SMP 68: A great team and technology platform has allowed CleanCapital to increase substantially their ownership of solar assets

 

Episode Summary

In this episode of Solar Maverick, Jon Powers shares the origin story of CleanCapital and how they went from an idea to a start-up to a successful investment capital firm in clean energy.  Jon discusses how CleanCapital studied what was working in other business sectors to create an internal technology platform to identify and acquire clean energy assets, underwrite them efficiently, and bring new capital into the clean energy market. 

 

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.

 

Jon Powers 

Jon leads corporate strategy, operations, investor relations, and marketing for CleanCapital.  He is a clean energy and national security expert committed to making clean energy accessible to everyone.  

Prior to joining CleanCapital, Jon led public sector business development at Bloom Energy.  His passion for clean energy stems from his time serving with the U.S. Army in Iraq, where he learned how vital clean energy is in protecting America’s national security.  He helped to revolutionize the U.S. Army’s energy program, first as Special Adviser for Energy to the Assistant Secretary of the Army and later as Director of Outreach for the Army’s Energy Initiatives Task Force.  In 2012, Jon was appointed to the post of Federal Chief Sustainability Officer by President Obama. Jon is a graduate of John Carroll University and Johns Hopkins University.

He was named to Washington Life’s Top 25 Tech Leaders in D.C., 2016 and Renewable Energy World’s inaugural Solar 40 Under 40 list.

 

Insights from this episode:

How to use technology to bring efficient solutions to the clean energy sector by analyzing what has worked in other industries such as real estate.
How to create a technology platform that provides value, expedient execution, and workflow solutions. 
Strategies for managing challenges in entrepreneurship and creating a successful company.
Details on how CleanCapital continues to make adjustments to their business model to open new opportunities for investment.  
Strategies for attracting investors that were not previously interested in the solar energy market.
Details on the types of projects CleanCapital focuses on, what an ideal project looks like for them, and trends they are seeing in the solar financing industry.
Details on Jon’s experience in the Army and how that led him into the clean energy sector, becoming a member of Operation Free and working for the White House under President Obama.

 

Quotes from the show:

On working with partners in clean energy: “We don’t just acquire the assets, we actually stay in and actively manage them on behalf of our partners.  What we’ve done really well, to date, is our ability to really efficiently and quickly underwrite and close deals.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68
“We have a very clear underwriting process that’s enabled by technology so we are able to move as fast as the seller.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68
“What is unique about our technology is that we didn’t try to overly engineer a perfect solution, we built what we needed to execute.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68 
“Technology aside, the thing we do best is just [having] a really great culture and great teammates that are mission-driven.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68
On preferred projects: “We love to be able to do the transaction directly with the seller because it brings efficiency, it cuts out the middleman, and [the seller] can get more out of the deal when they are not paying an advisor.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68 
“The longer the contracted period, the better for the economics of the project.” – Benoy Thanjan, Episode #68
“Our biggest strength is our ability to transact and to do it quickly.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68
“It’s important to have a good reputation in [the clean energy investment] space because it’s not a huge market.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68 
On creating the Experts Only podcast: “What I wanted to focus on was the intersection of energy, innovation, and finance.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68
On how corporations are influencing the renewable energy market: “It’s interesting how [corporations] are actually creating opportunities and demanding access to renewable energy which is then allowing the states and utilities to change to be able to get that business.” – Benoy Thanjan, Episode #68
On successful entrepreneurship: “Everything is going take way longer than you think it will, you can’t do it all yourself, you need to think about how to build-out a good team and be willing to follow the path that the market sends you on.” – Jon Powers, Episode #68

Resources Mentioned:

CleanCapital Experts Only podcast hosted by Jon Powers

SMP 14: How Institutional Investment Capital is Transforming the Renewable Energy Market with Thom Byrne with Benoy Thanjan and Thom Byrne

Operation Free is a coalition of veterans and national security experts who believe oil dependence and climate change pose threats to our national security and advocate for securing America with clean energy.

 

Stay Connected:

 

Benoy Thanjan

Email: [email protected] 

LinkedIn: @bthanjan

Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com

 

Jon Powers

LinkedIn: Jon Powers

Website: CleanCapital

Twitter: @CleanCapital_

 Sponsor:

We would like to thank Schwerd Consulting for sponsoring this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast.

Schwerd Consulting is a leading solar consulting firm dedicated to design, engineering, and owner representation in all areas of solar photovoltaics (PV) for the Commercial & Industrial and Utility markets.

At Schwerd Consulting they like to say that We Know Solar. We don’t just Do Solar. What sets them apart is their 100% focus on solar and understanding the business of their clients.

In its 5 years of business, Schwerd Consulting has provided services for approximately 450 MW of PV across over 330 sites and 15 states plus the Caribbean. That total includes 300MW of completed designs and engineering, and 150MW of consulting and owner rep services.

Let Schwerd Consulting take the burden off you and bring ease and expertise in all areas of Engineering & Design or help you navigate the technical world of solar.

If you are interested in learning more about Schwerd Consulting, you can call 215-219-6718 or email at admin@schwerdconsulting. Schwerd Consulting’s website is www.schwerdconsulting.com.

Steve Schwerd who is the Owner of Schwerd Consulting was interviewed on Episode 17 and Episode 48 of the Solar Maverick Podcast and Episode 42 of which he was on panel discussion on How Solar Technology is Changing the World.

They are involved with the trends, technologies, vendors, policies, utilities, codes, and financial considerations for the industry. Therefore, value add for them is not just a slogan, it’s what they practice in order to have loyal customers and gain trust.

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This episode was produced and managed by  Podcast Laundry (www.podcastlaundry.com)