suncast podcast
My recent podcast interview with Suncast’s Nico Johnson covered a wide range of topics including the history of the grid and emerging business opportunities.
Can next-generation nuclear plants save the nuclear industry? (Part 6)
For nuclear power to achieve its promise as a source of global-scale, rock-steady, emissions-free power, new approaches are needed. To understand how nuclear power can rise again, we need to take a look at fusion, small modular reactors, traveling wave reactors and more.
Does nuclear power enhance or undermine America’s national security? (Part 5)
While a stable grid is essential for the well being of developed countries, nuclear power magnifies the risks and rewards of making electricity to a level of national security. Few types of power generation are more contentious and none have the potential to affect the well being of nations like nuclear power – as both defender and demolisher.
October Clean Energy Headlines
The biggest clean energy headlines of October:
* The US is about to surpass 1 million electric vehicles.
* The US Government has written off $500 million in “clean coal” research since 2010.
* The US is on track for record coal retirements in 2018
* California utilities are proactively creating blackouts to avoid more powerline caused wildfires.
* Chernobyl is once again generating power but this time it’s solar.
Keynote presentation at the Southern Solar Summit
I recently had the honor to keynote the 10th annual Southern Solar Summit. My presentation focused on two points. First, solar and battery will become the largest source of electricity sooner than people think. Second, Georgia is in a unique position to help lead the clean energy transformation.