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Green Light Distrikt
Green Light Distrikt is about entrepreneurship focused on the cleantech sector. Edited by Chris Williams with frequent guest posts from friends, experts and industry insiders from clusters across the globe. Our goal is to provide a place where cleantech entrepreneurs in various clusters across the globe can learn from one another. Green Light Distrikt is creating the "Hitchikers Guide to Clentech" to provide a resource for cleantech entrepreneurs. Read more
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Tag Archives: Geothermal
August 8th, 2011
How to Start a Renewable Energy Company – Part 1
TOPICS: BOSTON
Starting in September, aside from working with HeatSpring, I’ll be moving up to Maine to help one of my best friends get his renewable energy division off the ground. For me, it’s not about the money, it’s about having fun, learning, and actually using my hands to build something from start to finish. It will also help me to establish credibility and confidence in order to purchase and renovate a building. My issue with most (not all!) solar and geothermal contractors these days is that in the name of efficiently they are segmenting business roles into more and more specific tasks. It’s not that that it’s bad business, it just gets boring for me.
I’ve installed many systems, designed a few, but also want the experience of testing some of my marketing and sales assumptions. Personally, I’m not sure if I’m interested in staying directly in the EPC world, its a tough business and the competition is only getting more intense ( I should know, HeatSpring trains hundreds of contractors every year). With that being said, it’s very important to actually understand how these systems are being installed. Really understanding the technology will lead to better communications, positioning, and branding of the whole industry. Also, understanding the process can lead to more business opportunities by figuring out how to make jobs more profitable. There are a lot of opportunities selling to contractors that are installing projects to help them do their jobs easier, faster, and more profitably. These business opportunities – selling to EPC contractors – tend to have higher margins, be more scaleable, and have less competition then working directly in the EPC world. The size of this opportunity is relatively large, mainly because of the “newness” of the industry, it’s current “smallness” (which makes some larger players not consider it) and its high growth, you can mess up many times and still have a viable business.
While creating the division of this company I’ll share every step and hope to uncover the “secrets” of renewable energy. It should be fun.
The remainder of this post was originally posted on HeatSpring Magazine and was reprinted with the consent of yours trully.
A lot of residential and light commercial renewable energy work is starting to be picked up by general contractors, like Jamie Leef of S+H Construction in Cambridge. Why? General contractors are in a unique position to pick up this work because they’re used to managing projects, sales, and it supplements their existing business.
Beginning in September, I am going to be working with one of my best friends in Maine to create their renewable energy division. My friend Gilbert took over his father’s residential construction company. It’s a small local company in coastal Maine that has a repuation for building high quality, energy efficient homes. Read below for the full article:
Tagged Geothermal, maine, Solar PV, Solar Thermal
5 Comments
January 6th, 2011
Clean Energy is Filthy, Dirty, Hot, Itchy, Sticky, yet Awesome Work
TOPICS: BOSTON, Business Insights
This is a picture of my hand after a typical day at work. What this picture doesn’t show you it the tiny fibers of insulation that have found there way up my sleeves, and the gobs of duct seal that may or may not have found stuck onto my pants, sweat-shirt, or hair. Installing duct work for geothermal systems may be the cheapest and cleanest way to heat and cool your home, but it is dirty and hard work.
You can hear in peoples’ voices how excited they are about solar power, ‘its the way of the future’ everyone says. I always think about lugging a 50 pound solar panel wearing a 10 pound t-shirt (because its drenched in sweat) across a steeply pitched room. Which is, in 95 degree summer weather actually around 120 because you’re standing on a black, asphalt roof that has been baking in the sun all day.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. In fact, I love this stuff. There is a huge satisfaction in using your hands to build something, and being outside is a huge bonus too. That’s the really the cool part of renewable energy. The base of the jobs being created are fundamentally construction jobs with a little tweaking. All distributed generation technologies (solar PV, solar thermal, small wind, and geothermal) are all installed by electricians, carpenters, roofers, drillers, tin workers, and drillers.
The growth of renewable energy will develop our economy from the bottom up, as opposed to lets say, the finance industry. One sales person and an engineer can create enough work for a lot of installers. The fact that our housing infrastructure is so inefficient – we use about double the energy per square foot of a European household – actually means we have a lot of upgrading to do, and that means jobs. That’s not to say finance, management, and investors aren’t needed and won’t be rewarded, but simply that it looks like the middle class is finally going to get some of the action as a new industry grows.
