Freeing Energy

How Innovators Are Using Local-Scale Solar and Batteries to Disrupt the Global Energy Industry from the Outside In

By: Bill Nussey

Narrated by: David Gann

Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

The transition to clean energy is moving far too slowly. Trapped by a century of fossil fuel investments and politicians that struggle to plan beyond the next election, the “Big Grid” that powers our modern world is outdated and in dire need of an upgrade. Freeing Energy offers a new and faster path towards a clean energy future — one that is more reliable, more equitable, and cheaper.

Just like personal computers eclipsed mainframes, millions of solar rooftops and small battery systems are challenging every assumption about our century-old, centralized electric grid. These small-scale “local energy” systems are deeply disruptive because they are based on fast-moving technologies, not fuels. Driven by a new generation of innovators and genuinely competitive markets, smaller systems are faster to build, easier to finance, cleaner to operate, and they create far more jobs than large-scale projects. Bill Nussey takes listeners to mud huts in Africa, an off-grid farm in California, and a rural school in the mountains of Puerto Rico to uncover the underlying patterns of technology and the business model innovations of the local energy revolution. He shares stories and insights from some of the industry’s brightest visionaries and from leaders of the most cutting-edge startups, bringing it all together into an actionable framework to help accelerate this transition.

Freeing Energy is a deeply researched, actionable guide for anyone that cares about the future of energy — from startups, policymakers, investors, and utility leaders to the families and communities that want cleaner, cheaper energy today.

©2021 Bill Nusey (P)2021 Bill Nussey

A must ready for African transition energy business people.

I really enjoyed this book because it brought the current situation to light in practical terms. Focusing on where technology interventions and society interact and how over time this has shaped our societies. Very well researched .

Interesting, inspirational and educational!

As a fan of the Freeing Energy podcast and having a business relationship with Bill's son, Alex of Wattch.io, I bought the audio book right away. The history of the "big grid" industry with many metaphors and analogies (and one parable) comparing the invovations that society has experienced throughout history brings to life the inevitable future of how we will all have electric vehicles, not have an antiquated power grid system and will have electricity for all humans (great stories about Puerto Rico and Africa). I appreciate Bill's dedication, geekiness and enthusiam about the future of how we will get most, if not all, of our electricty in the future via renewable energy. This is a great story that everyone needs to hear to understand how we will all be living in the future. I will have to listen to it twice so that I can try and absorb all of the stats.

Fascinating review of the energy transition

I thoroughly enjoyed this book from Bill Nussey as his insights are extremely valuable for anyone new to renewable energy; however, as an entrepreneur with 16+ years of solar and energy storage experience, there were many valuable takeaways for me as I grow my business. Bill is himself an entrepreneur and has studied this sector from the perspective of other mature industries so he highlights the many opportunities for the massive growth potential of the energy transition in the coming decades. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to scale companies benefits from the massive wave of investment in renewable energy projects globally.

From Self-Reliance to a Zero Carbon Grid, Local Energy is a Huge Win!

This book is a (refreshing, optimistic, and data backed) wake up call for those hoping for and/or working to build a more resilient, democratized, sustainable energy future.

The food industry analogy in Chapter 7 should act as a warning to anyone who buys power from the “Big Grid”.

very well researched and clearly articulated

very well researched and clearly articulated. reccommend to anyone interested in learning without going way too deep.

very well researched and to the point

no nonsense, factual, building on the story and relating what counts. this book shows that we should be hopeful and if we fail, it's 100% our fault

clear concise informative

I went into this subject with some interest and previous information. I came out of this book feeling informed and empowered about what we can do individually to affect positive change without disrupting the world's economy.

Excellent information, accessibly presented

Nussey brings decades of experience in a high growth industry and several years of intense research to bear on the greatest challenge facing humanity today. In language that even the non-tech-savvy can comprehend, he explains the past, present, and future of energy and presents practical ways that anyone can get involved, regardless of location, education, or socioeconomic status. Inspiring and challenging!

A Must Listen

This is an outstanding book that lays out very simply the truths about clean energy, the existing grid and utilities, and the amazing energy revolution taking place.

Innovative and hopeful book

This book was intelligent, refreshing, and gave me hope and excitement for an equitable future.