solar summit 2013

Faheen Allibhoy is a Senior Investment Officer at the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, which makes debt and equity investments in private companies in the emerging markets. She is currently responsible for its investments in the renewable energy equipment supply chain (i.e. solar cells, panels, wind turbines, blades).  In her 10-year tenure at the IFC, she has worked in the manufacturing, infrastructure and private equity funds departments.  Prior to her work at the IFC, she worked in New York at Merrill Lynch in its investment banking division. Ms. Allibhoy a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and holds a BA from Wellesley College as well as an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Dino Barajas focuses his practice on domestic and international project development and finance, with particular emphasis on Latin American infrastructure projects, debt financings and mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Barajas regularly represents lenders, investors and developers in a wide range of domestic and international project financings in the energy, power, infrastructure and commercial sectors, as well as in traditional banking, structured finance, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, asset finance, joint ventures and venture capital transactions. His clients include commercial lenders, institutional investors, investment funds, project sponsors, and public and private companies. Mr. Barajas has worked on transactions in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guam, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Yemen and elsewhere.

Mark Begert currently serves as Executive Vice President of Meridian Solar responsible for business development, corporate development and financing strategy. Mark served as Chief Financial Officer from June 2008 to April 2011. Mark joined the Company to develop the business strategy and to help execute Meridian Solar’s shift from a residential and commercial solar installer to an Engineering, Procurement and Construction company focusing exclusively on solar and the commercial, public and utility-scale market segments. Mark led the process of raising approximately $4 million in growth equity for the Company over two separate financing rounds in 2008 and 2010. Meridian Solar grew annual sales by 97% in 2009, 33% in 2010 and 94% in 2011, establishing profitability in 2010.

Previously, Mark served as Chief Financial Officer of Linktone Ltd., a leading wireless technology developer based in Shanghai, China successfully leading the company in its private financing activities, strategy decisions, major acquisitions and to its Nasdaq initial public offering in March 2004. Prior to that, Mark was a Vice President in the fixed income capital markets group of Merrill Lynch in New York, London and Tokyo. Mark also serves as advisor and seed investor to several young companies in China and the United States. Mark graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts degree, a concentration in government, and a sub-concentration in international relations.

John is President and Chief Executive Officer of Sunnova Energy Corporation, the leading privately-held U.S. residential solar and storage service provider whose technology-enabled service platform is centered on providing a better service at a better price through its unique 25-year service commitment with every homeowner’s customized solar or solar + storage system. With more than two decades of experience across various sectors of the energy industry, John is an energy entrepreneur who has always supported free market competition, consumer choice and the advancement of energy technology to power energy independence. Before Sunnova, John served as Founder and Chief Executive Officer at SunCap Financial, a residential solar system lease provider. He also founded Standard Renewable Energy (SRE), a top-10 provider of renewable energy and energy-efficient products and services. John received his MBA from Harvard Business School and graduated cum laude from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering.

Sara joined SEIA in 2012 to oversee regulatory and legislative activity in the Western states. Prior to joining SEIA, Sara held the same title at the Solar Alliance since 2007, with a focus on legislative and regulatory activity in California. Sara has been involved in distributed generation and energy efficiency since 1998 when she began her career at Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), where she most recently managed the utility's California Solar Initiative (CSI) program as well as its predecessor, the Self-Generation Incentive Program. Sara has a BS in Environmental Engineering with an emphasis in Renewable Energy from Humboldt State University.

Mr. Burke is global marketing director of DuPont Photovoltaic Solutions, one of the leading materials providers to the solar energy industry. Mr. Burke founded Innovalight in 2005 and served as the president and CEO until August 2011, when DuPont acquired the company. His career has spanned research and development, product management, marketing, sales, general management and operations in major global organizations such as NEC, AT&T, Lucent Technologies and Agere Systems, and abroad in Germany, U.K., and Japan. Before founding Innovalight, Mr. Burke was the Sr. Vice President of Worldwide Sales for Oclaro and was a venture partner at Sevin Rosen Funds. He has received the Technology Pioneer Award for cleantech innovations from the World Economic Forum, and in 2010 the President of Ireland presented him with The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award. Mr. Burke attended The London Business School and received his B.S. in physics from University College Dublin and his M.S. in physics from Trinity College Dublin.

