Redefining Energy

Dr Alex O’Cinneide, Founder and CEO of Gore Street Capital, discusses the growth and evolution of the energy storage industry, the value of location and battery configuration, revenue opportunities and volatility in the industry, and the importance of optimizing revenue.

The fate of the French nuclear fleet is critical to Europe's power market and security of supply. The history and challenges of the French nuclear industry are examined, including EDF's financial issues. The podcast explores the challenges faced by nuclear energy in a renewables-driven world and the role of French nuclear energy in Europe. It also discusses EDF's issues with innovation and accurately predicting power production.

Dr. Carolin Funk, Partner at Blue Bear Capital, shares insights on top trends in Climate Tech. Topics discussed include investment strategies, growth potential in transportation and electricity sectors, differences between investing in Asia, Europe, and the US, and the value of a focused approach in the climate industry.

The podcast discusses the challenges faced by the wind industry, including financial struggles and the decoupling of wind trends from solar and battery. The hosts explore the evolution and challenges of the wind energy industry, focusing on turbine manufacturers and the progress of Chinese turbine manufacturing. They also discuss the past 20 years of the wind industry, highlighting the challenges of finding good wind sites and the emergence of Chinese competitors.

The smaller the grid, the higher the price. Islands have been plagued forever by a higher price of power. This is an inherent consequence of their small scale. Add on the top some natural catastrophes, and you end up with a poor and costly service for consumers.The good news is that there is a new generation of Utility managers which has started to tackle the problem. Of course, results are unperfect, as for one Hawaii there is one Puerto Rico. It is not just about money; it is about changing the culture and the rapid adoption of new technologies.To illustrate what can be done at reasonable budgets, we have invited Steve Berberich, CEO of Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS). After running the California ISO for a decade, he has opted for a new challenge rather than enjoy a well-deserved retirement. Jamaica’s energy system is highly dependent on high cost imported fossil fuels; petroleum imports account for over 80 percent of electricity production. Furthermore, electricity theft is a massive problem. Finally, Jamaica is always at the mercy of a devastating hurricanes.Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS) is a privately held integrated electric utility company and the sole distributor of electricity in Jamaica. The Company is engaged in the generation, transmission, and distribution of electricity, and also purchases power from a number of Independent Power Producers (IPPs). The change of attitude is to present this stable island of 3m as a perfect testing ground for all possible technological innovations. JPS invites all innovations to be rolled out in Jamaica, which then can leapfrog some legacy part of the industry. ------This Episode partners with Bruce Douglas’ Global Renewables Alliance Let’s triple renewables in the next ten years.https://globalrenewablesalliance.org/ -----The Episode is sponsored by PV CASE. PV CASE is the ultimate design software for solar PV developers from the earliest stages of planning all the way to the procurement phase. https://pvcase.com/RedefiningEnergy************* Finally, Laurent and Gerard would like to thank all our listeners as we have reached 1,000,000 downloads across all our shows. The main show will likely pass that bar in November. We will celebrate big time.

Revolutionary technologies have improved the tracking of methane leaks, led by companies like Kairos Aerospace. The podcast discusses the need for accurate measurement methods and the responsibility of buyers in sourcing clean gas. The future of methane emissions depends on regulations and technology, while challenges in various countries persist. Economic considerations and improving gas production and exports are also explored.

