Tag Archives: Daily Rundown

This is your SolarWakeup for February 8th, 2020

The SPAC Transparency. Each day this week we’ll cover one part of the SPAC market. Tomorrow we’ll talk more about the basics as I understand them but today, let’s talk about transparency. When a SPAC merger is announced, i.e. a public acquisition corp says it’s acquiring an operating private company, an investor presentation is released. These presentations are gold for understanding where the business comes from, how it is performing financially and where it is going. These decks are almost always well prepared and give you a great outline of how to tell the story of your company, the competition and how you will win. I’ve seen quite a few but if there is one that impressed you, send me the link.

Been There, Done That. Champa Bay Buccaneers owner, Joel Glazer, said in signing Tom Brady. If you want to get to the top, ask someone who’s been there before. As a Dolphins fan, I have suffered at the hands of Tom Brady for 20 years and thought that this year I’d simply sit back and admire the fact that Brady knows he’s great and then shows it off by executing. Some of us are wired that way but no-one quite like Brady. If you want to get to the top in solar, maybe you too can find your Tom Brady.

Earnings Highlights. Tomorrow we launch solar earnings season which will last the next month. Enphase kicks off with their release tomorrow. As I mentioned on Friday and you can hear the replay on Phil Shen of Roth Capital’s earnings preview webinar here, that Enphase has now reached 48% market share in the resi space. That’s up from 32% based on permit data collected and analyzed by Ohm Analytics. Phil also highlights that his checks indicate supply is limited of the popular product and margin could be increased by the company due to continued strong demand.

Ride Tonight. The #ride4solar continues tonight at 7:30pm EST. A 45-minute ride with Alex Toussaint to celebrate his 5 year anniversary. SEIA’s Abby Hopper is taking the helm tonight as I will be at ice hockey practice. In case you missed previous rides, solar’s own Walker Wright, of Sunrun, is quite the Peloton pro racking up output numbers that would humble Lance Armstrong.

Opinion

Best, Yann

This is your SolarWakeup for February 5th, 2020

Market Share Update. On yesterday’s Roth Capital market call, Ohm Analytics reported market share for residential inverter companies Enphase and Solaredge based on actual permit data. In this data set, Ohm showed that Enphase has increased its share in the resi market by 50% year over year to 48% of the overall market, taking a majority of that increase directly from Solaredge. Roth believes that Enphase earnings next Tuesday may show the financial execution of that business success.

Clean Energy for Biden. The incoming Secretary of Energy, Jennifer Granholm, highlighted the influence of the group on a LinkedIn post yesterday. Gone are the days when our industry isn’t in the room where it happens.

No Way Norway. Will Ferrell stars in this GM ad that will run during the Super Bowl announcing GM’s plan to have 30 EV models by 2025. As a marketer, I am in awe how far behind auto OEMs are in their consumer purchasing understanding. I’ve driven EVs since 2012 and not once did I think about the type of battery in the car. GM, call me. 

What’s Your Forecast? In the coming weeks, I’ll be running a new market survey to get your take on the market forecast. The numbers are all over the place and few people are seeing a utility scale market and resi market growing north of 30% like I am plus a C&I market that feels to be accelerating even more than that. Get your thoughts in order, the wisdom of the crowd is calling soon.

Global PPAs. Power purchase agreements are a fairly American solar transaction but other markets are looking at the concept as well. American developers could be called upon to educate solar pros in other geographies on the structure and execution.

Virtual No More. Door to door selling, meeting in person and travel all appear to be regaining some momentum. Not to pre-pandemic levels but you can see the masks replacing zoom. Yesterday, Solar Power Northeast announced the return to the Boston Westin in June for an in-person solar conference. What business aspects are you back to in person versus the ones you are keeping remote? 

Opinion

Best, Yann

This is your SolarWakeup for February 4th, 2020

Green Cabinet Advances. Mayor Pete becomes Secretary Pete and Governor Granholm is on her way to the same. President Biden is getting the cabinet he desired with the executive orders to centralize the effort to fight climate change throughout government. EPA nominee Regan was on the hill yesterday.

Stranded Assets Get Audited. NextEra kicked off the energy earnings season with the first quarterly losses in a decade due to a billion-dollar right down of a natural gas pipeline project. A new report now forecasts over $1 Trillion in losses from these types of delayed and stranded assets. The pain will only get worse if we expect delaying the transition will somehow avoid the pain that is almost guaranteed by poor investments. Part of overcoming the negative financial impact will be creating investment opportunities on the positive side of the ledger.

SEC ESG Advisor. NYU’s Satyam Khanna is joining the SEC as an advisor on ESG and climate issues. With financial firms already understanding that ESG is central to their investment thesis (see stranded assets) it helps to have regulators understand the issue from a regulatory standpoint. Not only to keep clarity on what is ESG but also to ensure that regulations don’t get in the way of this decade’s wealth creation opportunity.

We Ride Together. Late notice but join us this morning at 8 am for a 30-minute ride on Peloton with Ally Love. There are over 60 members in the #ride4solar team and growing. When we can’t network in person, we shall do it virtually on a bike!

Opinion

Best, Yann

This is your SolarWakeup for February 3rd, 2020

Utility Ownership Fallacy. Utility ownership of behind the meter or community level assets reveals the flaw that is the 21st century business model. When it comes to building the most competitive and dynamic energy grid, it requires consumers to be at the center of the services that are provided. Not in a way that is secured by minimum bills or required contracts but by a provider showing the value proposition and actually delivering what was promised. Years from now there will be books written about how PG&E has been able to survive this long as an IOU through two bankruptcies, multiple criminal convictions and an ongoing search for executives. At the center of that story will be the regulatory capture in Sacramento.

Better Jobs. Part of the solar industry’s goal for the next decade is geographically dispersing the job opportunities. Of course the installations are spread around the Country but what about the office jobs? I’d be interested to see trade groups working with local economic development councils to find siting opportunities for solar companies in places that aren’t usually considered or are hard to find.

Plan For Big Solar. Every week passes and the realization comes that for the foreseeable future the limits to the growth in solar will be labor and materials. The pipeline appears endless, consumer demand growing in depth and geography and capital loves solar more each day. Trying to buy materials for a project in the next two quarters however, is far more complicated and unpredictable than ever before and it may get worse before it gets better. Next week, Enphase will report earnings and you may hear that they are sold out and raising margins simply due to fundamental economics of supply and demand. 

Opinion

Best, Yann