Energy Gang
Wood Mackenzie
Covering breaking news in clean tech, going deep on global energy policy, and debating the levers that need to move to accelerate the energy transition. Energy Gang is the podcast covering clean energy technology, renewable energy, and the environment. The world of clean energy moves fast, and you need a reliable source to stay on top of the news that matters. You’ll find it on Wood Mackenzie’s Energy Gang.How will changes to the US government affect decarbonisation and energy security? When will hydrogen, nuclear and carbon capture deploy at scale? Where’s the money for the energy transition green finance coming from and how much more is needed? What’s the outlook for EVs? What are the energy predictions for solar energy? What's the latest on climate change?Get answers to questions like these, bi-weekly on Tuesdays at 7am ET. Plus, get special live episodes recorded at the biggest climate and energy events throughout the year, like COP30 and Climate Week NYC. Don’t worry if you can’t make it in person, Energy Gang brings you all the updates on energy policy, energy finance and energy innovation you need to hear.Energy Gang is presented by Wood Mackenzie and hosted by Ed Crooks, Vice-Chairman of Energy at Wood Mackenzie and a former Financial Times and BBC News journalist. Regular guests are Amy Myers-Jaffe (Director of NYU’s Energy, Climate Justice and Sustainability Lab), and Dr Melissa Lott (Partner at Microsoft) – plus a roster of industry leaders and policy influencers, like Jigar Shah (Industry figurehead and former director of the Loan Programs Office in the US Department of Energy), Caroline Golin (Head of North America, Global Energy Market Development and Policy at Google) and Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt (Former Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources).If you like The Energy Transition Show, Catalyst with Shayle Kann, The Big Switch from Columbia University, Open Circuit with Stephen Lacey or The Green Blueprint, you’ll enjoy Energy Gang.Want to get involved with the show? Reach out to podcasts@woodmac.com to:Bring Energy Gang to your eventBe a guest on the showSponsor an episodeAsk a question to Ed Crooks or one of our guestsCheck out another leading clean tech global podcast by Wood Mackenzie, Interchange Recharged: https://www.woodmac.com/podcasts/the-interchange-recharged/Wood Mackenzie is the leading global data and analytics solutions provider for renewables, energy and natural resources. Learn more about Wood Mackenzie on the official website: https://www.woodmac.com/
Episodes
Mentioned books
Sep 14, 2021 • 55min
Power After Carbon
The electric grid is a central pillar of a zero-carbon economy. But in an era of unrelenting weather extremes, it’s also one of the most fragile.This week: what does power after carbon look like?Katherine and Stephen are joined by Dr. Peter Fox-Penner, author of a new book called, “Power After Carbon.”Peter is the founder of the Boston University Institute of Sustainable Energy. And he’s a partner and chief strategy officer at the VC firm Energy Impact Partners. At the turn of the last decade, Peter wrote a book called “Smart Power” that looked at the new pressures that utilities were facing around climate policy, emerging distributed energy, and digitization. We’ll look at what’s changed the most over the last decade.Plus, we’ll talk about why Entergy’s resistance to distributed energy in Louisiana created vulnerabilities after Hurricane Ida.The Energy Gang is a Wood Mackenzie podcast.The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 27, 2021 • 1h 10min
Why This IPCC Climate Report Is Different
The world’s most scrutinized and peer-reviewed document is out: the IPCC report on climate change. Thousands of scientists have spent decades pouring over every measurement and research report known. The findings are clearer than ever: It is “virtually certain” that the increases in extreme temperatures and droughts are caused by human activity. The economic and human toll from climate change is here. So how is this report different from previous IPCC reports?Plus, is the push for hydrogen a real pathway, or a clever way to lock in more emissions? We’ll look at the debate over “blue” hydrogen emissions.And, how far have the politics of climate really shifted in Washington? Will a change in tone mean a boost in action?Katherine Hamilton, Ed Crooks, and Stephen Lacey are this week’s co-hosts. The Energy Gang is a Wood Mackenzie podcast.The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 18, 2021 • 51min