Tagged Geothermal, Small Wind, Solar PV, Solar Thermal
May 27th, 2010
AC/DC Rocks the Bottom Billion – Musings on Electricifying Africa
TOPICS: BOSTON, Entrepreneurship, Renewable Energy
I was working with Anza Technologies in the remote village Matala, Tanzania last month. We deployed “appropriate technologies” to help rural farmers carry water more efficiently. I noticed that each of these “dollar-a-day” farmers had a cell phone but no electricity in their homes. How they charge their phone batteries may be the beginnings of an energy infrastructure unlike any we have seen.
The rural Matala region had largely leapfrogged land-based telecommunications infrastructure—pretty standard in the third world, but the cell phones hit some of the villages before electricity had, which raised some questions for me. I wondered how they charged them.
I found out that they charged up at one or two houses in a given village with electricity, or they’d give them to a friend to bring into town. In fact, it seemed they treat electricity like they do water—walk to a source, fill up, bring it home.
The farmers earn close to $1/day, so hooking into the grid is cost-prohibitive—nearly 4 years income. Getting a gas generator is an option that would cost nearly 1 year’s income. Alternatives like solar and wind? 1-2 years income. It is clear there is no solution other than scavenging for what electricity they can to power the few, small electronics they need. There is very little incentive to make these types of investments even if they could save the cash. Their investments take other forms.
Driving through the valleys of Kilimanjaro I noticed acres of crops where some corn was about 3-4’ higher than the rest. I asked our guide, Ibrahim, why. He said that the first rains came early this year, so farmers had to bet on whether to plant their seed or not. “If it’s a false start to the season, their seed is ruined. But if they wait too long, they miss an extra harvest.” So the farmers hedge by planting a portion of their crops during the early rain and saving most of their seed for later. When you’re making a dollar a day, crops are the only currency you have the volume to risk. Crops are their primary investment.
Accordingly, most farmers typically invest any spare cash into low-risk, low-return items like tools for work—things that bring an element of security and predictability to their business in the fields. They will not take a leap of faith in a technology which may only marginally improve yield, break, or be too expensive to maintain (take it from Paul Pollack if you don’t believe me). They need real, immediate cashflows from what they invest in—or small investments with short payback periods that hold inherently low risk.
I asked a bit more about alternative ways to get affordable power to the region. I learned about a company called Egg Energy. They were setting up portable battery charging stations in remote villages of Tanzania where consumers can access electricity at a price they can budget. I didn’t encounter any of the stations, but the idea made a lot of sense to me. It got me thinking about the evolution of the country’s “grid”.
With this “distributed power redemption” model (I dub thee), there is promise that the need for DC power electronics (mainly battery charging & lighting) will pull-through alternatives in remote locations where grid-connected AC is cost prohibitive. It could take the form of distributed DC charging stations. The model could be a good stepping stone to rural electrictrification by alternatives. It may even introduce further standardization in global DC infrastructure, as increasing DC power supply & demand cut-out the AC/DC inverter-middle-man (imagine a standard DC wall plug that’s not a jerry-rigged cigarette lighter?!). It will be interesting to see how elements from this embryonic business model will affect the 1st world’s AC/DC power infrastructure in the coming years.
Tagged distributed power, Geothermal, hydroelectric, kilimanjaro, matala, moshi, photovoltaics, remote power, rural electrification, solar, tanzania, wind
May 15th, 2010
How do you get a Green Job out of College?
TOPICS: BOSTON, Renewable Energy
There is a lot of news about 37 Million Green Jobs by 3030 and that Competition for Renewable Energy Jobs is Getting Intense. With all this news you’d think getting a green job is easy and they’re everywhere. In the past 6 months, I’ve started to hear the same question A LOT. “How Do I get a Green Job out of College” When I go to conferences, meetups, tweetups as well as emails through my blog I get the same question, “How do I do what you did and get a green job out of college?”
I always wanted to help and noticed I kept giving the same advice so I decided to create another website The Green Collar Job Guide for College Students and also started a Facebook community called “Green Collar Job Guide” to help connect with college students and help them.
I decided to start another website because my blog, The Green Light Distrikt, is focused more on connecting professionals who are already in the industry and not people looking to enter the industry. The goal with the new site will be to post the information about starting a career so it can be a resource for all students.