Ed co-founded Sunrun to make solar affordable for American families. He oversees capital raising and legislative and regulatory affairs. Under his leadership, Sunrun has enjoyed uninterrupted access to project finance throughout its history. Ed has worked to shape public and industry policy with the goal of building a sustainable solar industry. Before Sunrun, Ed served as Director of Corporate Development at Asurion Corporation. He also worked at The Blackstone Group, completing more than $10 billion in private equity and M&A transactions. Ed is a 2010 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year award winner with Lynn Jurich, a member of the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, and serves as an Advisory Partner to Millennium Technology Value Partners. Disrupting the energy industry comes naturally to Ed - when Ed's preschool teacher asked him what his favorite thing was, he replied, "Electricity!"

Tim leads the Advanced Solutions team at SunEdison where he leads the deployment of energy storage solutions and technologies complementary to solar and wind.  Tim joined SunEdison in 2011 following the acquisition of his company Axio Power, where he was CEO and co-founder, a utility-scale project development company which delivered over 150 MW of solar PV projects in the US and Canada.  Prior to leading Energy Storage at Advanced Solutions, Tim served as General Manager of SunEdison’s North American solar business and as Vice President of Global Services. Tim has 14 years of experience in wind and solar, serving in project development roles at Enron Wind, General Electric, and 3 Phases Energy. Tim holds a BA from Dartmouth College, an MBA from the University of Michigan, and lives in Marin County, California.

Brian Farhi is a market and product strategy professional with more than 15 years of experience in energy and the high tech industry. Brian's specialty is bringing technically complex solutions to market, managing all aspects of the process from ideation to launch to product line growth. He has successfully launched more than a dozen new products in the software and hardware spaces that have been marketed in B2B and B2C channels.

In his current role as the lead for solar energy and new channel partnerships at Nest, Brian works with solar companies, utilities and new energy channels to overcome conservation, reliability, and customer engagement-related challenges by leveraging Nest's products and services.

Previously, Brian was vice president of marketing and business development at SolarNexus – a software company providing the solar industry with business management software that streamlines the process of selling, installing and maintaining solar systems. Prior to that, Brian was the first associate at a seed-stage cleantech VC firm, helping with the launch of  the US business unit of Fronius inverters - an EU-based market leader, and led SunPower’s inverter and data monitoring system definition and development.  Brian has an MBA from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, an MS in Civil Engineering from the University of Colorado's Building Systems Program, and a dual BA in Physics and Sociology from Colgate University.

Scott Franklin is the President and CEO of Lighthouse Solar and LUMOS. Before launching his solar business, Scott was a World-renowned professional rock climber setting new standards in American climbing and was the top ranked competitive climber from 1990-1994. As an entrepreneur in the outdoor industry, Scott founded Franklin Climbing Equipment in 1995 and later sold it to Black Diamond in 2000. In 2005 Scott won the Volvo International Design Award for product design. He holds three patents. In 2006, inspired to “Be part of the solution” he left a successful career in the outdoor industry to devote himself to renewable energy.

As Vice President of Engineering, Dr. Wolfgang Fritz leads the engineering department of the North American operations for Schletter Inc. After receiving his Ph.D. from the University of Arizona and prior to joining Schletter, Dr. Fritz worked for 6 years as an engineering consultant, mainly on infrastructure development projects. He coordinates and performs all engineering design aspects of the solar mounting systems Schletter manufactures—ranging from small residential systems to large commercial roof mounted and utility scale ground mounted power plants. Additionally, he holds professional engineering licenses in numerous states, is a member of the Civil Engineering Exam Development Committee with the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying, and serves as a member of the Solar ABCs Advisory Committee.

Mr. Goodrich is a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s School of Decision Sciences and Engineering where he received a bachelor’s degree in Industrial and Management Engineering. He has also received an MBA from the University of Colorado. Alan spent nearly ten years at a management-consulting firm where he specialized in assisting clients, including Fortune 500 companies, with business development and technology strategy decisions concerning advanced materials and manufacturing technologies.  He joined NREL in 2009 to lead the laboratory’s Solar PV Manufacturing Cost Analysis group, which informs resource allocation and technology strategy decisions facing NREL and DOE technology managers.  The group has recently expanded the scope of its analysis activities to support EERE’s Clean Energy Manufacturing Initiative with analysis intended to help maximize domestic manufacturing through strategic R&D investments, including assessing the drivers of regional manufacturing competitiveness for lithium ion battery and wind components.