Form Energy's Iron-Air Battery for Multi-Day Storage
This episode originally aired on The Interchange.Back in 2016, Mateo Jaramillo left Tesla, where he was leading the stationary energy storage business, and started looking for a new challenge to tackle. He took on long-duration energy storage -- not long duration like 8 hours or 12 hours, but days or weeks or more. In 2017 he came on the show to talk about it. He formed a company, now Form Energy, that has been toiling on this problem in stealth mode. Apart from saying they were building a "metal air" battery, his team held the technology close to the vest.That is, until last week. The company announced a $200M Series D financing led by ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steelmaker, and in the process finally made public the technology, which is an iron air chemistry. Full disclosure: Shayle led Energy Impact Partners’ investment in Form.Shayle and Mateo discuss the technology itself and the counterintuitive economics that Mateo believes will make it work. They also examine how it beat out the alternatives and how it might complement more efficient, but more expensive lithium-ion. It turns out financial modeling was far more important than spec sheets in understanding the tradeoffs.They tackle the critical question: Where exactly are the profitable applications of this technology before we hit very high 80% renewables? They also talk about the semantics of long-duration storage vs. multi-day storage, why Mateo hates holy grails, and potential partnerships with tofu companies.The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 10, 2021 • 1h
As Profits Rise, Oil Majors Face New Pressures
We started the Covid pandemic at negative oil prices. Today, benchmark prices are above $70. And top oil companies are reporting billions of dollars in profits.And now there is more scrutiny than ever on how they’re going to spend that money.Activist shareholders are starting to get climate champions on oil major board seats -- most notably, climate tech investor and former wind executive Andy Karsner on Exxon Mobil’s board.A dutch court is now forcing Shell to reduce the emissions from its products by 45%, after a successful lawsuit from environmental groups. Oil executives now have their lawyers on speed dial.And big asset managers, like BlackRock, which lend to many of the world’s energy giants, are scrutinizing their climate plans. So what does it all amount to as oil markets rebound?Ed Crooks, the vice chair of Americas at Wood Mackenzie, joins us this week to discuss.Plus, we’ll talk about a new report card on America’s infrastructure. It’s a slight improvement, but the grade is still pretty awful. And, carbon offsets are going up in flames. Literally. What comes next for forestry offsets?The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 10, 2021 • 16min
A New Inflection Point for Clean Energy [Special Content]
We're at a new phase of the clean energy transition. Extreme heat, drought and floods are increasing in frequency. Public attention on clean energy is stronger than ever. The Biden Administration is putting zero-carbon energy at the core of its policies.And there's another powerful force: making sure the energy transition is as racially and economically just as possible.Anton Cohen is a partner at CohnReznick LLP, and national director of the firm’s Renewable Energy Industry Practice. He's been advising companies across a wide range of industries: tech, manufacturing, public tax credits, and energy. Today, he focuses exclusively on renewables: “All we do is renewables. Live, eat, sleep, breathe renewables.”The large investors and energy users that Anton advises are feeling the urgency.“I think it's the corporates who are pushing hard. People know what direction we're heading in. It's just a matter of how quickly we get there with the energy transition,” says Anton.Amidst all of this change in the corporate world, we have an ongoing pandemic, a lumpy economic recovery, massive cybersecurity breaches, and an infrastructure bill under consideration that could transform the clean energy economy.Anton is watching all of it. So we caught up with him for a take on how all these factors are influencing each other. This episode was produced in collaboration with the international advisory, tax and accounting firm CohnReznick LLP. Learn more about how clean energy experts and advisors like Anton, can help your organization grow.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Aug 3, 2021 • 54min
What Emerging Climate Tech Sectors Are Ready for Growth?