Geothermal has been around for decades and always considered part of the Energy Transition. Unfortunately, its development has been limited to very specific geographical location (US West Coast, Iceland, Japan, Philippines, Indonesia), basically the Ring of Fire. Those historical techniques, called “hydrothermal” have proven quite niche and, in the US, only represented 4GW of capacity or less than 0.32% of the global fleet.We believe the whole sector is on the cusp of an exponential growth, as new drilling techniques are now arriving at maturity. “Advanced geothermal”, based on the Oil & Gas expertise in fracking and horizontal drilling can be installed pretty much everywhere. It aims to provide much-needed 24/7 clean electricity and heat at competitive costs and small footprint. The recent successes of a start up called Fervo Energy have been very publicized.There are also space-age new technologies like plasma and loop. Such a great universe of possibility.Our guest, Cindy Taff is a seasoned geothermal developer who leads a startup called Sage Geosystems. Sage is a Houston-based technology company focused on energy storage and geothermal solutions for a sustainable energy future. Their long-duration energy storage solutions are ready to scale now at a cost that beats pumped hydropower storage and lithium-ion batteries. Prior Sage, Cindy had a 35-year career in the O&G industry, most recently as VP of Shell's global Unconventional Wells operations where she led a team of over 350 Shell staff and 1,200 contractors across five countries.Alongside Wind and Solar, Geothermal was the missing piece to recreate Earth, Wind and Fire, the holy trinity of renewables. But it’s all going to change from now on. ----------The podcast is powered by Axpo. We feel better with Axpo.

The podcast discusses the rise of carbon offsets, its similarities to the crypto market, and the controversies surrounding the carbon credit system. They explore the criteria for distinguishing good and useless credits, the impact of technology on carbon emissions, and the future of carbon markets. The speakers also debate rainforest destruction and the role of the Guardian in criticizing carbon markets.

As the growth of the EV market and Energy Storage continues unabated, we wanted to know what the current State of Play in the Battery industry is.In 2023, China dominates the Li_Ion battery market and its main companies, BYD and CATL are – alongside Tesla – blazing the trail of new technologies and performances. Are there options beyond Lithium? How much progress have the battery technologies recently made? Where is the path forward for all the announced chemistries? Is vertical integration a real trend? Can the US and EU catch up?We discuss with Cormac O’Laoire, Managing Director at Electrios Energy, a Hong-Kong based expert; it becomes obvious that China and the rest of the world are on the cusp on diverging, adopting different technological pathways in term of Battery Chemistry. We talk about LFP/LMFP – Lithium Ferro Phosphate / Lithium Manganese Ferro Phosphate vs NMC – Nickel Manganese Cobalt. We talk about Sodium-Ion, Solid State… We talk prices. We try to foresee what will stay and what will go.A fascinating deep dive with one of the world’s most recognised expert on battery supply chain. Who will win, who will catch-up, who will lose. We see clearer after this thorough conversation with Cormac. ----We thank our long tem partner Aquila Capital whithout whom this show wouldn't probably exist.

Live from Brussels, on the 20th of June 2023, we were invited to interview Leonard Birnbaum. Since he came last on the show (Ep50), the whole Energy Sector has been through hell with Russia invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent near-death experience of 2022. Leonard Birnbaum is the CEO of the giant German Utility E.ON and also president of Eurelectric, the sector association which represents the common interests of the electricity industry at pan-European level.We have a very lively debate about how E.ON survived the energy crisis. What changes he had to be undertaken, how luck played its part, but also the “need for speed”. Other key lessons were the end of tolerance for weaknesses, the acceleration of digitisation and total engagement with their customers. We then moved the conversation to the proposed reform of the Energy Market that regulators are keen to put in place. Is it too little too late or, on the opposite, a solution in search of a problem. In its manifesto, Eurelectric wants to focus in the coming years on three priorities:Security of supplyStronger & more digitised infrastructureFairness of the distribution of risks & benefits between the stakeholdersLeo advocates for flexibility mechanisms rather than capacity mechanisms and support full traceability via 24/7 green certificates. Finally, when you add the electrification of transport, the key word is Flexibility, as the electrification can either be fast or global, but cannot be both at the same time. Compromises will have to be made.A great thanks to Kristian Ruby, Bruce Douglas and Emily O'Leary for making this moment possible.---This podcast is powered by Axpo an international leader in providing sustainable energy solutions for the future. In the Nordics, Axpo has been a pioneer within Trading and Origination services for the last 20 years.