Switched On

Today less than 20% of plastic waste is recycled. This week on Switched On we talk with Ilhan Savut and Julia Attwood about chemical recycling, a new way to recycle. Instead of simply washing and melting down plastic, chemical recycling breaks plastics down into their most basic materials. Doing this opens up the options for using recycled plastic and has the potential to save a lot more waste from the landfill or the incinerator.This episode is based on a report titled Chemical Recycling: Technologies, Costs and Capacity.BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Remember acid rain and worries about sulfur emissions from your car? Maybe. Maybe not. It was a long time ago that sulfur was regulated out of the gas you put in your car. Well those concerns are front-of-mind for the global shipping industry, which still relies heavily on high-sulfur fuel to move goods across the seas. On January 1, new regulations come into play that drastically reduce the amount of sulfur oxide ships can emit. This week on Switched On we talk with Richard Chatterton, who leads oil market analysis for BloombergNEF, about how shippers will meet the new standards, what the regulations could do for refiners, and what it all means for the rest of us.This episode is based on a report series titled IMO 2020 Monthly. BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In solar’s early days, getting electrons from solar panel to power grid was as much a financial as a technical challenge. Photovoltaic power cost more than conventional grid power, and so deploying it required government subsidy of some kind. Those subsidies could create a booming market, and gloom thereafter when subsidies expired. However, with more than a decade of decreasing costs and increasing efficiency, solar is now not just cheap enough to be viable - it is often cheaper than any other source of power in a given market. This competitive position is driving a boom in Spain, Portugal, and Italy. This week on Switched On we talk with Pietro Radoia about this coming-of-age for solar, and the challenges this boom brings.This episode is based on a report titled Europe’s Subsidy-Free PV Market Takes Off.BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We use cobalt every day. It's in the lithium-ion batteries in our phones, and in the growing fleet of electric vehicles out on the road. But chances are more than good that at least some of the cobalt in your phone or EV is not ethically sourced. This week on Switched On, we talk with Kwasi Ampofo, a BloombergNEF analyst focused on metals and mining, about his recent travels in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. We'll hear about what he observed in the cobalt mines there, and what companies are doing to ensure ethical sourcing of this critical metal.This episode is based on a report titled Solving the ‘Blood Cobalt’ Challenge for EVs.BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Asia has the biggest share of everything -- area, population, economic growth, and now, carbon dioxide emissions. Can Asia keep its pace of development while reducing CO2, or does it have to go dirty to get rich? This week on Switched On, we talk with Justin Wu, head of Asia Pacific for BloombergNEF, about Asia's three largest economies, China, Japan, and India, and BNEF's outlook for how they are approaching the energy and transport transition.This episode is based on three reports: 2H 2019 China Market Outlook Japan to Take on Plastics But It’s Not Quite in the Bag New Energy Outlook 2019, section on India BNEF clients can access these reports on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Solar thermal power plants can provide electricity when demand is most high, during the evening, or even all night long. This ability could become more valuable in certain locations as the amount of less consistent wind and photovoltaic solar power on the grid expands. This week on Switched On, we talk with Jenny Chase, head of solar analysis for BloombergNEF, about where this lesser-known renewable works, and doesn't, and how it fits into the energy mix of the future.This episode is based on a report titled Solar Thermal Market Outlook 2019. BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Obama-era Clean Power Plan is being cut out by the Trump administration. It probably doesn't matter so much because the U.S. power fleet is decarbonizing anyway. And cars are getting more fuel efficient, despite efforts by the federal government to roll-back regulations there as well. This week on Switched On, we talk with Ethan Zindler, Head of Americas for BloombergNEF, to make sense of what is going on in the U.S. in power, transport and climate.This episode is based on reports titled Time Running Short for Trump’s Anti-Climate Agenda, and Democrats Go to Town on Climate.BNEF clients can access these reports on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oil has always carried with it the possibility of adventure and big wins to be had, and thereby a growth story for investors. Utilities, not so much. But we could be seeing the tables turn as there seems to be no shortage of oil, and the world is increasingly going electric. Could there be a swap of sectors in the dull club? This week on Switched On, we delve into that with Nathaniel Bullard, BNEF's Head of Executive Insights and author of a weekly opinion piece called Sparklines.This episode is based on the weekly Sparklines series from Bloomberg Opinion, by Nat Bullard.Or on Bloomberg Anywhere at NI BULLARD<GO>. Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Governments play a role, but the private sector may hold the real keys to decarbonization. This week on Switched On, we talk with Kyle Harrison, a BloombergNEF analyst focused on corporate energy strategy, about companies increasing use of renewable electricity and the targets they're setting to cut down on carbon. This episode is based on a report titled 2H 2019 Corporate Energy Market Outlook. BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ride-hailing, e-commerce, micro-mobility, robotaxis – each of these is or will chip away at the need to own a car. Will the day come when the car becomes obsolete? This week on Switched On we talk with Ali Izadi, BNEF’s head of intelligent mobility, about this and whether car sales will peak, or if they already have.This episode is based on a report titled Peak Car? BNEF Light Duty Vehicle Outlook.BNEF clients can access this report on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile, or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg Terminal.Switched On is hosted this week by Mark Taylor and Dana Perkins.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.