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
Jun 2, 2017 • 27min
Trump's Paris Ruse
We all just became actors in Donald Trump’s reality TV show. After an elaborate tease over the Paris climate deal in recent weeks, the president finally revealed that he’s walking away from the historic agreement.
Soon after Trump’s speech, world leaders issued bold statements: It’s not going to happen. There is no renegotiation process. The deal is the deal.
Then local officials spoke up. It didn’t take long for dozens of U.S. mayors and governors to adopt the targets set by the climate accord.
And then the corporate fallout started. Already, Elon Musk and Disney CEO Bob Iger have quit Trump’s business advisory council. Many more executives have publicly rebuked the president.
The international and domestic consequences of this decision are still playing out. In this episode of the Energy Gang, we grapple with in the immediate aftermath of Trump’s speech.
What should we take seriously?
This episode is sponsored by KACO New Energy: kaco-newenergy.com
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 25, 2017 • 58min
California's Grid Is Facing an Existential Crisis
California released a white paper last week documenting the stunning decline of the customer base for investor-owned utilities in the state. Meanwhile, the state is facing more and more curtailments, negative electricity pricing, and, on top of it all, a looming solar eclipse. What can we learn about market design from the nation’s solar leader?
Then, getting to terawatt-scale PV. Researchers and policymakers are getting serious about thousands and thousands of gigawatts of solar in the coming decades. And they’re asking some hard questions about market design. What does the world look like under that scenario?
Finally, we'll end with a fast cycle through some of the top news stories. How worried should you be?
This week's podcast was recorded live at GTM's Solar Summit. For access to videos of all our sessions -- featuring First Solar, Sunpower, Sunshot, Google, SEIA, Sunrun and more -- sign up for GTM Squared.
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service.
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 11, 2017 • 42min
Is Tesla's Solar Roof a Good Deal?
Now that Tesla has unveiled pricing details for its solar roof, everyone is trying to figure out if it's a good deal.
Depending on what your assumptions are -- what kind of roof you're replacing, what kind of market you live in, how much in subsidies you're earning, and what kind of solar system you're competing with -- the value can vary wildly. Some say it's a surprisingly good deal. Others say it's far more expensive than Tesla claims.
In this week's podcast, we'll discuss the economic viability of the Tesla solar roof. We'll also look at growth prospects, potential barriers to adoption, and where the product might fit into Tesla's long-term solar strategy.
Then, Walmart’s Project Gigaton: A look at the mega-retailer’s new plan to slash emissions deep in its supply chain.
Finally, FERC nominees: After 4 months, we have some candidates for America’s top energy regulatory body. We’ll talk about how they could shape the country’s energy landscape over the next few years.
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service: kaco-newenergy.com
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 8, 2017 • 24min
Bringing the Smart City to Life [SPONSORED CONTENT]
In this show, sponsored by Itron, we discuss the emergence of the smart city. Itron has been at the forefront of developing smart city infrastructure. We speak with Sharelynn Moore, the VP of Marketing at Itron, about how the company is using sensors and software to make the smart city come alive.
Learn more about Itron's smart cities work: http://www.itron.com/na/industries/smart-cities
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
May 4, 2017 • 1h 2min
Tesla's Grid Storage Architect
Since the day Tesla was founded, executives saw stationary storage as a compliment to the electric car business.
That was Martin Eberhard's plan when he co-founded the company and envisioned the Tesla Energy Group. Years later, after launching the Powerwall, CEO Elon Musk said the storage business could soon eclipse automobiles. Today, storage is an integral part of Tesla's package of offerings for consumers, and its development plans for utilities.
In 2009, Mateo Jaramillo was hired to execute Tesla's storage strategy. Well, eventually.
First, he was responsible for developing the company's powertrain. Over time, he became more heavily involved in stationary storage -- eventually building Tesla's in-house storage development arm and the team that designed the Powerwall and Powerpack. He drew on his years of experience at Gaia Power Technologies, where he worked on some of the earliest behind-the-meter battery systems in New York.
Last December, Jaramillo left Tesla to focus on his next career move in storage. The LinkedIn description of his new job job reads: "The Next Thing."
This week, we caught up with Jaramillo to talk about what that "next thing" might be. We talked about the history of behind-the-meter storage, the evolution of Tesla's approach to the market, and where storage business models and applications are headed.
Thanks to our launch sponsor, AES Energy Storage. The grid is changing. Fast. And AES Energy Storage is helping utilities harness the power of battery-based energy storage to make the electric power system cleaner, more flexible, and more reliable. Find out more.
Big thanks to our launch sponsor, AES Energy Storage: http://aesenergystorage.com/interchange
Make sure to subscribe to the Interchange:
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Apr 27, 2017 • 47min
France's Presidential Election and the Future of Nuclear
To many, France’s ongoing elections are the latest showdown between the liberal world order and a new brand of right-wing populism. That narrative follows a similar path in energy.
France’s elections are pitting nuclear versus renewables, closed markets versus open, and disruption versus protectionism.
France is going through a quite radical revaluation of its electricity mix. It gets about 75 percent of its electricity from nuclear. However, in 2015, President François Holland set a policy that would phase out aging nuclear plants, and reduce nuclear generation to 50 percent by 2025. He wants to fill in the gap with more renewables and efficiency.
Now the two presidential candidates -- Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen -- are sparring over what to do with nuclear. It’s part of a broader debate over nationalizing the energy giant EDF, expanding or limiting energy trading with the E.U., and mixing variable renewables with a really high nuclear grid.
