Clean Integration

In 2022, the US Department of Energy reported that, 

“The United States is a resource-rich country with abundant renewable energy... Every region of the country has access to multiple [clean energy] resources. The available renewable resource is 100 times that of the Nation’s annual electricity need.” 

So, why do renewable resources account for only 20% of the nation’s power today?

What’s getting in the way of the mass adoption of renewable energy?

If you’ve been tuning in for a while, you’ve heard me discuss the wasted energy problem with industry experts. I’m excited to continue this conversation:

In this episode, Soluna CEO John Belizaire talks to John Breckenridge, Senior Advisor (and former CEO) of Arevon Energy.

John has more than 20 years of direct private equity investing experience, preceded by more than 18 years of operations management. 
We’ll learn from John’s expertise in renewables, infrastructure, and sustainability, and dig into the challenges of clean energy development and integration. 

In Spring 2023, Soluna proudly announced a new investment partner at Project Dorothy – Navitas Global.

Navitas Global is a private data center development company that leverages years of experience and deep relationships in the Bitcoin mining industry to provide attractive returns for investors. 

In this episode, CEO John Belizaire talks to Chad Roach, Managing Partner at Navitas, about Project Dorothy.

They discuss what’s happening at the nexus of renewable energy development, Bitcoin mining, investment, and more. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

In this episode, we’re taking a deep dive into the use of water in AI computing in traditional data center models, and some of the looming questions concerning AI’s sustainability. 

Our guest is Shaolei Ren, Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Riverside.

Professor Ren’s research broadly focuses on AI + Sustainability and pushes forward the boundaries of the field by uncovering and addressing water sustainability and environmental equity in networked AI/computing systems.

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

In this episode, we're digging into Soluna's carbon emissions. 

An independent study has found that Project Dorothy, our Texas flagship data center, emits 18% less carbon annually than its data center counterparts and the ERCOT West territory. 

John Belizaire, CEO of Soluna Computing and host of Clean Integration, is joined by Soluna’s VP of Corporate Development, Phillip Ng.

Our guest today is Rob Day, a friend of the show and co-founder and partner at Spring Lane Capital. (If you didn't catch our first conversation with Rob, listen here.)

Spring Lane Capital is a private equity firm focused on investments for sustainable solutions in the energy, water, food, and waste sectors. Their investment in data center projects is part of their strategy focused on hybrid project capital for sustainable solutions in the energy industry.

If you've read the news lately or even quickly skimmed the headlines, you've seen the madness concerning FTX and the growing skepticism of the crypto industry at large.

The collapse of FTX and other firms this year bolstered by concerns of crypto mining strain on the world's resources, there have been many misunderstandings, it seems. Especially as it relates to Bitcoin.

Recently, you may have heard CEO John Belizaire say, "Bitcoin is not crypto," and he is not alone in this thought. Many thought leaders and Bitcoiners have taken to Twitter and op-eds to expand on this:

Bitcoin is not crypto. (At least not the version of Crypto FTX was built on.)

"And what does that mean?" You're probably thinking.

In this episode, John Belizaire is joined today by colleagues, Dip Patel, CTO of Soluna, and Phillip Ng, Vice President of Corporate Development at Soluna.

They discuss what's going on in the market, and try to clarify a few things to help you, our listeners, understand how and why Bitcoin is not crypto.

Notable Moments: 

[02:15] First things first, what the heck happened? We woke up one day and there were suspicious Twitter threads, drama, and finally a collapse. How would you explain the FTX situation to a novice?

[12:00] What’s the next market going to look like? What should people expect? And what do you say to them that should be learned here?

[24:50] Briefly, can you explain why Bitcoin is so energy intensive?

[28:10] What’s your pitch to renewable energy developers, and power plant owners? How do you position building a bitcoin data center co-located with their facilities and how it addresses their issues?

[31:20] What prediction for the coming year would you like to see, would you love to see, I would say? And it could be anything, but what would you like to see, particularly around this whole crypto space and Bitcoin space?

To read the transcript of this episode, visit: https://www.solunacomputing.com/podcast/ftx-recap/

Nino Lazariia, a consultant at Cleantech Group,  works with a particular focus on digital solutions to climate change. She has worked in multiple countries on issues ranging from smart cities, the internet of things, AI, digital resilience, and emerging technologies.

Cleantech Group is a research and consulting company that tracks innovation for sustainability across the agriculture, energy, chemical, transportation, and environmental sectors.

