SolarPower Europe’s Bethany Meban on the Future of Solar: Storage, Policy, and the Net-Zero Industry Act

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On this episode of the Soliverse Podcast, Peter sits down with Bethany Meban, Head of Communications at SolarPower Europe, to unpack the forces reshaping solar in Europe—from slowing growth to massive storage opportunities, policy shifts, and what's truly driving the next wave of clean energy.

With solar forecasted to shrink for the first time in a decade, Bethany offers a brutally honest view into the EU market—plus powerful insights on how storage, smart grids, and manufacturing strategy could turn things around.

They discuss:
📉 Why Europe’s solar growth is stalling—and what’s needed to reverse it
🔋 How SolarPower Europe is doubling down on batteries and grid flexibility
🇪🇺 What the Net-Zero Industry Act means for EU solar manufacturers
🧠 Why AgriPV and water-smart solar could dominate the next decade
🛡 The growing need for cybersecure, decentralized energy systems
🌍 How Europe can partner with countries like India and Nigeria for global energy equity
🤖 What AI and energy-hungry data centers mean for grid infrastructure
🌞 Why solar is no longer “just panels”—but a full ecosystem strategy

Connect with Bethany / SolarPower Europe:
🌐 Website: https://www.solarpowereurope.org
🔗 LinkedIn – Bethany: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethany-meban

Referenced Resources:
📊 SolarPower Europe Mid-Year Market Outlook (2025) - https://www.solarpowereurope.org/insights/outlooks/eu-market-outlook-for-solar-power-2025-mid-year-analysis
📚 “Say It Well” by Terry Szuplat – Obama’s speechwriter on strategic communication
🌐 Global Gateway Initiative – EU’s international infrastructure program
🌐 https://batterieseurope.eu/

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🔗 LinkedIn – Peter: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peterpongraczsaas/
🔗 LinkedIn – Soliverse: https://www.linkedin.com/company/106534214/
🌐 soliverse.energy

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Each episode features grounded, unfiltered conversations with the people financing, developing, operating, and scaling real projects across the solar and clean energy ecosystem.

Soliverse exists to cut through noise, hype, and disconnected narratives and replace them with clarity, realism, and execution-focused insight for professionals who want to make smarter decisions, faster.

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