Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy Podcast

Electricity demand is accelerating from every direction: AI, data centers, transportation, home electrification, industrial load growth, and rising expectations for reliability. But building new grid infrastructure is getting harder, slower, and more expensive. In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth sits down with Vinnie Campo, Co-founder and CEO of Haven Energy, to explore how residential batteries could become one of the most important pieces of the modern grid.
Vinnie returns to the show with a major update on Haven Energy’s evolution. What began as a company helping homeowners access batteries has grown into a broader mission: deploying, owning, and operating distributed energy assets that can provide real, dispatchable capacity for utilities while giving homeowners backup power, lower costs, and a simpler energy experience. 
The conversation explores why the current grid challenge is different from past demand cycles. Vinnie explains how electrification is pushing load growth into millions of homes and neighborhoods, not just large data centers. That creates a localized infrastructure challenge where transformers, substations, and transmission systems are under increasing pressure. Instead of relying only on new centralized generation, Haven is focused on deploying distributed batteries where capacity is needed most. 
Wes and Vinnie also break down Haven’s business model shift from selling batteries to owning and operating them through a low-cost subscription model. By bringing financing, sales, installation, and optimization closer together, Haven is working to reduce soft costs, simplify the customer experience, and make home batteries accessible to a much broader market. 
Key topics covered include:
Grid capacity constraints and why demand growth is different this time
How AI, transportation, and home electrification are reshaping electricity needs
Why utilities are moving from virtual power plant pilots to full-scale deployment
The role of residential batteries as localized grid infrastructure
Haven Energy’s shift toward battery subscriptions starting around $49 per month
Why homeowners want simplicity, backup power, lower bills, and less complexity
How distributed power plants could become as important as centralized assets
The role of AI in reducing permitting, design, installation, and interconnection friction
Why Vinnie believes every home could eventually have a battery
This episode is a clear look at the future of home batteries, distributed power plants, virtual power plants, grid reliability, and the next era of residential energy. If you care about how the grid evolves, how utilities meet new demand, or how homeowners become part of the energy system without becoming energy managers, this conversation is essential listening.
Links: 
Vinnie Campo on LinkedIn
Haven Energy's Website
Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/
Email: [email protected]
https://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/
https://leegroupsearch.com/

Clean energy may be cheaper, cleaner, and more scalable than ever, but that does not mean the transition will happen fast enough, fairly enough, or automatically.
In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, host Wes Ashworth sits down with Sachu Constantine, Executive Director of Vote Solar, to explore the policy, power structures, and market rules shaping America’s clean energy future.
Sachu brings more than three decades of experience across international development, utility regulation, solar policy, and clean energy advocacy. His journey spans Peace Corps service in Ghana, regulatory work at the California Public Utilities Commission, private sector experience with SunPower, and national leadership at Vote Solar. 
The conversation centers on a critical tension: solar and storage are ready, but the system around them often is not. Sachu explains why better technology does not always win on its own, especially in an energy system shaped by monopoly utilities, legacy incentives, interconnection bottlenecks, rate design fights, and regulatory processes many communities never get a meaningful chance to influence.
Wes and Sachu unpack how utilities actually make money, why public utility commissions matter, and how policies around net metering, resource adequacy, demand charges, interconnection queues, virtual power plants, and distributed solar can either accelerate or slow the transition.
They also dig into one of the episode’s most important themes: equity is not a side issue. Communities facing high energy burdens, poor service quality, and limited clean energy access should not be last in line for the benefits of solar. They should help shape the system from the beginning.
Listeners will come away with a clearer understanding of where clean energy decisions really get made, why public participation matters, and what it takes to build a future where solar is affordable and accessible to all.
In this episode, we cover:
Why clean energy is inevitable only if we actively shape the rules
How utility incentives influence the pace of solar adoption
Why public utility commissions are critical to the clean energy transition
The role of interconnection queues in slowing renewable deployment
How distributed solar, batteries, and virtual power plants can support grid reliability
Why affordability is one of the defining energy issues of the moment
How energy equity shows up in real communities, bills, and service quality
What policy changes could accelerate solar adoption in the next five years
Why coalition building and community trust are essential to lasting progress
How everyday people can use their voice to influence energy decisions
The energy transition is not just about technology. It is about who has power, who gets access, who pays, who benefits, and who shows up when the rules are being written.
Guest: Sachu Constantine, Executive Director, Vote Solar
Host: Wes Ashworth, President of Lee Group Search
Episode Theme: Solar policy, energy equity, utility regulation, grid modernization, clean energy advocacy, and the future of distributed energy
Links: 
Sachu Constantine on LinkedIn
Vote Solar's Website
Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/
Email: [email protected]
https://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/
https://leegroupsearch.com/

