🌞 Climate Tech Brief #010 — Solar Energy

Happy Tuesday!

Solar is one of the more viable climate solutions. Thanks to advances in battery storage and subsidies at federal and state levels, solar is both a more affordable and cost efficient source of energy than traditional sources like oil & gas.

But deploying solar power is still challenging. Whether it’s residential or commercial, solar developers need to plan, design, finance, and install solar fixtures with many hurdles along the way, like permitting and labor shortages.

This week’s deep dive will explore the picks and shovels needed for widespread solar energy transition.

📣 Why it matters

Dependence on non-renewable energy sources and geopolitical tensions increase the need for renewable energy. Solar energy offers a clean, renewable, and cost-effective alternative that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions, increases energy security, and boost rural economies.

😬 Problem

Solar energy is known to be more environmentally friendly and cost efficient than coal, oil, and gas.

But solar projects face costly delays, permitting challenges, and labor shortages.

🎯 Solution

Purpose-built software to improve efficiency and reduce costs at every step of the solar lifecycle: acquisition, planning, design, financing, and installation.

💪🏼 Innovators

• Enact Systems enables remote design, sales proposals and project management for solar storage, as well as improve end-customer engagement

• Elevation is a provider of residential solar, storage, energy efficiency, and energy intelligence technology

• Fracsun is a complete PV soiling monitoring solutions for solar array owners, operators, and developers.

• Demand IQ provides modern solar sales & marketing software.

• EverBright is a software company that provides solar and power generation financing solutions online for residential projects.

• SolarSkyrise is a solar energy company that provides software solutions to analyze solar design.

• EagleView Technologies holds patented image capture and machine learning technology to measure roofs from an aerial viewpoint.

• Energy Toolbase allows customers to model, control & monitor solar + storage projects.

• Aurora Solar is a SaaS company that uses aerial imagery to assess solar installation projects.

• Moneytree is a turnkey solar amenity for renters and rental property owners.

⚡️ Opportunities

1. Every solar project requires project management

   1. Scoop Solar does solar project management, sales/operations, data management, and workflow automation.

   2. Raptor Maps is a MIT-born startup that builds software to manage the solar lifecycle.

   3. Terabase Energy is a web-based tool that reduces cost and deployment timelines by digitalizing the solar power plant.

   4. Tyba is a modeling platform for developing, financing, and operating solar and storage projects.

2. Solar infrastructure needs ongoing maintenance, repair, and monitoring

   1. Omnidian is a provider of comprehensive protection plans for investments in residential and commercial solar energy systems.

   2. Clir is a renewable energy optimization and reporting software that increases the performance and profitability of renewable plants.

   3. Solytic is a post-installation solar platform that helps stakeholders to drive profits, cut costs and extend lifecycles.

   4. Bodhi a clean energy software company that empowers solar companies to deliver amazing customer experiences with ease

3. Marketplaces help educate and connect consumers with installers

   1. Palmetto is a clean energy marketplace, streamlining the process and lowering the cost for homeowners from renewable sources like solar.

   2. Elephant Energy is building a movement to provide the fastest, simplest, and most affordable way to reduce your carbon footprint.

   3. Electrum is an online marketplace for homeowners to find competitive offers on home solar, battery, and electrification products.

4. Sales & marketing

   1. Quativa develops a solar sales software platform that brings together sales teams and installers in a more efficient way.

⚠️ Challenges

1. 2/3 of operating costs are soft costs. This makes developers sensitive to additional software fees.

   1. Offer value-based pricing instead of seat-based pricing.

   2. Provide purpose-built software that solves a specific problem within the solar vertical.

2. Solar energy systems can be expensive to install with high up front costs, despite the long-term positive ROI.

   1. Wunder Capital develops software and partner with leading solar organizations and financial institutions to build large-scale solar projects for businesses, municipalities, nonprofits, and communities across the US.

   2. Banyan Infrastructure is a platform that automates contractual compliance and creates transparency throughout the loan lifecycle of infrastructure.

   3. Sunlight Financial is a premier, technology-enabled point-of-sale financing company.

3. Solar power is dependent on the availability of sunlight, which can be affected by weather conditions, resulting in inconsistent energy supply.

   1. Form Energy develops and commercializes a low-cost battery system that can store wind and solar energy for a long duration.

   2. Sunverge Energy provides integrated solar solutions for distributed generation and storage.

4. The permitting process for solar projects can be complex and time-consuming, with different regulations on the federal, state, and municipal levels.

   1. GreenLancer offers permit drafting & engineering reviewsfor high volume solar installers.

5. Finding and keeping solar installers is challenging.

   1. See: Climate Tech Brief #009 - Skilled Labor

🚀 Takeaways

• The solar energy transition is driven by more affordability and newfound desire for energy security.

• Solar development projects face numerous challenges across planning, design, installation, and maintenance.

• Purpose-built software can improve efficiency and reduce soft costs across the entire solar lifecycle.

🔗 Dive Deeper

• A Green Workforce Revolution by Equal Ventures’ Rick Zullo and Simran Suri in CTVC

• Everything by Nico Johnson at Suncast.

This is a deep dive on the most promising climate solutions like community solar ☀️, electric vehicles 🚎, and regenerative agriculture 🌾.

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