A couple of my friends have response to this new site asking “Aren’t you afraid you’re giving students information so they’ll compete with you for your own job?” To that I respond very simply
- I want 100% RENEWABLE ENERGY. Period. To do this, we’ll need a lot more young, passionate, people selling, engineering, installing, and inventing these technologies
- The industry is growing so quickly, there is room for everyone
Here is the introduction video where I describe the story behind the green collar job guide and how I’m trying to help students.
Right now, the goal is to help college students answer the question in three ways.
- How to Get a Green Job Blog- Every week I’ll post some free advice, resources or tip for college students looking to get a green job. If you need anything, just ask, I’m here to help. My only request is that you ask publicly so when I answer everyone can benefit.
- “The Guide” – The Green Collar Job Guide itself. I noticed that I always was giving students the same advice. So, I took that advice and put it into 7 steps with all the advice and resources I’ve picked up hundreds of hours of personal time and years in the industry that will allow any student to take their passion, focus it, and find their place in the industry. I’ve packaged that with over $500 in discounts on industry certified renewabel energy training for students that want to supplement their degrees.
- The Super Intern Search – The Super Intern Search search allows college students to apply for internships at awesome green companies. Companies comes to us to find awesome interns, and we find them.The problem with the traditional internship search is that 1) its take too much time to sort through 100s of resumes 2) resume and cover letters are not good indicators of someones ability to produce 3) most green companies really need interns but are growing very quickly and don’t have the time to sort through resume or hand hold interns.
Our first company is a Cambridge based start up called Wattzy. See the below video if you’d like to apply for a summer internship in Boston.
If you’d like to apply: Here is the important information
Company: Wattzy. A Boston based company that is creating an online platform where households will compete to save energy
Position: Summer intern. $1k Stipend over 10 weeks
- Create online content about energy efficiency with short article and blog posts
- Manage online community, facebook, twitter, face to face events.
Qualifications
- PASSIONATE about energy efficiency
- Go-getters, producers, will take the bull by the horns type of people.
- Amazing writing skills
- A plus is HTML/CSS, Blogging, Social Media skills and experience
Application Process
- Create a 30 second video with you name, college, and why you’re awesome and will be a super intern
- ‘Like’ The Green Collar Job Guide on Facebook so that we can follow up with you
- With you video attached post the following to your Facebook status: “@Greencollarjobguide this is my video application for the Wattzy Super Intern Search” This will be how you submit your application, we will not accept applications in any other form.
- The last day for submissions is on Monday May 31st, and we will only be accepting the first 100 applications
- We will follow up with best applications on May 31.
Why Are we using Facebook and Video instead of resumes?
- Resume are too susceptible to good writing skills that cover up actual passion and ability to get things done, video is not.
- With the video, you still have to prove your qualifications
- Growing companies really value interns but don’t have to time so sort through stacks of resumes
- Everyone is already on Facebook
- Video is harder to make, so naturally only those who are the most passionate will apply.
I look forward to seeing all the applications. As always, I’m always looking for feedback and input and if you have any questions please ask them.
This is my attempt to help college student start their career in the green industry. What else can we do? Perhaps a mentor-ship program? Very interested to hearing any and all feedback.
Chris Williams
Tagged college internships, Geothermal, green collar, green collar job, green internships, green jobs, solar, sustainable internship, wind
April 19th, 2010
The Worst Metric in Renewables: ‘Payback Period’
TOPICS: BOSTON, Business Insights, Renewable Energy
For as long as I can remember, since I was 16 and first stated going to NESEA, the renewable industry has talked about renewable investments in terms of this silly little term call ‘the payback period’. you might have heard this before, and from now, when you hear this term YOU HAVE the responsibility and obligation to correct the individual that uses this term.
At first, I went with it and used that term which we will no longer name. Then I went to school and learned something. I learned about finance, accounting and marketing and realized that ‘it’ is the least useful and most stupid metric to discuss investments, its paralyzing the renewable energy industry.
When you are thinking about investing you money, lets say in the stock market, a CD, or on a house, how often do people talk about ‘that’ term (the payback period that is)? They don’t! There’s a reason that Wall Street does not talk in terms of payback period.
Basic finance tell us that if free cash is available, if the discount rate (or internal rate of return, IRR) is greater than the weighted average cost of capital (WACC or just CC for short) the investment should be made. Thus, if an investment (in the worst case scenario) will have an IRR of 7% and the WACC is 4%, you just made 3% profit, or savings for the life of the investment.
The usefulness of speaking in terms of IRR really hit me when I was talking with my cousin, who is very interested in installing geothermal, solar thermal and solar PV on his house to reduce his substantial utility bills. The conversation went something like this:
Me: Bob, you could substantially reduce you utility bills by installing renewable energy systems on your house.