Steve’s responsibilities are to direct discovery and develop new business opportunities in the emerging renewable energy markets of solar, geothermal, next generation biofuels, biomass and other markets as they evolve. As Director, he connects Mortenson’s Renewable Energy Groups with owners and developers of viable, utility-scale non-fossil fuel derived energy production platforms and then fosters these relationships from preconstruction through project completion. Steve has helped position Mortenson to construct larger utility-scale solar projects throughout North America and with an experienced team of preconstruction and estimating professionals, is working with established customers who have expanded their market interests to include not only solar but other renewable energy systems.

Steve has been with Mortenson Construction since September, 2008.

Ben Higgins serves as the Director of Government Affairs for Mainstream Energy Corp., where he works closely with company and industry leadership, as well as state and federal policymakers to craft policies which make for a more stable, sustainable business environment for solar electricity generation.

Mainstream Energy Corp. is the parent company of REC Solar, an industry-leading solar provider specializing in grid-tied residential and commercial installations, and AEE Solar, one of the country’s largest distributors of renewable energy systems and equipment. With a presence in all major solar markets over 100MW installed, REC Solar and AEE Solar are committed to lowering the cost of clean solar energy through efficient processes, innovative products and outstanding customer service. Mainstream Energy Corp. is headquartered in San Luis Obispo, CA and employs more than 700 people nationwide.

Higgins has over a decade of experience working in Sacramento and Washington D.C. in the legislative and regulatory arenas, most prominently in the agricultural, renewable energy, and land-use sectors. In these positions and in his current role, Higgins has shepherded dozens of bills through legislative processes, impacted multitudes of policies, and given hundreds of presentations regarding current policy issues, political organization and positioning, local economic development, and renewable energy deployment.
 

Mark Holohan, a twelve-year solar industry veteran, is Wilson Electric’s Solar Division Manager. Wilson is the largest Arizona based electrical contractor and offers solar and electric system solutions for the non-residential building market in Arizona.  Mr. Holohan has 35 years of experience in the energy industry, including renewables, energy management and power production.  Mr. Holohan’s solar experience includes well over 150 solar electric installations spanning nine states.  He developed several notable commercial solar projects in the Arizona market, including the Phoenix Convention Center, Buckeye Hills Shooting Park (the largest off-grid system in Arizona), Prescott Valley Tank Farm and Wastewater Treatment Plant, Prudential and Recreation Centers of Sun City. In past positions with solar module manufacturers, Mr. Holohan launched a manufacturer-direct sales effort for residential systems, which included the recruitment and training of a team of representatives operating throughout Southern California.  He managed the national commercial systems sales effort for a solar module manufacturer, as well as the construction of a solar manufacturer’s module test facility.  Mr. Holohan holds an MBA from Arizona State University and an engineering degree from the University of Arizona.  He serves as president of the Board of Directors for the Arizona Solar Energy Industry Association.

Nico Johnson is a solar sales and marketing veteran with over a decade of experience developing projects and territories for internationally recognized organizations, and has become an expert on the Latin America market.  In his previous roles with Conergy & Trina, he was responsible for developing the regional market strategy and channels, with a focus on utility-scale downstream development and deployment.  Nico's popular podcast, SunCast, has become the go-to medium for those interested in better understanding how to grow as a leader and producer in the Latin America region.  And, his fluency in Spanish has been a key contributor to his success in the region.

Stephen brings over 20 years of sales and marketing leadership to SoCore Energy. He has a proven track record of building strong companies in rapidly growing markets. Prior to joining SoCore Energy, Stephen’s solar experience came from senior roles as the Executive Vice President at DRI Energy and a Segment Executive at SunPower. In these roles he helped develop over 200 commercial and utility solar projects. Stephen has been a featured speaker at major utility and industry energy conferences. Prior to his tenure in the solar industry, Stephen held mid to senior-level management positions at Solectron Corporation, Oracle, Visa and IBM.

He holds a BS in Industrial Engineering and Economics from UC Berkeley and sits on the AYSO Region 108 Board.

