Why The Grid’s Not Ready for Renewables - And What ABB Is Doing About It

How do you bridge the gap between fast-moving renewables and slow-moving utilities? Brian Nelson has spent the last two decades doing exactly that—from building house-sized transformers to now leading ABB’s renewables segment. At ACP 2025, he sat down with Nico to pull back the curtain on how utilities think, why they’re cautious, and what it really takes to bring innovation to the grid. In this episode, you’ll hear why Brian believes in the future of smart substations, 2,000-volt switches, and solid-state breakers—all designed to meet utilities where they are while pushing the envelope of what’s possible. Expect to learn: 🔹 Why utilities are risk-averse—and how that impacts tech adoption 🔹 How ABB is accelerating virtual power plants and grid-scale DC systems 🔹 The surprising bottlenecks holding back renewable deployment 🔹 What "local-for-local" manufacturing means post-IRA Whether you’re frustrated by permitting delays or excited by the future of DC microgrids, this one’s a must-listen. If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/. Our Platinum Presenting Sponsor for SunCast is CPS America! SunCast is proudly supported by Trina Solar. You can learn more about all the sponsors who help make this show free for you at www.mysuncast.com/sponsors. Remember, you can always find resources, learn more about today’s guest and explore recommendations, book links, and more than 730 other founder stories and startup advice at www.mysuncast.com. Subscribe to Valence, our weekly LinkedIn Newsletter, and learn the elements of compelling storytelling: https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/valence-content-that-connects-7145928995363049472/ You can connect with me, Nico Johnson, on: Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/nicomeo LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickalus