Insights in asset management. In this exclusive interview, Joe Kastner, a renewable energy industry veteran with over two decades of experience supporting portfolios, shares critical insights on what separates successful project owners from those who struggle, especially as portfolios scale. 

You’ve worked with a wide range of project owners across all phases of the asset lifecycle. As portfolios grow, what are the most important lessons you’ve learned about setting projects up for long-term success? 

Success at scale doesn’t come from doing more – it comes from doing the right things earlier. As portfolios grow, so do the number of systems, contracts, stakeholders, and risks that need to be managed. We’ve seen time and again that the owners who succeed long-term are the ones who take operations seriously from the beginning. That means realistic models (financial and technical), disciplined OPEX planning, centralized data systems, and a business assessment of internal priorities to determine what to insource vs outsource. It is critical to embed operational readiness into your early development process, not bolt it on later. Whether you’re just stepping into long-term ownership or managing a multi-gigawatt fleet, the goal is the same – build a foundation that can actually scale. 

What patterns have you seen separating the most successful project owners from those who struggle, especially as portfolios scale? 

Two of the biggest differentiators are realistic operating budgets and accurate performance models. We see organizations struggle because they don’t budget adequately for asset management or allocate sufficient funds for O&M. Properly structured equipment warranties and guarantees can help, but do not cover everything. We are also well past the day when falling replacement costs could overcome a hardening of insurance markets. 

The most successful project owners are those who’ve thought carefully about what it takes to operate their assets over the useful life. They understand the importance of proactive, centralized data management and build operational discipline during development. This theme of early-stage discipline ties directly to project success. 

Common mistakes include reactive asset management, siloed systems, and a lack of data validation. When it comes to performance models, we see a significant portion of underperformance stemming from poor modeling. Prudent modeling includes sub-hourly calculations, multiple years of ground-source meteorological data, plus statistical review of the correlated history (rather than pure reliance on typical modeling year). For many projects, stress testing curtailment assumptions also makes sense. And this should be done before digging into basis and market pricing. It is also important to get real quotes for keeping OPEX costs fresh. Many projects traded during frothy times had overly optimistic assumptions in order to make a deal, this means overly optimistic assumptions sill persist in portions of the operating fleet. 

What’s the number one thing owners can do to improve their operations? 

Focus on what you’re good at – you can’t do everything. Development, finance and construction are hard; adding day-to-day operations on top of that is even harder. 

Owners need to focus on what’s most valuable to their organization, which is usually relationships like those with capital, offtake, key equipment vendors, and landowners. It’s typically not as valuable for them to focus on daily asset management tasks like bookkeeping, actively monitoring sites, or tracking every compliance requirement, but these things still need to get done. 

Having a reputable third-party asset management team focus on the day-to-day can free up owners to scale and build value across their portfolio. Many capital providers today realize the potential of matching the expertise of quality developers with the focus of thirty-party asset management as a means for a better end-result. 

What are some of the most overlooked risks in renewable project operations? 

In the US, extreme weather had been historically overlooked with much of the early development occurring in the West. As development moved east, this has had a tremendous impact, resulting in significant insurance claims and now rising insurance costs. Several large hail events in Texas have been the most consequential and have catalyzed several industry leaders to focus on best practices for design and active operational mitigation. 

Revenue structures have also become more diverse and complex. PPAs are evolving, and owners need dynamic O&M contracts that better align with value. When a storage project has the potential to make its entire return over a few days during a winter storm or heat wave, availability of O&M becomes much more consequential. 

What does ‘mature’ asset management look like, and how do owners know when to move beyond spreadsheets? 

It’s always time to move beyond spreadsheets. To be efficient, you need accessible quality data for all stakeholders. Mature asset management requires transparency, accountability, and repeatability – things Excel simply can’t deliver at scale. 

Having centralized data enables scaling that spreadsheets can’t handle. If you have a faulty inverter issue across multiple projects, a software platform makes it easy to address fleet wide. This shared knowledge across your entire fleet is powerful and impossible without a central platform. You also can examine any project’s complete ticket history, determine root causes, understand resolution patterns, and identify financial trends. This granular visibility enables prioritized repairs and optimized operations. 

Asset managers need to add value beyond administrative support. This lies in the breadth and depth of issues they’ve encountered and resolved. 

You will know it is time to upgrade your asset management system if you are missing deadlines, have financial leakage, failing audits, facing difficulty scaling and managing multiple counterparties, or struggling with compliance. If you spend more time creating reports than leveraging the data they provide, you need to upgrade your system. Technology is an enabler, but not always the solution – processes and people must evolve together. Without this foundation, it’s difficult to respond effectively to risks, or even track them in the first place. 

How are, or should, owners manage their data to improve business? 

Unfortunately, most organizations don’t have a good handle on their data. Without organized data, it’s nearly impossible to leverage information to improve future projects. The most critical data includes real-time operational information and budgeting data. 

A good asset manager with quality data can catch issues O&Ms miss, enabling quick or slow resolution based on performance indicators. These decisions can significantly impact the bottom line. Using a proper data management platform helps to make informed decisions. 

With industry turnover being common, software platforms also improve business continuity. Anyone with access can step into a portfolio and immediately see all assigned tasks, deadlines, and background information. 

Data isn’t just critical for operational efficiency – it’s also foundational for compliance. As regulatory requirements evolve, especially around NERC’s new Category 2 registrations, owners need clear visibility into their assets and systems to demonstrate readiness and avoid costly gaps. 

NERC’s new Category 2 GO and GOP registration requirements have brought attention to previously unregistered assets. What should project owners be doing now? 

Compliance and security are critical for the renewable industry’s credibility. Having a considerable number of projects going offline at the wrong time could have an impact on the whole industry. 

This starts with having a culture of compliance. Waiting until the last moment to register a Category 2 generator will not spur confidence with the regulators. Owners must determine their compliance readiness now, not later. Out-of-compliance projects risk shutdown. At the end of the day, all renewable organizations need to be good grid citizens, or we risk being seen as unreliable. The challenge comes back to budget and Cat 2 registrations were never a line item, but you can’t grandfather in old power generators and risk reliability. The recent outage on the Iberian Peninsula will further put a spotlight on inverter-based resources regardless of where the root cause lands. 

What final advice would you give to owners who want to stay ahead of the curve and build more resilient, better-performing renewable energy portfolios in today’s environment? 

The most successful renewable energy owners prioritize operational excellence from day one. This means building realistic financial models, prioritizing quality data, aligning contracts with market realities, and treating compliance and cybersecurity as core value drivers. 

While there’s no single playbook for success, the most consistent wins come from three key strategies: standardizing operations through unified platforms across your fleet, leveraging solid expertise to optimize operations and budgeting, and using technology to maintain effective portfolio management. This approach allows owners to focus on their core strength – maximizing portfolio value.  

Joe Kastner 

radiangen.com 

Joe Kastner is CEO at Radian Generation, a global provider of comprehensive services and products designed specifically to support the complete lifecycle of renewable facilities.