In this episode of the Clean Power Hour, host Tim Montague talks with Nate Owen, founder and CEO of Ampion, about the evolution and future of community solar. Key topics and takeaways include:
- How community solar is moving beyond its roots in state-specific programs to more flexible models that can scale rapidly. Nate discusses "Community Solar 2.0" - applying the shared solar concept to larger projects over 5 MW with diverse corporate and institutional offtakers.
- The huge pent-up demand from companies, municipalities, hospitals and others to subscribe to community solar farms. Nate says the appetite is "insatiable" and likens it to "selling a slice of bread when they want 10 bakeries."
- How marrying batteries with community solar creates valuable dispatchable assets. Adding storage allows solar farms to provide grid services and generate significant revenue, especially during peak summer hours.
- The critical role of initiatives like the Inflation Reduction Act in improving community solar economics through incentives and the ability to monetize environmental attributes.
- Emerging state markets that excite Nate, like New York, Massachusetts, Maine, Illinois, Minnesota and Colorado. At the same time, he expresses bafflement at California's recent decision that could hinder community solar growth there.
- The nitty-gritty complexities involved in making community solar work, from standardizing contracts and processes, to evolving utility billing systems, to working with regulators on interconnection policies and consumer protections.
Though challenges remain, Nate is extremely bullish on community solar's future. He envisions an absolutely massive effort to build solar farms everywhere, seeing community-scale projects with multiple offtakers as the predominant model going forward.
Social Media Handles
https://www.linkedin.com/in/nate-owen-20129a87/
https://ampion.net/
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0:00 - Intro
2:11 - Nate Owen's Background & Founding Ampion
4:20 - The Basics of Community Solar Programs
6:30 - Overcoming Complexities in Community Solar
9:43 - Challenges with Utility Billing Systems
14:22 - What does the Future of Community Solar Look like
18:34 - Difference Between a 50 Megawatt Community Solar Project and a 50 Megawatt Virtual PPA
24:00 - How to Overcome Community Solar Projects Limitations
27:01 - The Value of Adding Battery Storage
32:26 - Carbon Impact of Solar+Storage vs. Natural Gas
34:58 - Baffling California Decision on Community Solar
41:11 - Emerging Community Solar Markets
43:28 - Outro and How to Find Nate Owen