On this week's podcast: As we near the May 7 run-off election between Macron and Le Pen, we consider the future of the world’s leading nuclear energy power during a time of political volatility and electricity market transformation.
Then, are we at the start of a new solar trade war between America and the rest of the world? We'll discuss Suniva's wide-ranging trade complaint to the government.
Finally, the U.K. recently went coal-free for a day. We place its significance.
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service: http://kaco-newenergy.com/
Make sure to subscribe to our other podcast, The Interchange.
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-interchange/id1221460035?mt=2
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/theinterchangepodcast
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Apr 20, 2017 • 50min
Is Cheap Offshore Wind Coming to America?
We've heard a lot about record low prices in utility-scale solar. Get ready for more records in offshore wind. In the last two months, we've seen offshore project developers in Europe bidding for pennies per kilowatt-hour -- easily beating 2020 price estimates.
Now the Europeans want to export that learning to America. In this week's episode, we'll look at how the two markets compare -- and why some of the market and policy conditions that favor offshore wind in Europe don't exist in the U.S.
Then, Energy Secretary Rick Perry wants to know if renewable energy is a danger to America’s grid. His recent memo on energy markets was only a page and a half long, but it was packed with a lot of assumptions –- and we'll unpack them ourselves.
Finally, we'll discuss Plug Power’s deal with Amazon. It’s not just about fuel cells -- it’s about finding any cost advantage in the ultra-competitive retail sector.
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service: http://kaco-newenergy.com/
Make sure to subscribe to our other podcast, The Interchange!
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-interchange/id1221460035?mt=2
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/theinterchangepodcast
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Apr 14, 2017 • 50min
The Complexity of a Zero-Carbon Grid
What will it take to slash carbon emissions in the electric sector by 100 percent?
We're already making immense progress. And we could use wind, solar and storage to cost-effectively cut grid emissions in half. But to go from 50 percent reductions to 100 percent will take a much more diverse range of technologies. That is the conclusion of a new literature review of 30 studies, written by Jesse Jenkins and Samuel Thernstrom.
Jesse Jenkins joins us on the podcast. He’s an energy thinker, writer and a PhD candidate at MIT with an expertise in electric power system engineering.
In this week's episode of The Interchange, we define "deep decarbonization," discuss the limitations of our current pathway, and talk about the intense tribalism that feeds the debate over how to transition to a zero-carbon system.
We're re-launching the show this week publicly. Make sure to subscribe to us on SoundCloud, iTunes, Stitcher Radio or simply copy and paste our RSS feed into the podcast app of your choice.
Big thanks to our launch sponsor, AES Energy Storage:
Make sure to subscribe to the show! Links below: http://aesenergystorage.com/interchange
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-interchange/id1221460035?mt=2
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/theinterchangepodcast
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Our RSS Feed: http://feeds.soundcloud.com/users/soundcloud:users:298570872/sounds.rss
Bookmark our Interchange web page: https://www.greentechmedia.com/podcast/the-interchange
And other links from the show are below.
What we're reading: https://foresightdk.com/in-search-of-a-cure-for-cannibalisation/
Jesse Jenkins' paper on deep decarbonization: http://bit.ly/2oeRvBb
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Apr 6, 2017 • 43min
Westinghouse's Bankruptcy Threatens the Nuclear Revival
Westinghouse, of the most important players in nuclear, filed for bankruptcy protection last week. It's a potential blow to the global industry. After all, half of the world's nuclear reactors use Westinghouse technology.
The company has been working on two major nuclear power plants in Georgia and South Carolina -- both of which are now behind schedule and over budget. Will the reactors get built by the 2019 deadline?
We'll talk about what happened to the company, and consider what it means for nuclear in the U.S. and around the world.
Then, Brexit. Will the U.K. end its climate commitments now officially leaving the European Union?
Finally, a lesson in traffic control. What we can learn about driver behavior from highway crises in Georgia and Los Angeles.
Podcast PSA: We're making The Interchange podcast public! Listen to Shayle Kann and Stephen Lacey go deep on the forces guiding the global energy transformation. You can subscribe by searching for us in iTunes. Just search for "The Interchange" under podcasts.
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(And don't worry, if you're a GTM Squared member, you'll get access to all our episodes and all our transcripts.)
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service: http://kaco-newenergy.com/
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Mar 31, 2017 • 55min
Sungevity's Bankruptcy: What It Says About Residential Solar
Sungevity was founded in 2007 with a promise of revolutionize solar sales through software. It sparked a move toward the "platform" approach to customer acquisition and sales.
Sungevity eventually built up its sales, procurement and financing in-house -- peaking as the number-three residential solar company in 2014. Over the years, the company's cash-burn rate increased and Sungevity started outsourcing more of its operations. This month, after failing to close bridge financing, the company declared bankruptcy and sold off its financing platform.
Would Sungevity have survived if it had stuck simply to lead generation?
On this week's podcast, we'll look at Sungevity's struggles. We'll compare Sungevity's problems with other residential solar companies that have failed or faced challenges.
We’re joined by Nicole Litvak, a senior analyst with GTM Research’s solar team, who will provide some insight into the sustainability of the national installation and sales model.
Then, Trump’s executive order on climate change is finally here. But it’s not changing the minds of any utilities. We’ll talk about what’s in it, and discuss the difference between political optics and reality. Jigar will also share his disdain for the America versus China narrative that often frames this topic.
This podcast is sponsored by KACO New Energy, a leading solar inverter company with superior engineering and unmatched customer service: http://kaco-newenergy.com/
See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
