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Clean Power Hour

Clean Power Hour

By: Tim Montague John Weaver
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The Clean Power Hour podcast is speeding the clean energy transition. Tim Montague and John Weaver highlight clean energy innovations shaping the next generation of renewable energy sources. We discuss the latest solar PV, battery storage, wind, water, wave, and other low-carbon technologies. We answer the question: How can we decarbonize the economy? We promote the economic opportunity of electrifying everything - transportation, energy, industry, and the built environment. Let's speed up the clean energy transition together. Join the movement - www.CleanPowerHour.com

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Episodes
  • Carport Solar Done Right: Engineering, Pricing, and Building for the Long Haul #357

    Carport Solar Done Right: Engineering, Pricing, and Building for the Long Haul #357
    Jul 2 2026

    Solar carport installation costs can swing by 12 cents per watt before a single panel goes up. Kyle Sinclair, CEO and co-founder of SDE (Sinclair Designs and Engineering), James Strizki, Project Manager and CFO of GenMounts and Renewable Energy Holdings, and Matt Boyce, a PE licensed in 27 states and Principal Engineer at Engineered Solutions, join Tim Montague to break down exactly how carport projects are won and lost. Between them, they have engineered, manufactured, reviewed, and installed hundreds of megawatts of solar structures. This webinar covers the full arc of a carport project from initial bid to commissioning, with a focus on where costs blow up and what to do before you break ground to prevent it.

    Here is what you will learn in this conversation about solar carport installation and commercial carport project execution:

    • Find out why experienced rooftop EPCs get surprised when they move into carports. Carport structures run 25 feet tall, require serious drilling and concrete work, and the average project size is around half a megawatt, with 100 cubic yards of concrete per site.
    • You will learn how to structure the due diligence process before a single hole is drilled. James Strizki walks through geotech reports, 811-dig calls, web soil GIS software, conversations with local drillers, and a field layout walk a week before mobilization.
    • Understand what ground conditions actually cost you on a carport bid. Kyle Sinclair gives real numbers: $800 per drilled hole in clean Michigan clay versus $2,500 per hole when you hit shale, a difference that adds $60,000 to a half-megawatt project and creates a 12-cent-per-watt cost swing.
    • Find out the three foundation types you will encounter on carport projects and when each one applies. James covers drilled shafts, spread footings, and hybrid helical pile systems, and explains why the wrong choice or a rushed choice can undermine a parking lot within a year or two of commissioning.
    • You will hear Matt Boyce explain why he will not stamp an existing carport structure for solar unless it was originally designed for the load, and what independent structural review actually protects in a project.

    With residential installers entering the commercial carport market in growing numbers, the gap between what a project looks like on paper and what crews find underground is widening. Kyle Sinclair notes that some EPCs entering this space are used to low-cost, high-volume, cookie-cutter projects and are now bidding work that is the complete opposite, large, expensive, heavily customized, and months in the making. If you are pricing carport work or planning to, the cost variability covered in this conversation is not theoretical.

    Connect with Guests

    Kyle Sinclair | LinkedIn

    James Strizki, P.E. | LinkedIn

    Support the show

    Connect with Tim

    Clean Power Hour
    Clean Power Hour on YouTube
    Tim on Twitter
    Tim on LinkedIn

    Email tim@cleanpowerhour.com

    Review Clean Power Hour on Apple Podcasts

    The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

    Corporate sponsors who share our mission to speed the energy transition are invited to check out https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/support/

    The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems. Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com
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    57 mins
  • CATL's Sodium Ion Battery Could Last 30 Years: Rebuild Your Storage Model Now