After 30 years of R&D and commercial proof, hundreds of billions in institutional dollars are pouring into now-conventional tech like wind, solar and batteries. But there’s a whole class of technologies that are ready to scale. And investors who are increasingly ready to back them.As we heard in our previous show, there was a record $17 billion in venture capital going into climate tech in 2020. With all this money dropping into the space, where can it have the highest impact? What are the areas where we have commercial viability, but still need significant breakthroughs?Our guest co-host this week is Nneka Uzoh Kibuule, a senior vice president at Aligned Climate Capital. She joins Stephen and Katherine to talk about the sectors where she sees the most promise.She'll also talk about the launch of GreenTech Noir, an organization that helps black professionals grow their career connections across clean energy, smart cities, transportation, infrastructure, environmental justice, and more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 21, 2021 • 55min
A New Era for Climate-Focused Venture Capital
During the height of the pandemic in 2020, venture capital poured into climate technologies at record levels. It was a happy surprise amidst a collapsing economy and years of investment stagnation. Venture investments in climate tech topped $17 billion in 2020 across more than 1,000 deals. Five years ago, it had fallen to $5.2 billion — a 30 percent decrease from a previous peak in 2011.Our guest co-host this week is Emily Kirsch, the founder and CEO of Powerhouse. She’s also the host of Watt It Takes, the entrepreneurship series about founders tackling climate change.Suddenly, it’s cool to be putting your money into the sector again. And there’s something different about today’s rise in enthusiasm. The first wave was all about the “coolness” of cleantech — thin-film solar, electric sports cars, printable batteries. It was also about proving cost curves.Kara Swisher put it bluntly in the NYT last year: the world’s first trillionaire will be a greentech entrepreneur.”Today, there’s much more technological maturity — bigger scale, bigger and better data, and more resources to tap for startups.There is also a deeper moral responsibility infused with investments. If you are running a major VC firm or a corporate venture arm, you are out of the loop if you don’t have a climate component of your portfolio. Andrew Beebe of Obvious Ventures argues we’ve entered the “climate decade” in VC.This week: climate tech isn’t just having a moment. It’s having an age, a period, a generation. Why we are at the start of a climate tech era in venture capital.The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 20, 2021 • 14min
The M&A Turf Battle Over Wind, Solar and Storage Projects [Special Content]
In March of 2020, Covid shut down economies, closed off supply chains, and sent unemployment to historic levels. No one knew what would come next for energy.Oil prices went into negative territory. Industrial electricity use plummeted. Residential demand shot up. And there were big pipelines of renewable energy projects waiting to get built.“I think we were all a little bit nervous about how COVID was going to affect all of the deal flow in the market,” says Britta von Oesen, a managing director at CohnReznick Capital.Britta is the person at the table brokering tax structures and project sales that move money into renewable energy. So did Covid destroy her ability to get deals done?“Honestly, it's gone a lot better than I would have expected,” she says. M&A activity increased. And as 2021 kicked off, the M&A deals only accelerated. Most of the top independent wind and solar developers have been scooped up by utilities, private equity firms, oil majors, or bigger corporates. And the ones that haven't been acquired may be soon. There is an intense turf battle over wind, solar and storage platforms in the US. So what is driving all this activity? In this episode, brought to you by CohnReznick Capital, we speak with Britta Von Oesen about who's doing the acquiring, who's doing the selling, and what it all means for the growth of U.S. clean energy.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jul 8, 2021 • 1h 5min
Extreme Weather Keeps Maxing Out the Grid
It’s been a very intense year for America’s power grid. Across the country, the electricity system just faced another stress-test as extreme heat taxed power plants and grid operators in the Pacific Northwest, Texas, and New York.Since 2000, outages across the U.S. have increased by 67%. Is the power system ready for tomorrow’s extreme weather -- today?Stephen and Katherine are joined by Dr. Melissa Lott, a senior research scholar and the director of research at the Center on Global Energy Policy.Plus, we’ll discuss a secret recording of an Exxon lobbyist bragging about the company’s efforts to delay climate policy. What does it tell us about the oil industry’s grip in Washington?We’ll finish with a look at a new report from Columbia University: can we use natural gas pipelines to accelerate the low-carbon transition?The Energy Gang is brought to you by Sungrow. As a leading provider of PV inverter solutions across the world, Sungrow has delivered more than 10 gigawatts of inverters to the Americas alone and 154 gigawatts in total across the globe. Email them to learn more.The Energy Gang is brought to you by S&C Electric Company. Today, non-wires alternatives such as microgrids can provide more sustainable, resilient and economical ways to deliver reliable power. S&C helps utilities and commercial customers find the best solutions to meet their energy needs. Learn more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Jun 29, 2021 • 51min
America's Transmission Challenge (Rebroadcast)
America is a place where if you can dream something — no matter how big or ambitious — you can do it. Unless you’re trying to string 700 miles of high-voltage transmission lines to bring wind power from Oklahoma to Tennessee. Our guest this week is Russell Gold, author of a new book about the saga that unfolded when wind energy pioneer Michael Skelly tried just that. The book, Superpower, is all about Skelly’s attempt to build one of the most ambitious energy infrastructure projects in recent history — and how he faced nearly every obstacle imaginable. What does Skelly’s journey tell us about America’s diminishing ability to do great things?Russell Gold is a veteran newspaper reporter who was a Pulitzer Prize finalist for his reporting on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. He wrote a book in 2014 on the rise of fracking, called The Boom. He’ll join us to talk about the reasons why Skelly’s transmission plan failed.This is a rebroadcast of a 2019 episode. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
