# Renewable Energy Policy with Ari Gerstman

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2023-05-02
- Length: 1h 20m
- Episode: 630
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/630-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman/

## Summary

Ari Gerstman, from the Department of Energy's Office of State and Community Energy Programs (SCEP), discusses the transformative impact of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, which have allocated $100 billion to shift the US energy paradigm. He explains how massive electrification, driven by EVs and heat pumps, is creating unprecedented grid load, forcing utilities to choose between expensive infrastructure upgrades and distributed energy resources like microgrids and batteries. Gerstman highlights the regulatory challenges of investor-owned utilities, the importance of energy efficiency codes, and the social equity issues surrounding flat electricity rates for low-income residents.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=0) Introduction: Ari Gerstman and the DOE's New Mission
- [3:54](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=234) Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act Funding
- [11:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=702) DOE's Shift from R&D to Deployment and State Programs
- [16:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=1015) Grid Load from EVs, Heat Pumps, and Utility Regulation
- [26:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=1578) Utility Incentives, Rate Base, and Infrastructure Costs
- [38:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=2316) Microgrids, Distributed Energy, and Peer-to-Peer Trading
- [51:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=3102) Battery Storage, Resilience, and Energy Efficiency Codes
- [59:22](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=3562) Breakdown of $100 Billion in DOE Funding
- [1:03:02](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2023-05-02-renewable-energy-policy-with-ari-gerstman#t=3782) Solar Deployment, Interconnection Queues, and Community Solar

## Topics

- [Policy, trade & tariffs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/policy-trade-and-tariffs)
- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Sustainability & circular products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sustainability-and-circularity)

## Most relevant to

established companies

## Mentioned

- Department of Energy (company)
- Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (other)
- Inflation Reduction Act (other)
- Siemens (company)
- ABB (company)
- NYSERDA (company)
- Duke Energy (company)

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- [Managing Energy At The Edge: Navigating The Modern Grid With Itron](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2024-09-05-managing-energy-at-the-edge-navigating-the-modern-grid-with-itron) (Over the Air)
- [Frontier Forum: A new playbook for clean energy growth](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2025-10-06-frontier-forum-a-new-playbook-for-clean-energy-growth) (Catalyst)
- [Navigating the electricity gauntlet](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-08-17-navigating-the-electricity-gauntlet) (Catalyst)
- [The journey to monetizing DERs](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/catalyst/2023-01-26-the-journey-to-monetizing-ders) (Catalyst)

## Citing this page

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