Episode Details

Episode Summary:

In this episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy Thanjan is joined by co-host and clean energy advocate Nate Jovanelly, CEO of Sunraise Capital. Together, they dive into the evolving dynamics of the residential solar market and why now is a pivotal time for homeowners and investors alike.

The discussion explores how increasing electricity rates are fueling a greater need for residential solar adoption, the current lag in solar penetration across the U.S., and how solar tax credits can be a game-changing financial strategy for investors.

💡 Key Topics Covered:

The macroeconomic impact of rising electricity rates on solar demand

Why solar penetration remains lower than expected in key residential markets

How Sunraise Capital is helping homeowners reduce their bills and carbon footprint

The role of federal tax incentives and how investors can use solar tax credits to reduce tax liability

Insights into Sunraise Capital’s mission: democratizing access to clean, affordable energy

Barriers to adoption and what it will take to unlock residential solar growth

💬 Notable Quotes:

🗣️ “We’re seeing a tipping point—where solar isn’t just a nice-to-have, it’s a financial necessity for homeowners.” – Nate Jovanelly

🗣️ “Tax equity is a huge opportunity not just for institutions, but for high-net-worth individuals who want to support the clean energy transition.” – Benoy Thanjan

Benoy Thanjan

Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy and he is also an advisor for several solar startup companies.  He has extensive project origination, development, and financial experience in the renewable energy industry and in the environmental commodities market.  

This includes initial site evaluation, permitting, financing, sourcing equipment, and negotiating the long-term energy and environmental commodities off-take agreements. He manages due diligence processes on land, permitting, and utility interconnection and is in charge of financing
and structuring through Note to Proceed (“NTP”) to Commercial Operation Date (“COD”). Benoy composes teams suitable for all project development and construction tasks. He is also involved in project planning and pipeline financial modeling. He has been part of all sides of the
transaction and this allows him to provide unique perspectives and value.

Benoy has extensive experience in financial engineering to make solar projects profitable.

Before founding Reneu Energy, he was the SREC Trader in the Project Finance Group for SolarCity which merged with Tesla in 2016.  He originated SREC trades with buyers and co-developed their SREC monetization and hedging strategy with the senior management of SolarCity to move into the east coast markets. 

Benoy was the Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners which is a national solar installer where he focused on project finance solutions for commercial scale solar projects.  He also worked for Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund, where he analyzed potential investments in renewable energy projects and worked on maximizing the financial return of the projects in the portfolio.  Benoy also worked on the sale of all of the renewable energy projects in Ridgewood’s portfolio.  

 He was in the Energy Structured Finance practice for Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services practice at Ernst & Young.  Benoy received his first experience in Finance as an intern at D.E. Shaw & Co., which is a global investment firm with 37 billion dollars in investment capital. He has a MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a BS in Finance and Economics from the Stern School of Business at New York University.  Benoy was an Alumni Scholar at the Stern School of Business.  

Nathan Jovanelly

Nate is the CEO and Founder of SunRaise Capital’s mission is to provide aff