Solar Media Cast: COP26 looms as pricing woes dent renewables prospects, solar industry unites behind climate aims

The Solar Media Podcast returns with a dedicated look at the health of Europe's solar and energy storage markets, looking at the wealth of TOPCon PV modules on display at Intersolar Europe, what REPowerEU means for solar manufacturing on the continent and where energy storage is thriving. 

Liam Stoker and Andy Colthorpe return for the February 2022 episode of the Solar Media Podcast, starting with discussion around the situation in Ukraine and how the invasion, and subsequent geopolitical turbulence, could affect Europe's energy landscape this year and beyond. Meanwhile, we speak to Lightsource bp CEO Nick Boyle and COO Ann Davies about the solar developer's target of deploying 25GW by 2025, getting the inside track of how the company intends to reach such an ambitious aim.

The year has gotten off to a frenetic start, with plenty of news from the global solar and energy storage sectors to digest on the January 2022 episode of the Solar Media Podcast. Liam Stoker, Andy Colthorpe and Jules Scully discuss the need for a major ramp-up in solar energy manufacturing this year, discover what’s driving long-duration energy storage forward, examine the glut of recent financing deals in the clean energy space and take a look at why California’s net metering row has seen involvement from Hollywood actors.

With the year drawing to a close, the Solar Media editorial team reflect on what’s proven to be a frenetic 12 months for the global solar PV and energy storage industries, featuring tales of surging growth, supply chain volatility and policy machinations. Liam Stoker and Andy Colthorpe also glance forward and make their predictions for 2022. A huge thank you to all who have listened or engaged with the podcast in any way this year, and we look forward to returning for another year of the podcast in January!

In the November 2021 episode of the Solar Media Podcast, brought to you in collaboration with Solar Energy UK, we ask if the Glasgow Climate Pact is ambitious enough for the renewables industry, explore the various goings on at the summit and ponder where the solar, energy storage and clean tech sectors go from here. Elsewhere, Liam Stoker and Andy Colthorpe detail yet another frantic month in the US for renewables policy, and Liam speaks to a trio of renewables stakeholders about their key takeaways from COP26.

The crucial COP26 conference begins later this week and negotiations will take place against a backdrop of uncertainty and volatility in the renewables supply chain. This episode of the Solar Media Podcast, brought to you in collaboration with Solar Energy UK, explores how things stand entering a pivotal two weeks for the renewables industry, and indeed the world in general. We also hear exclusively from three solar industry professionals about what they’re seeing from the sector at the moment, right the way through from sourcing and uptake of solar to procurement and supply chain issues. We also hear exactly what worldwide governments can do to help truly stimulate a much-needed solar revolution.

The US solar policy landscape is shifting at breakneck speed, with new incentives and trade tariffs promising to alter the shape of the industry for the coming decade. Luckily Andy Colthorpe and Liam Stoker are here to decipher the changes in the September 2021 episode of the Solar Media Podcast. There’s also talk of an increasing flow of investment and M&A deals in the energy storage space and the power market volatility disrupting much of Europe.

It may be the height of summer but there’s no respite for the Solar Media Podcast, the new episode of which is packed full of insight as the US begins its clampdown on solar imports. With news of solar module shipments being seized at US border, Liam Stoker and Andy Colthorpe reflect on the difficult balancing act US President Joe Biden must strike between enforcing the withhold and release order – and a host of other prospective policies impacting on trade relations with China – and the need to support the deployment of solar PV in the country. There’s also discussion on the huge growth figures posted by the US and UK energy storage industries and the ongoing case for long-duration energy storage technologies.

The July 2021 episode of the Solar Media Podcast, sponsored by Honeywell, includes discussion around the US government's efforts to tackle alleged forced labour practices within the solar supply chain, detailing everything you need to know about the US withhold and release order, recent moves in the Senate and the most likely impacts on solar manufacturing. Meanwhile, Andy Colthorpe explores the ever-growing amount of interest and investment in long-duration energy storage technologies and Liam Stoker takes a look at recent reports which highlight how the clean energy transition simply isn't happening fast enough. 

This month's episode of the Solar Media Podcast, sponsored by Honeywell, features discussion around the rise of new solar technologies and the drivers behind the n-type revolution. We review the latest products to be unveiled at this month’s SNEC exhibition in Shanghai and reflect on recent news regarding the materials supply chain as the industry plots a course for TOPCon, heterojunction and beyond. Liam Stoker and Andy Colthorpe also take a look at new projections for solar installations in the US – just in time for the difficult fire season – and how energy storage continues to proliferate in both the US and a slew of new markets.