Notable Moments: 

[3:05] How would you define Cleantech?

[4:40] What do you see as the major upcoming trends in cleantech, particularly around the growth of the sector and new industries leaning into cleantech? 

[7:21] What's your take on the EV market and its impact on the climate change problem we're facing?

[9:05] One of your clients is UNIDO. Can you tell us a bit about your work for them? 

[12:13] Do you think crypto, AI, IoT, and other digital solutions have a role to play in social good?

[14:09] How do you manage bringing different stakeholders to the metaphorical table? – whether that’s execs, investors, legislators, scientists, etc.?

[15:19] You received dual masters in public affairs and environmental science - how do you think that has shaped your work at Cleantech Group? 

[16:43] You mentioned having a particular passion for smart cities. Can you talk more about what that is for our listeners? 

[18:08] What types of considerations do smart cities take for building or reforming the electrical grid? 

[19:10] How do you stay motivated and/or inspired in the hard fight against climate change?

Links: 

• Cleantech Group  Quarterly Investment Monitor Insight, Q3 2022: https://s3.amazonaws.com/i3.cleantech/uploads/investment_monitor_resource/79651/108012_Quarterly_Investment_Monitor_Q3_2022_-_Slides.pdf
• 2022 Global Cleantech 100 Report: https://s3.amazonaws.com/i3.cleantech/uploads/additional_resources_pdf/60/260/Cleantech_Global_100_2022_Report.pdf
• Nino Lazariia on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lazarianino/

The Inflation Reduction Act is at its core a climate bill. 

While it does lower prescription drug costs, make healthcare more affordable, and enable the IRS to do their job, the bill is really the single greatest investment — $369 billion — in climate change in U.S. history.

It was signed into law on August 16 of this year and has been great news to the clean energy industry, particularly the electric vehicle market. 

But we may not have enough battery manufacturing capacity or lithium supply to fulfill these EVs or storage provisions. 

Much of our global lithium refining takes place in China, creating an unnecessarily expensive and time-intensive process. 

We are excited to talk to Max Hickey of Li-Cycle in this episode. 

Max is the Business Development Manager at Li-Cycle. Li-Cycle has several battery recycling facilities in North America, helping to open a new market and increase our domestic supply of lithium. 

John and Max discuss: 

• The current battery manufacturing market and how the IRA may impact it
• How lithium recycling help grow the lithium supply in North America and generally outside of China
• How we make the battery manufacturing process — and the industries that use them — more sustainable

Today, we’re getting a unique perspective on entrepreneurship.

John Dearie joins us from the Center for American Entrepreneurship, a research, policy, and advocacy organization that works with policymakers in Washington and across the country to achieve a policy environment that promotes new business formation, survival, and growth.

John Belizaire, CEO of Soluna Computing and host of Clean Integration, became familiar with John Dearie and the Center for American Entrepreneurship in the fall of 2019 through his friend Bettina Heins (also a member of the board) and he joined the Board of Directors for CAE in May 2020. So, it’s a personal pleasure for John to sit with him today.

They discussed the work they do at the Center, how to build a more diverse, more vibrant future for entrepreneurs in the U.S., and the role that the Center for American Entrepreneurship had in passing the seminal CHIPS Act earlier this year.

Highlights: 

[01:25]: How’d you start CAE? Tell us more about your background in general. You’ve got some big milestones along the way too, we’d love to hear those.

[11:45]: Take us in the car with you as you’re making your way across the country, talking to entrepreneurs. What’s that experience like? What types of companies were you meeting with? What were some of the challenges they were facing?

[19:58]: I want to talk about the increasing awareness of sustainability and climate impact on the policy front, there’s just been incredible, I’d say, seminal series of bills that have gone through and become law recently. The Inflation Reduction Act might be a good place to start. What are its implications from your perspective on entrepreneurship and American innovation at large?

[23:15] We’ve seen big companies like Samsung planning to move some of their chip development back to the US. It’s almost like a massive sea wave of reassuring of chip manufacturing, and that is driven by a law that most people may not know. It’s called the CHIPS Act which was passed recently, and CAE was foundational in getting that act passed. John, can you explain to anyone who might not know the significance of this law? What’s it about? I think I had a different name prior, right?

[37:28]  How do you work to even the playing field across the demographics as it relates to entrepreneurs?

We’re excited to explore a new topic on Clean Integration: sustainable IT. 

Capgemini is an international IT solutions provider with a focus on sustainable, “future-shaping projects.” Capgemini has used AI to protect national parks and oceans and has a deep knowledge of sustainable IT and insurance. 

