The commercial and industrial (C&I) solar market, often called the "messy middle," has lagged behind the rapid growth of residential and utility-scale projects. Yet, with vast rooftop spaces on commercial buildings offering significant untapped potential, the opportunity to reduce our carbon footprint and optimize energy costs is more compelling than ever. But the economics of C&I solar are finally, at long last, shifting for the better. With transferable tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act and rising electricity costs,it’s never been a better time for commercial rooftop solar in America. Versiris Energy, a wholly owned subsidiary of New Energy Equity, is focused specifically on capturing market opportunity as the C&I sector takes flight.
Nick Kerwin, Senior Vice President, and Rocky Shoemaker, VP of Engineering & Construction, bring 30 years of combined solar expertise to Versiris Energy. Rocky, an electrical engineer and one of New Energy Equity’s first employees, has extensive experience managing complex C&I projects. Nick, who joined in 2021, specializes in solar finance, acquisitions, and distributed generation. Together, they lead Versiris Energy with startup agility and the backing of an established parent company, addressing the unique challenges of the C&I solar market.
Expect to learn:
Hit play to explore how a business idea inside one of the industry’s most successful developers becomes a successful standalone venture, as Rocky and Nick share their intrapreneurial journey of launching Versiris Energy.
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“It’s not just the states that are healthy for C&I solar, all of a sudden, we are pricing projects in Alabama and Indiana and South Carolina and Kentucky. I think that is really driven by the fact that rising electricity rates combined with some of these underlying IRA incentives have sort of fundamentally changed the economic outlook.”
— Nick Kerwin
“There’s just a lot of trust that was given, that our leadership has put into us. We’ve delivered on multiple facets, on difficult projects throughout our tenure. And so, I think it was our ability to critically think and solve problems. It just positioned us to spin it off and be the right choice for leading it.”
— Rocky Shoemaker
The following are Corporate Partners who have helped make SunCast possible:
The following are Corporate Partners who have helped make SunCast possible:
In my 20 year career, I've worked with dozens of entrepreneurs, intrapreneurs and professionals in transition to clarify their mission, set or stretch their goals, and work through the barriers to their growth.
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