Thomas Folker, CEO of Leap Energy | The One-Stop Shop for Grid Services Ep.76

Thomas Folker describes Leap as the Stripe for energy. The same way that Stripe provides the infrastructure for online payment processing, Leap allows anyone with energy resources (battery or EV companies, for example) to connect to the grid and trade energy as if they were a power plant.In other words, Leap is a one-stop shop for grid services.Thomas is the Cofounder and CEO of Leap Energy, a virtual power plant that connects EV, solar storage, battery and smart thermostat companies to the grid. To date, Leap serves customers in California, Texas and New York, with plans to expand and decarbonize electric grids across the US and internationally. On this episode of Clean Power Hour, Thomas joins Tim to share his  background building wind farms in the Netherlands and explain how he realized the value in selling grid services to utilities.Thomas walks us through the concepts of demand response and demand flexibility, describing what differentiates Leap from traditional DRMS.Listen in for Thomas’ insight around the legislation that allows virtual power plants like Leap to exist and learn what Leap can do to make global energy markets accessible to you.Key TakeawaysHow Thomas developed an interest in renewable energy and grid servicesWhy the Dutch were early adopters of wind technology and what inspired Thomas’ move to the USHow Thomas realized the value in selling grid services to utilitiesHow Leap functions as a virtual power plant to connect EV, solar storage, battery and smart thermostat companies to the gridLeap’s ideal customer and how the company makes moneyThe concepts of demand response and demand flexibilityWhat differentiates Leap from traditional demand response aggregators (DRMS)The 3 markets where Leap is active now and Thomas’ plans to expand to all relevant US marketsThe legislation in the US that allows virtual power plants like Leap to existHow Thomas navigates friction with utility companies (e.g.: the net metering fight in CA)Connect with ThomasLeap Energy Leap on TwitterLeap on LinkedInConnect with Tim  Clean Power Hour  Clean Power Hour on YouTubeTim on TwitterTim on LinkedIn Email [email protected] Review Clean Power Hour on Apple PodcastsResourcesEnphase California Independent System Operatorev.energyEV ConnectStemSunnovaSunrunGridPointEnergyHubResideoFederal Energy Regulatory CommissionElectric Reliability Council of TexasSponsorClean Power Consulting Group Support the showConnect with Tim  Clean Power Hour  Clean Power Hour on YouTubeTim on TwitterTim on LinkedIn Email [email protected] Review Clean Power Hour on Apple PodcastsThe Clean Power Hour is produced by the Clean Power Consulting Group and created by Tim Montague. Contact us by email:  [email protected] sponsors who share our mission to speed the energy transition are invited to check out https://www.cleanpowerhour.com/support/The Clean Power Hour is brought to you by CPS America, maker of North America’s number one 3-phase string inverter, with over 6GW shipped in the US. With a focus on commercial and utility-scale solar and energy storage, the company partners with customers to provide unparalleled performance and service. The CPS America product lineup includes 3-phase string inverters from 25kW to 275kW, exceptional data communication and controls, and energy storage solutions designed for seamless integration with CPS America systems.  Learn more at www.chintpowersystems.com