The Renewable Energy Leadership Podcast

Most developers walk into battery storage using a solar playbook. Malaquias Encarnacion says that's exactly where projects go wrong. Storage is a different animal, and it deserves its own process, from the very first site visit through to decommissioning twenty years later.Malaquias Encarnacion is Partner and Head of Development at Carina Energy. He led the design, construction, and commissioning of the first grid-connected lithium-ion battery storage system in the US in 2008, and the first storage project to generate revenue in a US power market, PJM, in 2009. From there, his career took him through AES, Fluence, EDF Renewables, Leeward Renewable Energy, and Qcells North America, building multi-gigawatt storage pipelines across nearly every major US power market. When he started Carina Energy, he named it after that first project, the one that started it all.In this conversation, Malaquias explains why his team designs the permits before they design the projects, and how that sequencing avoids the bottlenecks that sink most storage developments. We get into how he handles community pushback on battery projects, including the misinformation he regularly has to correct in public hearings, and why he believes storage would still matter even if the broader energy transition stalled out completely.In this episode we cover:Why storage needs its own development process, and why treating it like solar leads projects into troubleHis firm's approach of designing permits before designing the project itself, and why sequencing is the real difference-makerThe industry's talent shortage, and why he believes developing your own in-house expertise matters more than chasing scarce hiresHow he handles community pushback and misinformation in public hearings, and why the goal is never to argue but to build trust before the questions are even askedWhat a world without battery storage would look like, and why he compares a battery system to an iPad that saves energy, a tool whose full potential hasn't been unlocked yetThe story behind Carina Energy's name, and the project that started his career in battery storage back in 2008If you develop, finance, or work anywhere near utility-scale battery storage, this conversation is for you.Connect with Malaquias Encarnacion: linkedin.com/in/mencarnacionConnect with Michael Thornhill: linkedin.com/in/michael-thornhill-b42603367

"Batteries don't generate electricity, they generate solutions," Christian Sanchez says. It's a line that gets at something real: if you're not selling energy the way a solar or wind plant does, you have to work out exactly what you are selling, and prove it to a bank. Christian Sanchez is Head of Power Systems Engineering at TAR. At the time of this recording, he was Corporate Director of BESS and Engineering at Zelestra, where he led teams building custom battery storage solutions across five business units. His 13-plus years in renewable energy include roles at Sargent & Lundy, AES, and S&C Electric, alongside a master's in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and an MBA from Indiana University.In this conversation, Christian breaks down why bankability on BESS projects starts with engineering, not finance, and what he actually looks for when hiring engineers onto his team. We get into how he leads across cultures, time zones, and languages managing teams spanning the US, Europe, and Latin America, why listening to his own team produced better results than leading with his own answers, and the simple question he asks himself before reacting to a tight deadline.In this episode we cover:Why bankability on battery storage projects is fundamentally an engineering conversation, not a finance oneThe two things Christian actually looks for when hiring engineers: drive and character, neither of which shows up on a resumeLeading global teams across the US, Europe, and Latin America, and what he's learned managing across cultures, time zones, and languagesWhy the best management decisions on his team rarely came from him, and what that taught him about listening as a leadership toolHis approach to deadline pressure: solving for one variable at a time instead of trying to fix everything at onceWhy he asks "why are we here" before reacting to any tight deadline, and how that reframes failure as part of execution rather than a threat to itWhat draws people into the clean energy transition, and why Christian believes the industry needs far more talent, technical and non-technical, in the years aheadIf you lead engineers, or any team navigating complexity across borders, this conversation is for you.Views shared are Christian's own, and not those of any organisation he's been affiliated with.Connect with Christian Sanchez: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christiansanchezpe/Connect with Michael Thornhill: I help renewable energy companies find exceptional talent and develop the leadership and culture that makes them stay. https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-thornhill-b42603367

Some businesses trying to electrify their fleets are discovering the real barrier isn't cost, it's power. A new grid connection can cost over a million pounds, if it's even available at all. This week's guest spends his days helping businesses work around exactly that problem.Mark Duxbury is UK Country Director of BESS and EMS Solutions for iwell, a commercial battery storage and energy management company operating across four countries from its Dutch headquarters. He spent close to a decade at E.ON, followed by roles at E.Energy Group and ISTA Energy, before taking on iwell's UK expansion, backed by the company's track record of more than four hundred projects across Europe. Mark leads with a clear philosophy: give every team member a crystal clear vision of where the company is headed, and lead with empathy for what they are carrying outside of work.In this conversation, Mark explains why grid constraints are now stalling business expansion across the UK, sometimes at a cost of over a million pounds just to secure a new connection. We get into why battery storage has passed what Mark calls the tipping point on commercial viability, with returns now landing in under four years, how iwell is building the UK's first community-owned battery storage project in Oxfordshire, and what it actually takes to build an agile, energetic culture from scratch in a brand new market.In this episode we cover:Why grid constraints, not just rising energy prices, are now the bigger barrier to business expansion in the UKThe full accountability model: why iwell designs, installs, and operates every asset for ten years rather than selling and walking awayThe UK's first community-owned battery storage project in Oxfordshire, where local investment funds local energy efficiency workWhy battery storage has passed the tipping point on commercial viability, with ROI now landing in under four yearsMark's leadership philosophy: giving teams a crystal clear vision and leading with empathy for what people are carrying at work and at homeWhat agriculture, particularly poultry farming, reveals about hidden energy costs most people would not expectHis advice for leaders considering a move from a traditional corporate into a smaller, more agile businessIf you are thinking about where energy costs, grid capacity, and leadership collide, this conversation is for you.Connect with Mark Duxbury: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-duxbury-21ab454bConnect with Michael Thornhill: I help renewable energy companies find exceptional talent and develop the leadership and culture that makes them stay. https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-thornhill-b42603367 www.thornhillgrid.com