Helena Kimball is Head of Marketing at Yingli Green Energy Americas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yingli Green Energy, the world’s leading solar module supplier. Since 2010 she has directed Yingli Americas’ marketing and strategic communications in North, Central and South America from the Company’s U.S. offices in San Francisco.  Ms. Kimball has more than 10 years of experience in international marketing and corporate communications. She entered the solar sector in 2008 as Director of Marketing Communications for Recurrent Energy (now a subsidiary of Sharp), where she helped launch the company shortly after its inception, and was also responsible for policy and customer relations. She then worked as a consultant for leading solar energy companies, including SunLink Corporation and Nanosolar. Formerly, Ms. Kimball spent 7 years in the technology sector, eventually becoming the Director of Marketing Communications at Laszlo Systems, an open source rich Internet application company, and ran the San Francisco division of a high-tech public relations agency, Greenough Communications. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College, and was a Bosch Fellow in Erfurt, Germany.

John Kosub is the Interim Director of Integrated Resource Planning for CPS Energy. In that capacity he provides leadership for all aspects of resource planning including fossil, nuclear, and renewable technologies; business case development, technology research & development, new power plant project development, as well as electric and gas load forecasting.

John has over a decade of experience in integrated resource planning and many years of engineering experience with the U.S. Air Force where he started his career.

John Kosub received a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio and a Master of Science degree in Management of Technology from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

John is a licensed professional engineer and a member of the Texas Society of Professional Engineers.

Annie leads state campaigns throughout the West for Vote Solar. Prior to Vote Solar Ms. Lappé was the Government Affairs Manager, Interior West for SunEdison.  Ms. Lappé began her career working on federal renewable energy and energy efficiency policies in Washington D.C. She holds a MA in Environmental Policy from Oxford University and a BA in Environmental Studies from UC Santa Cruz.

Mr. LeDucq is the Vice President of Utility Sales for Suntech America, responsible for the management of the national sales organization and all utility sales transactions in both North and South America. Prior to this role, Matt was the Director of Business Development and Technical Sales group where he and his team worked closely with engineering and construction companies to bring some of the world’s largest solar power plants to life.

Before joining Suntech, LeDucq worked for more than five years managing construction and engineering for Powerlight and El Solutions. Notably, LeDucq was involved in the development of the 150MW (AC) Sempra Mesquite Solar 1 project and managed the 1.6MW (AC) installation at Google Headquarters. Matt has worked on projects for Puget Sound Energy, Disney, Sony Picture Studios, multiple municipalities, the US Navy, Honeywell, Wal-Mart, Chevron, Lowe’s and the US Postal Service, among others.

Richard Matsui is the CEO and Founder of kWh Analytics. kWh Analytics is the market leader in solar risk management. By leveraging the most comprehensive performance database of solar assets in the United States (20% of the U.S. asset class) and the strength of the global insurance markets, kWh Analytics’ customers are able to minimize risk and increase equity returns of their solar portfolios. kWh Analytics is backed by private venture capital and the US Department of Energy. Prior to kWh Analytics, Richard was a consultant with McKinsey & Company based in Greater China, where he helped found the Firm’s solar practice in 2007. There, he established himself as a leading global expert on the solar industry by accumulating more industry experience than any other consultant (9,000 globally). He graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, and is fluent in both English and Mandarin Chinese. He is proud to have been born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. He is also a Forbes "30 Under 30" award recipient for Energy.

Jenya Meydbray is the VP of Strategy & Business Development at DNV GL and the founder and former CEO of PV Evolution Labs. An advisor to leading solar companies, Jenya has worked on developing methods of evaluating long-term solar panel performance for product development and bankability. Prior to founding PVEL, Jenya was the Senior Quality and Reliability Engineer at SunPower Corporation where he developed accelerated test methods for high efficiency solar cells and modules. Jenya began his career at NASA Ames Research Center's hyper-gravity facilities. Jenya has studied at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University, and holds two photovoltaic-related patents. Jenya received a BS in Electrical Engineering from UC Santa Cruz, and an MS in Electrical Engineering from Boston University. Jenya is an Advisory Board Member to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's International PV Module Quality Assurance Forum.