    CATL's Sodium Ion Battery Could Last 30 Years: Rebuild Your Storage Model Now
    Jun 30 2026
    CATL unveiled its TENER Sodium energy storage system at Intersolar Europe in Munich, rated for 15,000 cycles to 70 percent state of health at room temperature. CATL frames that as a 25 to 30 year service life, and it takes only 34 modules to stand up a one gigawatt-hour site. That single specification changes how commercial storage professionals price, propose, and finance battery projects. Tim Montague and John Weaver dig into what it means, alongside Illinois growing from about 80 megawatts of solar a decade ago to over 6,000 megawatts today under the new CRGA law, SunBallast ballasted racking and what module stacking tells you about install labor, UK bids for 16 and 18 hour long-duration storage, perovskite modules reaching the residential market, El Niño shifting solar output across the US, and silver falling more than 50 percent from its 2026 peak.Episode HighlightsCATL sodium ion battery, 15,000 cycles: CATL launched its TENER Sodium system at Intersolar Europe in Munich. It is rated for 15,000 cycles to 70 percent state of health at 25 degrees C, which CATL frames as a 25 to 30 year service life, and just 34 modules build a 1 GWh site. (Energy Storage News)Sodium ion safety advantage: CATL claims its sodium cells cut expansion force by roughly 40 percent, generate about 35 percent less gas during thermal runaway, and hold peak surface temperatures far below comparable lithium ion. The fire and thermal-runaway story is a big part of why C&I buyers are paying attention to sodium. (Interesting Engineering)Sodium ion in the fast-response role: John flagged a detail from a CATL hybrid storage proposal where sodium was specified for the faster-response duty and lithium for the slower role. Worth keeping in context. This is one proposal's configuration, not a blanket claim that sodium beats lithium on response everywhere.GM and Peak Energy sodium ion partnership: General Motors is moving into stationary storage with Peak Energy, backed by a strategic investment from GM Ventures. GM will develop the sodium ion cell in its Michigan battery lab and keep exclusive manufacturing rights, while Peak integrates the cell into its passively cooled storage systems. Peak energized the first U.S. grid-scale sodium-ion system, 3.5 MWh, in Watkins, Colorado, in 2025. (Inside Climate News)Illinois energy transition, 80 MW to 6 GW: Tim attended a Nexamp event at the company's Chicago office, where IPA director Brian Granahan reported Illinois has grown from about 80 megawatts of solar a decade ago to over 6,000 megawatts energized today, with roughly 14.5 gigawatts of wind and solar developed under the state RPS (13 GW to date plus about 1.5 GW just approved). The engine is CRGA, the Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act (SB 25, pronounced "Surge"), which runs its first utility-scale storage procurement in August, the opening tranche toward 3 GW by 2030 via additional 2027 and 2028 rounds. Residential VPP enrollment opens in mid-July, with ComEd and Ameren customers able to put home batteries into a short-term scheduled-dispatch pilot this summer. (PV Magazine)SunBallast racking and install labor: The hosts walk through SunBallast ballasted, no-penetration racking and get into the labor economics of module mounting, including what the way different manufacturers stack modules for shipping tells you about handling time on the job site.UK long-duration storage bids at 16 and 18 hours: Fresh procurement results out of Scotland and England show projects awarded at 16 and 18 hours of duration. John notes it is the first time he has seen bids at that scale and ties it to Scotland's wind-heavy generation profile. (Blue Sky)Trina Solar perovskite module hits residential market: Trina landed its first commercial order for a perovskite-silicon tandem module, going into New Zealand's premium residential market. The record-setting module is 907 watts at 29.2 percent efficiency, certified by TUV SUD. (Perovskite Info)El Niño and solar irradiance shifts: John walks through regional solar output swings across the US and globally. Rajasthan, India, home to some of the world's largest solar plants, is projected to run about 15 percent above its seasonal average this season. (PV Magazine)Silver prices fall more than 50 percent: Silver has dropped from its late-January 2026 record near 121 dollars to the upper 50s, more than half off the peak, on a stronger dollar and a hawkish Fed. It matters for PV because silver paste is a real line item, and World Silver Survey data shows solar's silver demand down about 19 percent. (TheStreet)This episode is essential for commercial solar installers, battery storage developers, community solar professionals, and clean energy policy watchers. The sodium ion story has direct and immediate implications for how professionals structure storage proposals, financial models, and customer conversations. Illinois developers will also want Tim's firsthand account of the CRGA storage procurement and the ...
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    59 mins
  • The Engineering Gap Costing Solar Companies A Fortune #356

    The Engineering Gap Costing Solar Companies A Fortune #356
    Jun 23 2026

    A single design error on a commercial solar project can cost $60,000 to $70,000 to fix. Scott Wyssling and Catherine Kelso of Wyssling Consulting explain what quality design actually looks like, why AI cannot replace a licensed engineer reviewing plans, and how battery integration really fits into commercial solar today.

    In this episode, Tim Montague sits down with Scott Wyssling, founder and principal at Wyssling Consulting, and Catherine Kelso, Director of Commercial Design and electrical engineer at the firm. Wyssling provides structural and electrical engineering and design for residential and commercial solar and storage projects across the United States. With 75 employees and an engineer-owned, engineer-led structure, the firm has built its reputation on quality control, fast turnaround, and a refusal to treat the PE seal as a formality.

    With the ITC safe harbor deadline pushing a construction boom through 2027, the pressure to move fast is real. Scott's point is direct: speed without engineering integrity creates liability that lands on the EPC and installer, not just the firm that signed the plans.

    What you'll learn in this conversation:

    Why a single design error on a commercial project can cost $60,000 to $70,000 to fix, and how $3,000 to $4,000 in better upfront engineering eliminates that risk entirely.

    How Wyssling's QAQC process actually works, including internal peer reviews and a 20% audit of already-delivered projects, and why that sets a different standard than automated or outsourced design.

    Why Catherine Kelso says battery integration is simpler than most EPCs expect, whether you're retrofitting storage onto an existing system or designing it in from day one, and what to watch for when choosing a manufacturer.

    Scott Wyssling's direct case against letting AI replace hands-on engineering review, and why a licensed PE needs eyes on the actual roof, the actual photos, and the actual electrical equipment.

    How 15 to 20 year old solar farms are creating a new engineering challenge as 600-volt inverters age out in a market now built around 1,000 and 1,500-volt equipment, and why this only grows from here.

    Quality control gets treated as optional right up until a six-figure correction lands on your desk. This episode gives you concrete criteria for telling a serious engineering partner from a shortcut operation before you sign anything.

    Connect with Guests

    Website: https://www.wysslingconsulting.com/

    Scott LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-wyssling-5b2aa77/

    Catherine LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/catherine-kelso-pe-997b014a/

    Support the show

    Connect with Tim

    Clean Power Hour
    Clean Power Hour on YouTube
    Tim on Twitter
    Tim on LinkedIn

    Email tim@cleanpowerhour.com

    Review Clean Power Hour on Apple Podcasts

    The Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email: CleanPowerHour@gmail.com

    Corporate sponsors who share our mission to speed the energy transition are invited to check out https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/support/

    The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems. Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com
    Show More Show Less
    45 mins
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