Global food production faces the twin challenges of meeting growing demand while achieving that both sustainably and lowering carbon emissions. In this episode we dive into what this actually means . What is the impact of agriculture on carbon emissions and how does the sector impact the environment? How are farmers, processors, traders and shippers building sustainability into practices and strategy? What are the policy frameworks and incentives globally? And how are competitive advantages being created through this? Our guest is Robert Horster, Global Sustainability Director Agricultural Supply Chain and Head of Environmental Markets for Cargill.

Who prices Lithium today and who will trade it in the future? In this episode we dive back into the Lithium supply chains. What forms of Lithium are traded and how are contracts structured and priced? What efforts are the exchanges making to create liquidity and risk management tools and will the trading houses of today dominate Lithium trading in the future? Our guests are Simons Moores, founder and CEO, and Caspar Rawles,Chief Data Officer, at Benchmark Minerals Intelligence, the independent price reporting agency and consultancy focused on battery metals. 

This week, journalist and author, Rob Copeland joins to discuss his explosive best-selling book: The Fund: Ray Dalio, Bridgewater Associates and the unravelling of a Wall St Legend. Long seen as the paragon of systematic trading, Bridgewater grew to the largest hedge fund in history. Alongside that, its founder, Ray Dalio - a one-time commodities trader - a business legend with his best-selling books and his devotion to his “Principles”. Rob’s book exposes a very different fund and leader. We dive into the unique culture and management style Ray created which includes 24hr surveillance, inquisitions over bagels and very public take downs. And also how exactly the fund invested. Rob is a finance reporter for the New York Times.

Julie McLaughlin and Elizaveta Malashenko of Alvarez & Marsal discuss challenges and opportunities in the renewable energy sector, including rising costs, disrupted supply chains, and the impact of weather events. They explore the importance of building resiliency and robustness, as well as the challenges faced by renewable energy projects in unpredictable markets and changing weather patterns. Additionally, they highlight the significance of interest rates, commercialization challenges, and the role of batteries in the renewable sector. They also touch upon the future of the industry and public understanding.

The commodity trading world is adjusting to greater volatility and higher capital costs. Individual companies are needing to increase their market and commodity footprints to navigate the energy transition while many are building trading capabilities for the first time. Commodity Trading Risk Management software, the backbone of any trading platform, needs to keep up. The wrong choice can be very costly. How have CTRM’s evolved over the last 5 years in capability, price and implementation? Sameer Soleja, CEO of Molecule, one of the most modern, cloud based CTRM, joins us to discuss.You can visit Molecule at: www.moledule.ioand HC Group at www.hcgroup.globalFor more episodes on CTRM listen to https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hc-insider-podcast-conversations-in-energy/id1512721188?i=1000515160695

The Dark Cloud: The hidden costs of a digital world with Guillaume PitronWhat is the energetic consequence of a simple ‘like’ on social media? Or a zoom call? Modern technology is underpinned by a very real material and energetic infrastructure that is putting immense strain on energy production and the world’s natural resources. 5G and AI have supercharged this consumption. Yet, technology companies have been successful in creating a “dematerialized” perception. The energy transition and sustainability emphasis has focused largely on the energy & commodities world while tech is seen by many as clean and green. It is not. This is the story our guest,  investigative journalist and author, Guillaume Pitron has told in his book “The Dark Cloud” published in English this year by Scribe.

Adam Rozencwajg, Managing Partner of Natural Resource investor Goehring and Rozencwajg, discusses the challenges and costs of renewable energy projects, natural gas supply and LNG demand, the impact of prices and technology on oil and gas production, and investing in private energy companies and predicting future energy trends.

In this episode we return to Lithium – the critical metal of the electron age. The supply chain is both constrained and concentrated, leading to a rush to find suitable deposits worldwide. However, its not just quality of deposit that matters but type, geography and the political and social environment in which it sits. In this episode, we review the Lithium Triangle, the rich swath of brines that cover Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. How and why has the Lithium Triangle acquired its name? What role will it play in the energy transition and which of those three countries provide the best opportunities? Our guests are Gabriel Rubacha and Taj Singh. Gabriel is now the CEO and Chairman of NOA Lithium Brines, a Lithium exploration company focused on the Triangle. Gabriel was previously on the board of directors at Lithium Americas Corp. Taj is the former CEO of NOA and now President & CEO at Gold Line Resources Ltd. Visit NOA Lithium Brines https://www.noalithium.com//Visit HC Group www.hcgroup.global

Hydrogen made in a steam reformer, grey hydrogen, is responsible for 3% of global greenhouse emissions yet it is embedded in many industrial applications. More broadly industry accounts for some 10% of emission. Switching industry to green hydrogen would make a huge difference. Yet, green hydrogen remains rare. The costs in both the operating expenses and capital expenditure means implementation is extraordinarily difficult, especially in a high interest rate environment. What are the challenges, what does the future hold and how could the costs be lowered? Our guest is Chad Mason, CEO and founder of Advanced Ionics,  a company focused on the  clean future of industrial hydrogen.Visit Advanced Ionics here: https://advanced-ionics.com/For HC Group visit www.hcgroup.global

Download here: https://www.flipsnack.com/hcinsider/q3-2023-market-review/full-view.htmlTo sign up to receive the review in future quarters, along side our other thought pieces, interviews and analysis in the sector visit:https://www.hcgroup.global/hc-insiderYou can also email me at pchapman@hcgroup.global with any specific questions and I can direct you internally to best contact.