Luis is responsible for company control and business development. After completing his university studies in France and U.S., Luis returned home to El Salvador, Central America, where he obtained his MBA and specializations in Marketing and International Business. 
For the last 10 years, Luis has been developing business for a wide range of world renowned international companies, products and brands, all throughout the Latin America region; establishing a valuable regional network, suitable for new business opportunities. 

Luis’ contribution and direction towards the development and success of THINKnrg in Latin America is accompanied by high standards of ethics and corporate social responsibility that complement both, his professional and personal goals

Meghan Nutting works closely with industry leaders, state and federal policymakers, and regulators to craft and implement policies that provide a more stable, sustainable business environment on behalf of Sunnova. Previously, she served as the Director of Policy and Electricity Markets at SolarCity for nearly five years. Before that, Nutting worked as a legislative director for a State Assembly member, and as a press secretary for former U.S. Senator. She has also held policy positions at the World Bank; the British Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; as well several environmental organizations. Nutting received a Master of Public Affairs from Princeton University and a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Cornell University. She has been named one of the #Solar100 thought leaders in the U.S. and one of the Denver Business Journal’s top women in energy for 2018.

John Plumlee, CEO of Sunora Energy Solutions, has more than 25 years of global experience in the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) and maintenance and operations (O&M) market for asset dependent companies. Previously, he held the position of VP of U.S. O&M at Jacobs Engineering Group and Chief of Operation for Shaw’s Maintenance and Construction Division. His experience additionally includes manufacturing in the refining, chemicals, power, discrete, and high-tech verticals, as well as public and private infrastructure. He is an innovator and thought leader in the development and application of advanced technologies, new business models, and streamlined processes for businesses engaged in EPC and O&M. Mr. Plumlee holds a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Louisiana Tech.

Mr. Ratliff is a Director with the Overseas Private Investment Corporation’s (OPIC) Renewable Energy and Sustainable Development Finance group. Prior to joining OPIC he worked as a financial advisor to the Department of Energy’s Loan Guarantee Program, providing advisory services in the structuring of renewable energy projects. Previously he also served as the head of infrastructure for the Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Private Sector Department, executing transactions in infrastructure and energy throughout Latin America. Prior to joining the IDB, he was the manager of project finance for CH2M Hill’s Capital Corporation. Mr. Ratliff earned his MBA from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, and holds a BA from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Mr. Ratliff is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

Andrew Riegler is a Global Product Line Manager for the Solar Business of Schneider Electric.  He is responsible for the product management of the large three-phase inverter line (100 kW and greater) worldwide.  Mr. Riegler has almost 20 years of experience in Engineering and Project Management in the Oil & Gas and IT Industries and eight years specifically in the solar industry. Mr. Riegler holds a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from Queens University and a MBA from the University of Western Ontario. He is a registered professional engineer in the province of British Columbia.

Doug Rose joined SunPower Corporation in 2002 and currently holds the position of vice president, technology strategy.  Previous roles at SunPower include cell product engineering manager, director of module R&D, and technology development director.  Prior to joining SunPower, he held positions in technology assessment and manufacturing technology development at GTE, PV research at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and thin-film PV research and management at First Solar.  Dr. Rose has degrees in mechanical engineering from Iowa State and Stanford University and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Colorado at Boulder.  He is author or co-author of more than 60 publications and 12 US patents in the field of solar energy.

Tucker Ruberti has worked for Advanced Energy since 2007 and is currently Director of Strategic Marketing and Business Development for Solar Inverters.  In his current role he is responsible for the developing and driving AE Solar’s global product and solutions roadmap.

Mr. Ruberti earned a BS in Industrial Engineering from Cornell University and an MS in Environmental Management & Policy from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.  He has worked in the energy technology space since 1993, working for a broad range of companies including Westinghouse, General Electric, the NYSERDA and IdaTech.

