Spark Club Podcast

Hi and welcome to the Spark Club Podcast. Spark Club podcasts are recordings from our live events, hosted in front of a Spark Club live audience. A week later, or so, we publish the recording as a podcast recording. Since 2016 the recording of our live events has worked well. The exciting news is we are embarking on a new chapter for Spark Club. We are adding a regular podcast into this feed. If you’re like me, you may listen to five energy or more energy podcasts a week. So how is it possible there is space for another one?  We believe so. The reason is the global dynamic in the energy transition which focuses on Australia, Europe or the US, with occasional reference to China. The good news is there is indeed a clear and consistent voice on China, based here in Australia. Tim Buckley from Climate Energy Finance is a banking analyst with deep experience on the rise and rise of China in solar, wind, batteries and EVs. Tim follows the data points closely and observes trends not cutting through elsewhere.    Tim and I believe there is value in coming together each fortnight and sharing a view of the energy transition from a fresh perspective. The format is simple. We’ll start with recent highlights, then dig into the Big Story and end with a prediction or two.  The Spark Club Live events will continue, so stayed tuned for our next one. Now onto the podcast.

Hi and welcome to the Spark Club podcast. In this podcast, How PERC changed the World, we'll hear from Professor Martin Green from UNSW and how he and his team invented the PERC solar cell. PERC's global success has unlocked the lowest cost of energy in history. We’ll hear the back story from Martin and then hear what the future holds for SPREE at UNSW from Professor Renate Egan. A truly amazing story, from the humble team that developed the humble solar cell, that indeed changed the world.  Also, at the start we’ll hear from voices across our community sharing their thanks and appreciation for PERC and the impact it had on their careers and the global energy transition. Enjoy the podcast. 

In 2023 Australia and the United States have taken strong action on climate to accelerate the transition to a global clean energy economy. In May, President Biden and Prime Minister Albanese jointly declared that climate and clean energy are the third pillar of the U.S.-Australia alliance. The Australia-United States Climate, Critical Minerals and Clean Energy Transformation Compact commits our countries to expanding and diversifying clean energy and critical minerals supply chains, to drive innovation and accelerate the establishment of a global clean energy economy. In this panel we discuss the impact of the step change in the US and Australia commitment to collaborate this year and what the expected flow on consequences and opportunities which will flow from the Compact and the enormous public investment flowing into climate technology and deployment. 

It’s an exciting time in cleantech as global macro trends, decarbonisation ambitions and public investment transform the energy sector. Which is why it was a great opportunity to host David Roberts from the Volts Podcast and Saul Griffith from Rewiring America and Rewiring Australia in front of a live Spark Club audience at Fishburners in Sydney in August 2023. In this robust conversation, David and Saul discuss the politics and policy of clean energy the US and Australia and the scale of the public capital needed to unlock the tsunami of opportunity coming. Enjoy the podcast.

Danny Kennedy, a prominent figure in renewable energy and an advocate for innovative strategies, joins the discussion on transforming the transmission sector. He and Cameron Van Der Berg shed light on using drones to expedite high-voltage infrastructure upgrades. They navigate the challenges of launching operations in the U.S. while emphasizing the role of technology in a shifting energy landscape. Danny also discusses the legislative impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act and the significant momentum building for renewable energy in Australia.

In this Spark Club podcast we’ll hear how United States is turning on. I recorded interviews in the last week October at the Verge22, the largest climate tech conference in North America held in San Jose California. Climate tech bucking the investment trend and the Binden Administration unlocking an enormous amount of government funding. We’ll hear an opening address from Secretary Granholm and then have perspectives from Danny Kennedy from NewEnergyNexus, followed by Mick Liubinskas from Climate Salad. As you’ll hear, it’s an exiting time to be in the clean tech sector.

In this Spark Club podcast, recorded live at EnergyLab in June 2022, we shine a light on the Lithium Battery sector. Australian raw materials are playing a key role in this vital industry in the energy transition, but can we do more? We have an amazing panel, Danny Kennedy from New Energy Nexus, Katja Digweed from the CSIRO, Mark Chilcote CEO at Energy Renaissance and Christiaan Jordaan from Sicona and Novolith join us for this fascinating conversation on the Lithium Battery ecosystem Australia, and the potential to harness so much more in the six stages of lithium battery production.

In this election Spark Club podcast we are joined by three leading Independent candidates for the up and coming Federal election on the 21st of May 2022. Allegra Spender from Wentworth, Kylea Tink from North Sydney and Georgia Steele from Hughes join Saul Griffith and I on stage for a conversation on the key issues on energy and the opportunity the clean energy transition holds for Australia in jobs, fuel cost savings and National prosperity.

In this exciting Spark Club podcast Saul Griffith is back. He joined us live at Fishburners in Sydney to discuss his new book, The Big Switch. The energy transition is moving at a clip and so is Saul as breaks his new big idea which you’ll hear on the podcast. It was a great event and I’d like to thank Young Henrys for sponsoring the beer.

This is a particularly exciting Spark Club podcast as Danny Kennedy and Saul Griffith join us live at Fishburners to share their views on the future of the electrification of everything. We cover the big levers needed to deliver bold ambitions in reducing carbon emissions. Wartime language helps describe the urgency and scale of the challenge to electrify everything with the message of jobs, jobs, jobs.