At Soluna, we are just as interested in the human and environmental impact of technology as we are in the way it works. 

We’re excited to have two of Capgemini’s VPs, Satish Weber and Seth Rachlin, on our show. 

Satish is the Executive Vice President and Head of Sustainability & Financial Services at Capgemini, where she helps clients disrupt their industry using sustainable tech solutions. 
 

Seth is the Executive Vice President of Capgemini’s Global Insurance Industry branch and has consulted with over 50 Fortune 500 and middle-market insurance companies. Seth is also a professor at the University of Chicago, where he teaches about the intersection of risk and technology.

Key Moments: 

[1:38] Introductions to Seth, Satish, and Capgemini

[4:40] What is sustainability? Why is IT at the center of the global sustainability conversation?

[15:58] Capgemini has talked a lot about technology for inclusive progress. What does inclusivity mean in this context? How do you work to facilitate that progress?

[18:24] The financial services industry plays a unique role in the future of sustainability. What does the conversation around sustainability currently look like in that sector?

[20:22] What’s the relationship between sustainability and value proposition? What does resilience look like in understanding sustainability in financial services?

[23:23] What are some of the biggest challenges facing technology companies seeking to adopt sustainable practices?

[27:42] If the shift to more sustainable IT is the trend, then doesn’t it behoove utilities to have a sustainability value proposition?

[30:14] Can we expect that “sustainability” will gain one objective meaning and across industries or will the term/mission always be subjective and industry-specific?

The US passed the largest climate bill in American history this summer: The Inflation Reduction Act. With new energy sources, will come new challenges for our already-struggling grid.

Now more than ever, innovations in AI and machine learning are so important for stabilizing the grid.

Today I’m talking to Sean Murphy, the CEO and Co-Founder of PingThings, Inc., a software platform for high-frequency time series data bringing AI and machine learning to some of the largest utilities in the US.

PingThings is backed by GE Ventures and is also spearheading the Department of Energy’s National infrastructure for AI on the Grid initiative.

Previously, Sean built Full Stack Data Science, a consulting firm that focused on bringing AI, machine learning, and data science into the enterprise space– specifically in government, finance, consumer, education, and healthcare.

He also spent over a decade as a senior scientist at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.

With such a wide breadth and depth of experience, we’re excited to speak to Sean today to learn more about his innovative platform.

Highlights: 

• [4:10] How did you get into data science? When did you know you would be a data scientist?
• [07:36] Let’s talk about your current venture and focus. I think it’s very exciting to use data and software to create a more predictive grid. In fact, you call it PredictiveGrid software. How does it work and what problems can it solve for our current grid system?
• [12:40] What is the predictive software doing for the grid?
• [13:51]: How have utilities responded to your software so far? Have you noticed any change to their approach to renewable energy using the software or any insights you can share with us here?
• [19:58]: It looks like your group hosts training and hackathons. And you’ve previously, you did this where you built a whole community of 10,000 plus data practitioners. What led you to realize that community was important and knowledge sharing is important in the work that you do at PingThings?
• [24:08]: What’s the role of open-source data? I noticed that that’s a big part of your approach and platform. Why is that a part of it? I thought you were going after the sensors on the resources.
• [32:54]: You’ve founded four companies. What advice would you give to entrepreneurs?
• [36:05]: How can AI help the grid? What can AI do?

Soluna CEO John Belizaire meets with Catherine McLean, who has spent the past decade plus working in clean energy recruitment. 

Catherine is the founder and CEO of Dylan Green, a strategic talent acquisition consultancy that specializes in placing top-tier talent and top-tier individuals within leading clean energy and tech companies.

Prior to founding Dylan Green, Catherine founded and led McLean Ross, a global energy and utility recruitment consultancy. She is passionate about diversity, inclusion, and equity in the clean energy and tech spaces, and one of Dylan Green's core objectives is to help companies reach their DEI goals. Catherine also recently won the Cleanie Award for Champion in Diversity Equity & Inclusion. 

She joins John to talk about her professional journey, how the energy industry has evolved over the last decade, and what it means to hire diverse talent. 

(This conversation was recorded in May 2022.)

To read a transcript of John and Catherine's conversation, visit our website. 

Can Bitcoin catalyze the transition to renewable energy? 