Episode 100 of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy marks a major milestone and captures a pivotal shift happening across the solar industry.
In this episode, Wes Ashworth sits down with Howard Wenger, President of Nextpower, a company delivering a utility-scale solar integrated platform designed to improve performance, reliability, and speed at scale.
With more than four decades in solar, Howard brings a rare perspective. He has helped build and scale companies from the earliest days of the industry to today’s global deployments exceeding hundreds of gigawatts. At Nextpower, he is leading the transition from fragmented system design to a fully integrated approach that combines hardware, software, and data into a unified platform.
This conversation explores how solar power plants are being redefined in response to rising electricity demand, increasing system complexity, and the need for long-term performance certainty.
Key topics covered in this episode include:
The shift from individual components to utility-scale solar integrated platforms and why it matters
How disaggregation helped scale the industry and why integration is now the next phase
Where projects break down today when systems are not designed holistically
The role of software, AI, and automation in improving plant performance and decision-making
How Nextpower is investing in engineering, robotics, and system design to optimize outcomes
Why resilience is now directly tied to financing, insurance, and long-term asset performance
The impact of data center demand and electrification on the pace of solar deployment
What could constrain growth over the next several years, including grid and policy dynamics
How utility-scale solar paired with storage is shaping the future generation mix
Howard also reflects on key moments that signaled solar’s ability to scale, including the development of one of the world’s first 10 megawatt solar parks, and how the industry has evolved from a niche market to a global energy backbone.
A central theme throughout the episode is accountability. When systems are fragmented, responsibility is distributed and performance can suffer. An integrated platform approach brings design, execution, and operations into closer alignment, improving reliability and reducing risk over the life of the asset.
Looking ahead, the conversation outlines what a fully integrated solar power plant could become by 2030. Systems that are engineered to work together from the start, supported by software and automation, and capable of delivering consistent, insurable performance over decades.
As solar continues to scale as one of the fastest and most cost-effective sources of new power, this episode provides a clear view into how the industry is evolving and what it will take to meet the next wave of demand.
Links: 
Howard Wenger on LinkedIn
Nextpower's Website
Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/
Email: [email protected]
https://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/
https://leegroupsearch.com/

Refrigeration is everywhere. Grocery stores. Warehouses. Cold storage. But almost no one is talking about its climate impact.
In Episode 99, Wes Ashworth sits down with Amrit Robbins, CEO and Co-Founder of Axiom Cloud, to unpack a problem hiding in plain sight across grocery stores, warehouses, and the global cold chain. 
The Hidden Reality
Refrigerant leaks are a massive issue:
3 to 4 percent of global emissions come from refrigerants
One pound leaked can equal thousands of pounds of CO2
A single grocery store can leak hundreds of pounds per year
This is bigger than most people think and rarely discussed.
Why It’s Been Ignored
It’s not visible.
It’s not exciting.
And most operators are stuck reacting to constant system failures with little data or insight.
The Axiom Cloud Approach
Axiom Cloud turns existing refrigeration data into clear, prioritized action.
No new hardware. No site visits. Fast deployment.
What that unlocks:
Early leak detection
Predictive maintenance
Lower energy use
Fewer emergency calls
Most importantly, teams know exactly what to fix first.
Why It Matters
This goes far beyond sustainability.
Refrigeration drives:
Over half of energy use in many stores
The majority of maintenance costs
Compliance risk
Lost revenue when systems fail
Fixing it improves both performance and profitability.
AI That Actually Works
Axiom has been applying AI to real systems long before the hype.
Their models detect patterns humans simply cannot see.
But the real value comes from turning insight into action.
That’s where most companies fall short.
Key Takeaways
The biggest opportunities in energy are often invisible
Refrigerant leaks are one of the fastest problems to solve
AI delivers value when paired with execution
The cold chain is on the verge of major change
This episode will change how you think about the energy transition.
Some of the biggest wins are already there.
They’re just waiting to be seen.
Links:
Amrit Robbins on LinkedIn
Axiom Cloud's Website
Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/
Email: [email protected]
https://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/
https://leegroupsearch.com/

What does it actually take to build solar infrastructure that performs for 30 years in the real world?
In this episode of Green Giants: Titans of Renewable Energy, Wes Ashworth sits down with Aaron Gabelnick, Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Technology Officer at ARRAY Technologies. With a career spanning chemicals, refining, consulting, and large-scale capital projects, Aaron brings a systems-level perspective that is often missing in today’s energy conversation.
This is not a discussion about solar theory. It is about execution, risk, and building infrastructure that holds up under real conditions.
Aaron shares how his background in industrial systems shaped his approach to renewable energy, and why the biggest challenge in solar today is not innovation, but discipline.
What You’ll Learn
Why solar trackers are central to project performance, not a secondary component
How tracker design can increase energy production by up to 25 percent depending on conditions
The real meaning of LCOE and why upfront cost alone is a flawed decision metric
How extreme weather like wind and hail is now shaping core engineering decisions
The difference between active and passive wind stow systems and why it matters for reliability
How hail risk is driving new technology, including predictive response systems and high-angle stow strategies
Why simplicity in design leads to better long-term performance and lower maintenance risk
The hidden complexity behind “simple” solar projects, from subsoil to system integration
Key Themes
Infrastructure Over Ideology
The energy transition is not a switch. It is a complex evolution of systems that must remain reliable while scaling rapidly.
Execution Is the Differentiator
Many failures in solar are not due to bad technology. They are the result of poor installation, weak alignment between engineering and construction, and lack of discipline at scale.
Design Decisions Compound Over Time
Small engineering choices can materially impact performance, risk, and cost over decades.
Weather Is Now a Core Design Driver
Severe weather is no longer a boundary condition. It is central to how modern solar systems are engineered and financed.
Why This Episode Matters
As solar becomes critical infrastructure, the industry is being forced to mature.
That means:
Thinking in decades, not development cycles
Prioritizing reliability alongside speed
Integrating lessons from traditional energy and industrial sectors
Designing systems that perform under stress, not just ideal conditions
Aaron brings a rare perspective that connects all of these dots.
If you are building, investing in, or operating energy systems, this episode offers a clear view of what it really takes to get it right.
Links: 
Aaron Gabelnick on LinkedIn 
ARRAY Technologies Website
Wes Ashworth: https://www.linkedin.com/in/weslgs/
Email: [email protected]
https://leegroupsearch.com/green-giants-podcast/
https://leegroupsearch.com/