Preston Schultz has over 10 years of experience in renewable energy, environmental consulting and sustainability program implementation.  Prior to joining Hecate Energy, Preston was the second U.S. hire for the leading German-based commercial and utility scale PV inverter manufacturer, REFUsol, where he helped formulate strategy for the company’s U.S. market entry including sales and marketing efforts.  At Hecate Energy, Preston is responsible for ongoing project development and execution efforts including EPC evaluations and contract negotiations.  Preston also leads proposal development for utility-scale PV project opportunities throughout the U.S. with a focus on Federal projects.  He earned his B.A. at the University of Virginia, Masters of Environmental Management (MEM) from the Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences, and MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Sourabh Sen is responsible for aligning Astonfield’s operational endeavors with government policy. As Co-Chairman of Astonfield, Mr. Sen oversees all government relations and lobbying efforts and provides macro-level operational and strategic guidance to Astonfield’s Global Executive Committee. Prior to co-founding Astonfield in 2005, Mr. Sen served as Executive Vice President of National Life Insurance Company until 2008 and Executive Vice President of First Investors Corporation from 1999 to 2005. Mr. Sen has extensive global expertise in asset management, cross border investments, strategic acquisitions and working with national governments on asset privatizations. Mr. Sen was awarded the 2009 Udyog Rattan Award from the Institute of Economic Studies for his pioneering contributions toward developing the renewable energy industry in India. As an alumnus of Don Bosco Schools, Mr. Sen is actively involved in a number of charitable and humanitarian causes in the state of West Bengal, India. Mr. Sen completed his B.Sc from the University of Burdhwan. He was Board certified and admitted to practice financial advisory and planning services in the U.S. in 1996.

William Sien has over 15 years of business development and sales management experience with the last 8 years focused specifically in the solar energy sector.   William is currently the Sr. Director of Sales at Lightway Solar America, a wholly owned subsidiary of Lightway Green New Energy, a 600 MW vertically integrated solar module manufacturer based in Baoding, China.  As the Sr. Director of Sales, William has taken on a leadership role in building Lightway’s bankability profile, development of strategic alliances, distribution channels, strategic marketing and sales models that have led to over 90 MW in supply contracts and over 60 MW in project equity ownership in just under 2 years.  One of the primary reasons for Lightway’s ability to prosper as a module manufacturer given today’s challenging environment has been their successful integration of a downstream model into project financing solutions.

Prior to William’s tenure at Lightway Solar, he has served as Sr. VP of Business Development at Solar Power Industries, VP of Business Development at Solarfun Power (now Hanwha SolarOne), and Commercial Director at Motech Industries where he has been able to build upon his expertise in international supply chain management, implementation of innovative business development concepts, and the creation of unique market entry strategies.  William graduated from the University of Southern California with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Industrial Systems Engineering.

Rex Stepp has worked for APS since 2007 and currently leads the team responsible for supporting strategy, compliance and reporting for the APS Renewable Energy Program.  Rex has worked with customers, developers, installers and finance companies as they navigate through the many issues associated with installing renewable energy systems. 

Rex is also part of the adjunct faculty at Scottsdale Community College and has served on the board of the AZ Solar Center, a non-profit educational organization building awareness of renewable energy in Arizona.  He received his undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Biola University and his MBA from Thunderbird School of Global Management.  He and his wife have lived in Phoenix for 20 years and have 3 sons.

As the President and CEO of Shoals Technologies Group, Dean Solon is responsible for running all facets of the business. Dean has a proven executive management track record and over 20 years of experience driving sales and technological growth in the solar industry. Dean founded Shoals in 1996 with partners and in the year 2000, bought all their shares in the business and changed the course of Shoals from manufacturing for the automotive industry to the solar industry. While solar was in it’s infancy, Dean saw an opportunity to bring his extensive automotive knowledge and experience to a fledgling industry. Prior to the founding of Shoals, Dean worked in technical sales at multiple automotive tier one and tier two companies. During that time, Bosch Automotive approached Dean with a request for him to start his own manufacturing business and become their sole vendor for automotive brush cards. This request was the catalyst for Dean to found Shoals Technologies Group and supply Bosch Mexico with product for many years. Dean attended college at Purdue University in 1988 and studied mechanical engineering.

