Cost-effective management of a large and distributed C&I solar portfolio is very challenging given the constant downward pricing pressure on solar O&M costs and the high cost of a truck roll. How can a solar owner/operator manage and optimize the performance of their assets cost effectively? Automation and event management is the key.
Speaker
Steve Hanawalt
Mr. Hanawalt has been active in the energy industry since engineering school. His power plant operations and management experience includes start-up engineering, performance engineering, operations management, and asset optimization. Steve joined Calpine Corporation in 1999 to develop a new business unit, Plant Optimization, for a large merchant power company with a fleet of over 25,000 MW. The Plant Optimization Group was responsible for optimizing the thermal and economic performance of Calpine’s combined cycle power plants.
In 2007 he joined SunPower Corporation as Global Vice President of O&M where he had responsibility for commissioning and managing the largest fleet of solar PV power plants in the world. In 2013 he and two partners founded Power Factors LLC to provide independent operations center services to solar power owners and operators. In 2016 Power Factors was acquired by MaxGen Energy Services. Steve received his BSME from the University of California, Berkeley.