Troy Cross joins us in this episode to discuss. Troy is a fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute. He holds a PhD in Philosophy, and is a professor of Philosophy and Humanities at Reed College. He has been involved in Bitcoin for over a decade, most prominently working around the question of Bitcoin mining’s present and future environmental impact.

Notable Moments from this Episode: 

[1:15] Soluna recently published a white paper covering curtailment (wasted energy) and the potential solution in batchable computing, including Bitcoin mining.

[2:10] Introduction to Troy Cross, his introduction to Bitcoin, and his background in Philosophy

[19:32] The role of the Bitcoin Policy Institute in the industry at large

[21:47] Troy Cross and Margot Paez (who was on Clean Integration earlier this year) co-authored a 10-page commentary to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy on Bitcoin's climate impact. Soluna also responded to a Request for Information from the OSTP on digital assets.

[24:25] To dispel the Bitcoin Energy FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt), we must first understand Bitcoin’s socioeconomic value.

[28:15] These are some of the most common misconceptions about Bitcoin’s energy consumption

[33:20] What does the future of Bitcoin mining look like?

[42:20] John answers Troy's question: "How can adding load to the energy grid aid decarbonization?"

[45:00] Troy asks John, "What about miners keeping fossil fuel plants in business?"

[51:01] A discussion on “Greening Bitcoin with Incentive Offsets,” a paper by Troy Cross and Andrew Bailey

[01:01:05]  Possible incentives for clean energy crypto miners and for Bitcoin holders

Other Relevant Resources:

• [Blog] The Positive Externalities of Bitcoin
• [White Paper] The Missing Piece of a Sustainable Grid: Modular Data Centers
• John Belizaire testified before Congress on Bitcoin’s energy consumption

 Soluna Computing CEO John Belizaire is joined by Eliza Gkritsi and Aoyon  Ashraf, journalists at CoinDesk.

Eliza and Aoyon both cover crypto mining for the digital-currency-focused new site, CoinDesk. 

Before joining CoinDesk, Eliza worked as a reporter at TechNode, a leading media source on tech and startups in China. She holds an MSc in Journalism and in Communication and Media Studies. 

Before joining CoinDesk, Aoyon spent 9 years at Bloomberg, where he covered equities and commodities in mining, metals, and energy.

Together, they discuss the current landscape of crypto mining and energy discourse in the industry and the trends toward renewable mining. 

John Belizaire, CEO at Soluna Computing, sits down with Ali Chehrehsaz, the Co-founder and CEO of TerraVerde Energy, an independent energy advisor representing school districts, public agencies, and commercial enterprises. 

TerraVerde helps clients reduce energy use and costs by planning, designing, and implementing energy conservation measures, solar energy systems, and energy storage solutions. 

In this conversation, John and Ali discuss starting a company focused on scaling clean energy and beating the Bitcoin-Energy FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt). 

To read a transcript of this conversation, please visit our blog. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

John Belizaire, CEO at Soluna Computing, sits down with Margot Paez, a fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute specializing in renewable energy and environmental studies, to discuss the need for education in both the policy and energy sectors around the potential for Bitcoin mining to catalyze clean energy development. 

Margot is also currently a Ph.D. candidate in civil engineering at Georgia Tech with a focus on water resources and climate adaptation, as well as a graduate research assistant at the Georgia Water Resources Institute and a front-end developer.

Our team became acquainted with Margot when she moderated a panel on mining with renewables at the Bitcoin Conference in Miami earlier this year. 

To read a transcript of this conversation, please visit our blog. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

At Soluna, we’ve always been interested in innovative solutions to some of renewable energy’s toughest problems. 

Last year, we wrote a series on our blog covering a few environmentally-sound companies that we find truly inspiring. 

We found that companies that are genuinely environmentally forward-thinking care a lot. 

They’re thinking hard about sustainability, reducing their carbon footprint, and their effect on local economies. 

These problems are at the heart of their operation. 

So, I’m excited about this conversation today with a founder and CEO who is reimagining electrification for the marine world.  

Ben Sorkin is the founder of Flux Marine, a company building 100% electric outboard motors,  completely changing the boating experience.

The Tesla of boats, if you will.

Today, we’re talking to Ben about the problems with traditional boating, electrification as a solution, and what this could mean for the future of energy and our environment. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

Intermittency. 

It’s a fancy word for describing this unique circumstance in renewable energy where the wind does not always blow and the sun does not always shine. 

It’s a major problem in the economics of clean energy, spurring a host of competitive, innovative solutions each year. 

How could power companies hedge the uncertainty of weather against a backdrop of shifting price and demand?

