Silver Spring Networks co-founder and EVP of global development Eric Dresselhuys is leaving after almost 15 years with the firm. Silver Spring has moved from advanced metering infrastructure to adding distributed intelligence and “internet of things” capabilities to its networks. Silver Spring went public in 2013 after raising more than $300 million from Foundation Capital, KPCB, Northgate Capital Partners, Google, EMC and Hitachi. Dresselhuys has not yet revealed his next move.
Electric-bus builder Proterra named Matt Horton as chief commercial officer. Prior to joining Proterra, Horton was the CEO of Propel Fuels. Proterra has sold more than 380 vehicles to 36 different municipal, university, and commercial transit agencies throughout North America. According to the company, by 2030, every single transit bus sold in the U.S. will run on electricity. (Here's the recent Energy Gang podcast interview with Proterra CEO Ryan Popple.)
Hannah Masterjohn was promoted to VP of policy and regulatory affairs at Clean Energy Collective. In 2014, First Solar made its entry into the U.S. residential solar market by becoming the single largest investor in Clean Energy Collective's community solar business with the purchase of a 28 percent ownership interest for $21.8 million. CEC builds and sells community solar projects to residential and small business customers on behalf of utilities. In 2012, CEC won $13 million in equity financing from the New Energy Capital Cleantech Infrastructure Fund, Black Coral Capital and other investors.
“Our model is not supplanting people who want to and can put solar on their house, but rather opening the market to the other 75 percent of electricity users,” explained CEC's president, Paul Spencer, in a previous interview. As we've reported, the model is simple on paper, but it's very complex in practice. Corporate structure, securities and tax issues, tracking, and utility-bill crediting all need to be up and running to allow this model to scale. GTM's Cory Honeyman beatboxes and professes his passion for community solar here.
Vivint Solar promoted Thomas Plagemann to chief commercial officer and head of capital markets. Vivint also promoted Erica Dahl to VP of public policy and government affairs.
Solar project developer Nautilus Solar Energy named Stefanie Padgett, previously with First Solar, as VP of asset management.
Renew Financial, a property-assessed clean energy (PACE) funding provider, added Gaurav Kohli, most recently VP of merchant and acquirer processing at Visa, as executive VP of technology. Renew Financial recently surpassed $1 billion in funded projects through PACE loans which allow property owners to finance the cost of efficiency and renewable energy upgrades and repay those costs via their property-tax bill.
President Donald Trump named Kristine Svinicki as chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The commission still has two more vacancies.
Steven Schwartz, formerly with Parker Hannifin, is now the lead for distributed energy resources, microgrids and energy storage, a new engineering practice at consulting firm Advisian.
Bill Baker, managing director at EverStream Capital Management, is now a board member at Synnove Energy, a U.S.-based startup with a focus on generating clean renewable energy in Africa.
Adrian De Luca, a partner at Twenty First Century Utilities, is now on the board of directors at GridPoint, a smart buildings platform that provides visibility into facility operations.
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Enertech Search Partners, an executive search firm with a dedicated cleantech practice, is the sponsor of the GTM jobs column.
Among its many active searches, Enertech is looking for a Demand Response Operations Manager.
The client is one of the world’s leading integrated energy companies looking to expand the team for an internal startup. The parent company is expecting to invest about $1 billion into this early-stage business focused on distributed energy for large energy users. By combining traditional and renewable power, energy efficiency, demand response, generation, advisory services and big data and other digital assets, they help their customers capitalize on the new and more flexible energy landscape and move from consumers to prosumers and even grid service providers.
This client is currently seeking a Demand Response Operations Manager who will reside on the Customer Success Team. They are looking for an individual who will lead the North American team responsible for demand response retail operations in utilities and all ISOs, including PJM, NYISO, ISO-NE, MISO and ERCOT.
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Andrew Gilligan was promoted to senior director for investments at solar development and finance firm Sol Systems.
Cheryl Cox, previously with the Office of Ratepayer Advocates, is now senior analyst for RPS at the California Public Utilities Commission.
Meghan Vincent-Jones, previously with Quick Mount PV, is now marketing and development director at solar advocacy organization CALSEIA.
The number of jobs created to make, sell and install solar panels in the U.S. grew at a record pace last year, and grew much faster than the overall American job market, as per a new report from The Solar Foundation. The report found that there were 260,077 solar workers as of November 2016 -- an increase of 51,000 jobs, up 25 percent over 2015. The report estimates that the job growth rate will be closer to 10 percent this year.
Alice Busching Reynolds, a Democrat, has been appointed senior adviser to Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. for climate, the environment and energy. She has served as deputy secretary for law enforcement and counsel at the California Environmental Protection Agency since 2011. This position does not require Senate confirmation, and the compensation is $172,008.
On January 30 Enphase reduced its workforce by approximately 18 percent "to lower operating expenses." That's roughly 80 jobs. This cut follows a layoff of 11 percent of its workforce in September 2016.
Residential PV installer American Solar Direct had a round of layoffs, as well as some office consolidation, according to CEO Andrew Schneider. He noted that despite the layoffs, the situation was full speed ahead at the company, which had its first cash-flow positive months in November and December and partnered with Swell Energy on energy storage.
Peter Thiel is not running for governor of California, a spokesperson told the Los Angeles Times.
From the previous jobs column:
New York's top utility regulator, Audrey Zibelman, is moving on from her position. Australia's energy market operator announced that Zibelman will be taking over as chief executive. The organization, called AEMO, operates wholesale power markets, wholesale natural-gas markets, trading hubs and gas transmission systems throughout Australia. Zibelman leaves New York's Public Service Commission at a delicate time. The state is two and a half years into Reforming the Energy Vision, the utility reformation plan announced by Governor Andrew Cuomo in 2014.
Last Thursday, FERC Chair Norman Bay announced his early resignation. He broke the news after President Trump chose Cheryl LaFleur to serve as the new chair next year. Carolyn Elefant tells NPR: "I think [Bay] was perhaps disappointed that Commissioner LaFleur was elevated above him. The resignation could mean costly delays for some major pipeline projects."
Energy storage provider Sunverge named former Nexant CTO and GM Martin Milani as its first COO.