Blair Swezey serves as SunPower’s director, market development and public policy and is responsible for creating market opportunities and a supportive policy environment for distributed solar power generation in California.  Prior to joining SunPower, Swezey was senior director, solar markets and public policy at Applied Materials, Inc. where he advised executive management and corporate business units on solar markets and public policy design and implementation in support of the company’s solar photovoltaic manufacturing equipment business.  Previously, Swezey was principal policy advisor at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in Golden, Colorado, where he managed renewable energy market and policy analysis activities, and advised utilities, electricity marketers, and state and federal decision makers on the formulation of renewable energy programs and policies.  Swezey has published numerous articles and reports on renewable energy markets and policies, and testified in state and federal regulatory and legislative proceedings.  In 2005, he received the national “Green Power Pioneer” award for continuous achievement, vision, and dedication to the green power industry.  In 2003, Swezey spent a sabbatical at the International Energy Agency (IEA) in Paris, where he participated in a comprehensive study of renewable energy policies in IEA Member Countries.  Swezey also worked on the executive staff of the Electric Power Research Institute in Palo Alto, California and recently served for two years as vice chair of the Solar Alliance.  He currently serves on the board of directors of the Center for Resource Solutions.  Swezey received his academic training in economics at the University of California at Berkeley and San Jose State University.

Larry Truong is Director of Business Development for Power-One Renewable Energy Solutions LLC.  In his capacity, Larry is responsible for leading strategic planning, product portfolio development, and business development activities for Power-One’s PV market in the Americas.

Before joining Power-One, Larry spent 3 ½ years with Schneider Electric Renewable Energies (formerly Xantrex Technology, Inc.,) first as Regional Sales Manager, and then as Director of Business Development with major focus in the emerging utility-scale PV power plants.  During this time, Larry contributed to the company’s early successes with multi-megawatt utility scale installations in the Southwest US and Ontario, Canada.

Prior to Schneider Electric, Larry spent 12 years with American Power Conversion Corporation (APC,) a world’s leader in IT and telecommunication power infrastructure.  In his capacity as General Manager for Southeast Asia, Larry established APC’s legal entities in 6 countries, and grew the company’s business from a new entrant to the top market share position.  The company also won more than 25 industry awards, and was recognized as one of the top 5 IT brands in the region during Larry’s tenure.

Larry holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Rhode Island, and an MBA degree from the University of Chicago.  He also attended advanced executive development courses in marketing and management at the University of Chicago, the University of Michigan, the Center for Quality of Management, and the Singapore Institute of Management.

Andrew has over 15 years of commercial and technical experience in the clean energy sector.  Prior to SolarReserve, Mr. Wang successfully negotiated over 800 MW and managed over 2,200 MW of wholesale power purchase agreements at Southern California Edison (NYSE: EIX), a major investor-owned utility and the leading buyer of renewable power in the United States.  Previous responsibilities included both marketing and sales positions for Capstone Turbine (NASDAQ: CPST), the world’s leading provider of microturbine distributed generation products, as well as program manager for refining landfill gas to compressed natural gas vehicle fuel at Puente Hills Landfill, one of the largest municipal solid waste landfills in the United States.  Mr. Wang holds a Bachelors of Science in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California Berkeley, a Masters of Science in Environmental Engineering from Stanford University, a Masters of Business Administration from the Anderson School at UCLA, and is a licensed Professional Engineer in California.

Chase Weir is co-founder and CEO of Distributed Sun – a commercial solar developer, platform services provider and Solar Energy Investment Company (SEIC) manager.  Mr. Weir led the design of the company’s business, policy and finance intelligence tools and filings with the USPTO.  Under his leadership, D-SUN has secured eight closings of operating and project portfolio company finance. His Washington, DC-based firm owns and operates profitable SEICs, sunONE through sunFOUR, with performing solar assets in 6 states, serving power to Hilton, Sheraton, and US Foods properties, and commercial and school sites nationwide.

Mr. Wiese is the founder and Principal of Clean Energy Associates, a consulting firm providing services related to policy and program development, monitoring and performance verification, technical analysis and education relating to distributed renewable energy.

In this capacity, he designed and manages the solar incentive programs offered by seven investor-owned electric utilities in Texas since 2009. Together these programs have catalyzed private investments of over $86 million and resulted in the installation of over 14 MW of solar PV generating capacity at more than 1,300 homes and businesses in Texas. These programs contributed to Texas’ ranking among the top 10 solar states for the first time in 2010.

From 2007 through 2010, he was responsible for the startup and management of the State of New Jersey’s innovative SREC-Only Pilot Program and the SREC Registration Program, which is now that state’s principal vehicle for development of solar projects. New Jersey currently ranks second only to California in the amount of solar installed among US states.