Today, we’re talking to a trailblazer in the renewable energy market about investing in renewables and managing risk. 

Lee Taylor is the founder and CEO of REsurety, a risk management and information services company that operates at the intersection of financial technology, clean energy, and big data. 

Since founding REsurety in 2012 to commercialize research he conducted at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business, REsurety has amassed contracts supporting nearly 7,000 MW of renewable energy generation capacity and counts many of the world's largest and most sophisticated companies as clients and partners.

Recently, REsurety released its Locational Marginal Emissions (LME) carbon data tool to help measure and maximize the carbon impact of clean energy projects. Stay tuned to learn more about it in this episode. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

Bitcoin’s energy consumption is a feature, not a bug. 

(This is what I testified before Congress in January 2022 when I had the opportunity to make the case for crypto mining as a catalyst for renewable energy development) 

There’s an existing view that Bitcoin is a dirty coin and it’s not sustainable. 

Recently, in the early spring of 2022, there has been even more traction to ban the Bitcoin protocol-Proof of Work- to a theoretically eco-friendly protocol, Proof-of-Stake.

Well, the team at Soluna isn’t the only one here to tell you that this view is wrong. 

The case for Bitcoin mining as a catalyst for renewable energy development is one we’ll continue to make in this episode. 

Here to talk with us is Senior Policy Manager at the Blockchain Association, Lindsey Kelleher.

The Blockchain Association is a “member-led, member-driven organization dedicated to improving the public policy environments for crypto networks.” Prior to joining the Blockchain Association, Lindsey worked with Teach for America in Oakland. 

LEARN more about Soluna by visiting our website.

WATCH our latest updates and insights on YouTube.

FOLLOW us on Twitter and LinkedIn to continue the conversation.

SUBSCRIBE to our weekly newsletter.

Lindsey and I will discuss the ongoing policy debate around cryptocurrency mining; the role that her organization is playing in that landscape; and the future of blockchain and crypto in the renewable energy space. 

Recently, I talked about How Clean Energy Can Further the Mass Adoption of Crypto with Blockworks. 

I explained that Bitcoin is not just a store of value, but a catalyst for renewable energy development and an immediate solution to some of the toughest problems facing the economics of clean energy. 

By using the momentum of renewable energy development and attaching mining technology to clean infrastructure, Bitcoin and crypto mining at large can demonstrate its larger positive impact on worldwide adoption.

So, I am very energized to be speaking with Rene Ramirez, the founder of Fino Advisors LLC. Through Fino, Rene has worked on a variety of projects involving the North American power markets, including renewable  energy, and  infrastructure projects.

Together, we discuss institutional capital in crypto mining, using crypto as a "monetary battery," and we speculate on the future of the renewable energy market. 

>>>

If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Building the Future of Computing: Soluna's Modular Data Centers on our blog! 

Connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter @SolunaHoldings

Subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when our next episode drops. 

To learn more about Soluna, please visit solunacomputing.com

Soluna has recently secured $35 million in project financing to continue our mission of developing green data centers co-located with renewable energy assets.

We’re honored to have a pioneering sustainability project finance firm–Spring Lane Capital–back our model of leveraging excess clean energy to generate low-cost computing. 

We share a conviction that this is the future of green bitcoin mining and green data centers. 

In this episode, we talk to Rob Day, Co-Founder and Partner at Spring Lane Capital. 

Spring Lane Capital is a private equity firm focused on investments for sustainable solutions in the energy, water, food, and waste sectors. Their investment in our data center projects is a part of their strategy focused on hybrid project capital for sustainability solutions in the energy industry. 

Prior to co-founding Spring Lane Capital, Rob was a Partner at Black Coral Capital, a cleantech investing firm, and Principal at several cleantech VC firms. Rob brings his expertise from two decades of investing in energy tech.

This episode will be a bit different. 

Melissa Baldwin, the Senior Vice President of Tigercomm, which is Soluna’s public relations agency of record, will be hosting today’s conversation between Soluna Computing CEO John Belizaire and Rob as we dive into the details of this project financing deal, what it means for Soluna’s development, and what it represents for the future of clean computing.

>>>

If you enjoyed this conversation and want to read more on this subject, check out Building the Future of Computing: Soluna's Modular Data Centers on our blog! 

Connect with us on LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter @SolunaHoldings

Subscribe to our newsletter to be the first to know when our next episode drops. 

To learn more about Soluna, please visit solunacomputing.com