What happens when a utility faces rising electricity demand, growing customer expectations, and pressure to keep power affordable? In 2022, Winter Storm Elliott forced rolling blackouts across the Tennessee Valley. For Knoxville Utilities Board (KUB), the experience reinforced the importance of grid reliability, resilience, and local accountability. In this episode of the Clean Power Hour,…

Battery storage is moving fast, and the numbers keep getting bigger. In this episode of the Clean Power Hour live, Tim Montague joins John Weaver from Melbourne, Australia, after attending All Energy Australia with CATL. They dig into what Tim learned about sodium-ion batteries, including CATL’s plans to significantly expand sodium battery production and why…

The U.S. is facing a major energy challenge. AI data centers are driving electricity demand higher, grid infrastructure takes years and billions of dollars to expand, and communities need reliable power. Could microgrids and distributed energy resources help bridge the gap? In this episode of The Clean Power Hour, host Tim Montague speaks with Lester…

Can you put cattle beneath solar panels without damaging the equipment or driving up project costs? Silicon Ranch set out to answer that question, and the result is what Matt Beasley, Chief Commercial Officer at Silicon Ranch, describes as the world’s first utility-scale solar PV plant specifically designed to integrate cattle grazing. In this episode…

America’s nuclear renaissance is gaining momentum, but new nuclear power plants can take around a decade to build. With electricity demand rising and the grid under pressure, what can the energy industry do now to deliver reliable, affordable power? In this episode of the Clean Power Hour, host Tim Montague speaks with Cortney Piper, founder…

Solar and battery storage are reshaping the energy industry, but policy uncertainty, grid constraints, manufacturing challenges, and equipment reliability remain major issues. In this episode of Clean Power Hour Live, Tim Montague and John Weaver break down the latest developments in solar, energy storage, and the evolving power grid. They discuss new research showing that…

Solar EPCs face growing pressure to deliver projects on time, manage costs, secure financing, and navigate changing energy policies. So how can smaller companies grow while protecting their profitability and reputation? In this episode of the Clean Power Hour, host Tim Montague sits down with Forrest Cohn, co-founder of Utopian Power, to discuss building a…

A 100 kW rooftop can be a meaningful source of energy savings—and a difficult project to finance. How do you make solar work for affordable housing, churches, and nonprofits? In this episode of the Clean Power Hour, Tim Montague sits down with Ben Underwood and Isaac Baker, founders of Massachusetts-based Resonant Energy, to discuss how…

Rising electricity demand and prolonged outages are pushing the Tennessee Valley to rethink how it builds and operates the grid. Where do solar, batteries, and community-scale microgrids fit? In episode 374 of the Clean Power Hour, Tim Montague welcomes Gil Hough, Executive Director of the Tennessee Solar Energy Industries Association (TenneSEIA), for a conversation following…

Solar and storage are moving into a new phase, and this week’s Clean Power Hour Live covers the technologies, policies, and market shifts shaping that transition. Tim Montague and John Weaver break down the latest developments across solar, batteries, wind, grid infrastructure, and electrification. In California, Governor Gavin Newsom has signed legislation supporting virtual power…