Most organisations treat retention as a problem that starts when someone hands in their notice. By then, you have already failed. That is how this week's guest sees it, and it sets the tone for one of the most direct conversations we have had on the show.Saurabh Chatterjee is Vice President of Renewables at WSP in the US, leading a team of 100 engineers and managing P&Ls in excess of $25 million. He previously served as Global Head of BESS at EDP Renewables and led negotiations on Zelestra's first utility scale battery storage project, a 935 MWh system in Chile. With over 15 years of engineering expertise across EPC, owner's engineering, IPP, and consulting, he has sat in nearly every seat in the industry, and that 360-degree view shapes everything about how he leads.In this conversation, Saurabh makes the case that there is no bad organisation, only bad leadership. We get into the real cost of losing people, why employees leave when their question of what's next goes unanswered, how to bring clarity into chaos when projects accelerate faster than planned, and why reframing failure is one of the most underrated leadership tools available.In this episode we cover:Why Saurabh believes there is no bad organisation, only bad leadership, and how that belief shapes the way he runs his teamsThe real cost of losing someone: roughly 28 weeks to reach full capacity, and $50,000 to $100,000 to replace them once they are goneWhy people do not leave when they are unhappy, they leave when what's next goes unansweredHow to bring clarity into chaos when client demands and project timelines accelerate faster than plannedReframing failure as part of execution rather than a threat to it, and why fear of failure quietly limits performanceA career built from the ground up: what moving through EPC, owner's engineering, IPP, and consulting taught him about leading global teamsIf you lead a team in renewables, or anywhere energy is moving fast, this conversation is for you.Connect with Saurabh Chatterjee: linkedin.com/in/besssolarhybridConnect with Michael Thornhill: I help renewable energy companies find exceptional talent and develop the leadership and culture that makes them stay.linkedin.com/in/michael-thornhill-b42603367www.thornhillgrid.comEPISODE CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction: there is no bad organization, only bad leadership01:04 Saurabh's background and path into renewables03:38 What a ground-up career teaches you about leading operations05:44 The seat that changed him most as a leader08:14 Leading global teams across cultures: US, Chile, Asia Pacific10:56 Why retention starts long before someone hands in their notice13:20 The question every leader needs an answer to: what's next?18:08 Why people choose WSP and what organic growth really means28:22 Bringing clarity into chaos when projects move faster than planned33:42 Reframing failure: execution over outcome37:00 Where the industry is headed and the case for all forms of energy

What does it actually take to lead distributed energy programmes when the grid is the deadline? Mitch Berglund is Vice President of Sales and Grid Programmes at Texas Solar, founder of iTrust Power, and a 17-year veteran of the US distributed energy industry. He has generated over $150 million in cumulative revenue including $67 million in a single year at Lumio, built and led teams of more than 50 people, and pioneered Virtual Power Plant programmes across ERCOT and CAISO. A Golden Door Award recipient recognised for top 1% national performance in sales leadership, he brings rare field-level execution experience to the VPP and storage space.In this conversation we get into what alignment really means when the grid is the deadline, how to build trust at scale across functional teams, why the leaders winning right now are operators first and talkers second, and what the arrival of AI and data centres means for distributed energy and VPPs. We also cover retention, the player-coach mentality, and why the grid is not short on generation, it is short on orchestration.In this episode we cover:Why Mitch's leadership shifted from performance-driven to execution-driven, and what that looks like in practiceWhat alignment actually means across sales, operations, financing, compliance, and market policyHow to build trust quickly inside high-growth teams and across functional boundariesWhy retention is the most underrated lever in the energy transitionVPP deployment in ERCOT: what field reality looks like versus the conceptual hypeWhy battery storage installations are fundamentally more complex than solarHow AI and data centres are creating a new class of grid customerWhy the next phase of the grid will be defined by who orchestrates the fleet, not who installs the most assetsIf you lead teams in distributed energy, storage, or grid programmes, or you are building the next chapter of your career in the energy transition, this conversation is for you.Connect with Mitch: linkedin.com/in/mitch-berglund-593389a4Connect with Michael: linkedin.com/in/michael-thornhill-b42603367CHAPTERS00:00 Introduction and the orchestration era01:15 Mitch's background: from residential solar to grid programmes04:10 Leadership when the grid is the deadline08:10 Operators vs. talkers: what real leadership looks like09:05 What alignment actually means10:00 How to build trust at speed15:40 Advice to your younger self18:00 VPPs: hype vs. execution reality in ERCOT20:44 Why battery storage is harder than solar22:20 Retention: the most underrated lever in the energy transition27:30 The player-coach mentality and the abundant mindset34:00 Large companies vs. small teams: where people feel valued36:40 AI, data centres, and the new grid customer40:40 VPPs as the flex and shock absorber of the grid43:17 The new wave: leading in the orchestration era47:08 Wrap-up and how to connect with Mitch