Mr. Wiese served as President of the Texas Renewable Energy Industries Association (TREIA) from 2010-2012, and is an active member of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the American Solar Energy Society (ASES), the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC), and the Texas Solar Energy Society (TXSES). He was appointed by the Austin City Council and served as Chairman of the Local Solar Advisory Committee, achieving a unanimous recommendation on a Strategic Plan for Local Solar in Austin in November 2012.

He is the author of numerous publications on renewable energy integration, project development, performance verification, and policy, including a recent analysis of standards affecting renewable energy development for the National Institutes of Standards and Technology (NIST).

Prior to founding Clean Energy Associates he was Renewable Energy Program Manager for Planergy and Conservation Services Group for 10+ years, and was an Energy Policy Analyst for the Congressional Research Service in Washington, DC.

Mr. Wiese earned Master’s degrees in Business Administration (MBA) and Public Affairs (MPAff) from the University of Texas at Austin, and a BA in Biological Sciences and Public Policy from the University of California at Davis.

Dr. Zhou is a senior business executive with over 20 years of industry experience at multi-national corporations with global footprints. He current serves as the President of Hanergy Holding America, a fully owned subsidiary of Hanergy Holding Group.   Before joining Hanergy America, Dr. Zhou was Vice President of Product Engineering at Nanosolar. From 2008 to 2010, Dr. Zhou was Vice President of Engineering, General Manager of Asia Pacific Business, and Chief Operating Officer at NDS Surgical Imaging. From 2005 to 2007, Dr. Zhou was Vice President of Engineering for several business divisions and General Manager of the China and India Design Centers at Flextronics Inc. From 2000 to 2005, he was Vice President and General Manager of several divisions at Honeywell International Inc. Dr. Zhou also serves as a board member for Monolithic Power Systems, a NASDAQ listed publicly traded company. He holds a Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Florida.

Shyam Mehta is Executive Director at NYSEIA, the New York Solar Energy Industries Assocation, the only industry association devoted solely to advancing solar energy use and deployment in New York State. As Executive Director, Shyam leads NYSEIA's solar policy initiatives and represents the voice of the New York solar industry in interfacing with stakeholders including legislators, regulators, state agencies and utilities. Prior to NYSEIA, Shyam spent almost a decade at Greentech Media (GTM), an integrated research, media and events firm covering the global renewable energy industry, where he covered the global PV supply chain.

Andrew Krulewitz leads marketing and corporate strategy at Geli, a provider of end-to-end design and automation software solutions for the energy storage industry. Prior to his time at Geli, Andrew worked as a consultant with Ford's electric vehicle division and as a market research analyst at GTM Research, a subsidiary of Greentech Media. He earned is BA from Colgate University and MBA from the University of Michigan.

Carolyn is a manager in 3Degrees' Energy & Climate Practice. In this role, she is responsible for sourcing renewable energy and carbon mitigation solutions to help 3Degrees' clients meet their GHG reduction and climate change goals. While at 3Degrees she has supported clients in contracting 400 MW of wind and solar VPPAs, including an aggregated transaction for four buyers in the PJM. Prior to joining 3Degrees, Carolyn led utility-scale power marketing activities for Recurrent Energy’s CAISO solar PV pipeline including energy market diligence, counterparty outreach, competitive pricing analysis, and contract negotiation. She started her career as a Solar Analyst for GTM Research in Boston.

Carolyn holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environment, Economics, & Politics from Claremont McKenna College.

Scott Clavenna has been leading high-tech market research firms for over 15 years. In his capacity as a trusted analyst and consultant, Scott has helped dozens of companies enter and succeed in complex and intensely competitive markets worldwide. He also has authored more than 30 reports that helped define important emerging market segments in optical and broadband communications.

Prior to founding Greentech Media, Scott was chief analyst at Heavy Reading, the market research arm of Light Reading, the dominant online media company in the telecommunications market. CMP bought Light Reading in 2005. Before creating Heavy Reading, Scott founded PointEast Research, providing strategic consulting and market intelligence to a broad mix of startups, venture capitalists and major suppliers in the communications/IT industry, and worked as director of research for Light Reading. In 1997, Scott co-founded Pioneer Consulting, which quickly grew into the leading market research firm covering the optical and broadband communications industry.