Bob: Really? Like what?
Me: Geothermal for your heating and cooling, solar thermal for hot water, and solar PV for your electricity
Bob: Hmmmm, what’s the payback on something like that?
Me: Actually, payback period is not really a useful way to compare this investment to another. For example, whats the payback of your IRA? What’s most useful is IRR and in Massachusetts most investments are usually at least 10% over the life of the system, so its a better investment then the stock market and has no risk, because you’re going to use energy even during a recession.
Bob: really?! Better than the stock market? That’s amazing! So, I might as well put my money into this.
Me: Yes, yes you should. blah blah blah
Lets be honest, most customers that can afford solar and geothermal can afford the large upfront payment and thus tend to have a lot of money. These type of customers also tend to have a lot of investments and understnad IRR much better then payback period.
Here’s my point. Stop saying/using/marketing payback periods, you’re shooting yourself in the foot! Start educating your customers about why the IRR is a much better metric and this will allow them to effectively compare this investment to other investments.
We need to remember that we’re the expert, and that we need to educate our customers about how to talk about these investments. To use a sale term, we need to frame the discussion so no objection can even be made and a renewable energy investment is the best choice.
Here’s the real pickle, why the heck was payback ever used in the first place?
Tagged Geothermal, IRR, payback period, Solar PV, solar therma, WACC
January 9th, 2010
Top 3 Trends for New Renewable Energy Companies in 2010
TOPICS: BOSTON, Entrepreneurship, Industry Insiders, Renewable Energy
This posts comes from our second industry insider, Brian Hayden. Brian adds a unique perspective to the clean tech industry by providing high quality, industry certified renewable energy training to building professionals. I’m looking forward his future posts.
2009 was another banner year for geothermal and solar companies. There’s good reason for optimism in 2010, but several key trends are already beginning to reshape the industry. Here are the top three things you should keep in mind as you put together your business plan for next year:
1. You’ll need credentials to access incentives. States need to show they are spending taxpayer dollars responsibly and requiring credentials to access rebate programs is an easy way to do that. IGSHPA (Geothermal Industry) and NABCEP and IREC (Solar Industry) are emerging as the de facto credentials. More states will follow early adopters like Connecticut to do this in 2010.
Tagged Geothermal, IGSHPA, IREC, NABCEP, Renewable Energy
December 15th, 2009
Clean Tech Guide 101 – Renewable Energy Part 3: Top Places to Meet Renewable Energy Professionals
TOPICS: CleanTech Guide
So, you want to work in clean tech but don’t know where to start? I found myself in the same place 3 years ago. I created the Clean Tech Guide to help people learn about the industry. I decided to create the guide after being asked a number of similar questions from friends, recent graduates, and fellow entrepreneurs about clean technology. I love to help people and noticed that my answers were typically similar, so I thought it would be useful to create a guide to refer people to.
The 1st part of the guide, Clean Tech Guide 101 Renewable Energy Part 1 Top 20 Resources to Learn about the Technology provides resource to help beginngers learn about the the fundamentals behind each technology. Part 2 of the Clean Tech Guide is a list of the Top Renewable Energy Industry Reading materials, to give you a full list of places to soak in valuable information.
Part 3 is a list of places where you can meet industry professionals.
Who is the guide for?
Recent graduates, career changers, or entrepreneurs who have little to no knowledge about clean technology but are looking for a some direction to learn about the industry.
What the purpose?
The goal will be to provide you with basic resources that you can use to begin learn about and get involved in the clean technology industry. I can only provide you with the resources that will help you, if you really want to get involved you’ll have to do most of the work, but I think this will be really helpful to start.
Best Places to meet Renewable Energy Professionals
They key to any industry is getting to know current professionals, renewable energy is no different. There are tons of conferences and events. Here are some of the best, that I’ve heard of or been to. If you’re serious about these industry, check these out.
The best part about the renewable energy and the other clean technology industries is that people are open to helping each other. This is partly due to rapid growth, there is plenty of room for everyone. It’s also due to the culture of the industry, people are willing to help and share with each other, much more so then in other industries. We are saving the world after all.
Tagged ASES, AWEA, Babson, clean tech, Geothermal, IGSHPA, NESEA, NREA, Renewable Energy, Renewable Energy World, SEIA, Small Hydro, Small Wind, Solar PV, Solar Thermal
