Best Energy Podcasts (2024)

1
381. The End of Coal-fired Generation in Alberta - Now What? 4:00

13h ago4:00

4:00

Alberta phased out its coal-fired electricity in record time representing the largest single action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Canada. The trouble is a lot of the coal was replaced by natural gas which produces 60% of the emissions of coal. Can the fossil fuel-infatuated province also capitalize on its amazing renewable energy resources …

1
How can we finance the energy transition? Discussions from the final day of the Reuters Global Energy Transition Conference 2024 1:08:25

6d ago1:08:25

1:08:25

In this third special episode of the Energy Gang from the Reuters Global Energy Transition 2024 conference in New York, we focus on the crucial theme of financing the energy transition. We discuss how various stakeholders are addressing the financial challenges and opportunities presented by the shift to renewable energy. Our first guest is Utopia …

1
Day Two: The Energy Gang at The Reuters Global Energy Transition Conference 2024 1:16:41

7d ago1:16:41

1:16:41

In this second special episode of Wood Mackenzie's The Energy Gang, recorded at the Reuters Global Energy Transition 2024 conference in New York, we speak with leaders at some of the key companies shaping the energy transition. We hear about how they are tackling the challenge of meeting rising demand for electricity while at the same time reducing…

1
381A. King Coal is Dead - Alberta's last coal-fired power plant 4:00

8d ago4:00

4:00

Alberta's last coal-fired power plant stopped burning coal on June 16, 2024 at 10:57 pm. The coal phase-out was originally proposed for 2061, but in 2015 a new target was set for 2030. On June 16 the last lump of coal was burned to produce electricity six years ahead of schedule. The phase-out represents the largest reduction in greenhouse gas emis…

1
380B. Cracking the Geothermal Nut -EAVOR building in Germany 4:00

8d ago4:00

4:00

This is huge! EAVOR believes they've cracked the geothermal nut. Using closed-loop technology they have pioneered a new kind of Geothermal that can be built almost anywhere without uncertainty. We look at EAVOR's pilot project in Alberta and their full-scale geothermal plant in Germany that will provide electricity for 8,000 homes and district heat…

1
The Energy Gang at the Reuters Global Energy Transition Conference - Day One 34:55

8d ago34:55

34:55

This is a special episode of Wood Mackenzie's The Energy Gang, recorded at the Reuters Global Energy Transition 2024 conference in New York. It has a great lineup of speakers from the worlds of business, finance, and government, giving us an opportunity to talk to some of the key people who are driving the energy transition. One of the panellists o…

1
380A. Geothermal breakthrough - heat and power anywhere 4:00

20d ago4:00

4:00

EAVOR has pioneered a new kind of geothermal that can provide heat and power almost anywhere on the planet. This could be the missing link in the energy revolution that could not only help electricity get to net-zero. It also helps solve the even bigger challenge of how to heat buildings with zero emissions.We talk to Jeanine Vany of EAVOR, a compa…

1
Can capitalism save the planet? 51:55

23d ago51:55

51:55

Two books that are essential reading for energy wonks give contrasting views on how to tackle climate change. The hot book in the energy world right now is Brett Christophers’ The Price Is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won’t Save the Planet. It’s a detailed look at the structural issues in electricity markets and the challenges of generating returns on ren…

1
379B. Green Infill - A 16-Unit Passive House Ready for Northern Climates 4:00

30d ago4:00

4:00

Here's what Green Infill looks like!Built to the super energy efficient Passive House standard this 16-unit townhouse style infill project replaced two underutilized single-family homes in Edmonton, Alberta. The homes require just 10% of the heating energy of a regular home, and have no natural gas or bills.We take a tour of this amazing project wi…

1
379A. Green Infill - Creating desperately needed housing and building community 4:00

1M ago4:00

4:00

This project checks all the boxes. T5M Connect replaced two single-family homes with 16 new units of desperately needed housing and the kicker is it was built to the passive house standard in the mostly northerly city in North America.GreenEnergyFutures.ca CKUA.com PodcastBy David Dodge

1
There’s no transition without transmission. How can we make it easier to build? 1:02:25

1M ago1:02:25

1:02:25

Regulators are trying to clear the path to the grid that clean energy needs. To go from an electricity system based on coal and gas to one based on solar and wind, the US needs a very different power grid. On some estimates, annual installations of new transmission capacity need to double. To help build the grid that a new clean electricity system …

1
378B. Gregor Robertson now helping 13,000 cities take action on climate change 4:00

1M ago4:00

4:00

Part 2 - Gregor Robertson, Vancouver's longest-serving mayor set out to create the greenest city in the world. Now he's the Global Ambassador of the Global Covenant of Mayors helping 13,000 other cities take action on climate change.GreenEnergyFutures.ca CKUA.com PodcastFull story GreenEnergyFutures.ca…

1
Google’s demanding goals for decarbonization 1:04:07

2M ago1:04:07

1:04:07

AI is driving up demand for electricity. How can we meet that demand with clean energy? It has been a big theme on the Energy Gang this year: the massive additional demand for energy that could be created by data centers for artificial intelligence. It’s an emerging issue that threatens to cause new challenges for the world’s attempts to achieve ne…

1
378A. Vancouver's former Mayor Gregor Robertson on Creating the Greenest City in the World 4:00

2M ago4:00

4:00

When Gregor Robertson came up with his campaign slogan of creating the greenest city in the world who knew it would be his most popular focus? He went to become Vancouver's longest-serving Mayor, and although they may not have reached the coveted top spot, they got pretty close. They created a very green building code, increased non-car transportat…

1
Jigar Shah returns to the Energy Gang 51:29

2M ago51:29

51:29

The Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office has a grandstand view of the energy transition. Where is it going next? Jigar Shah, one of the originators of the Energy Gang, now runs the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, playing a key role in advancing clean energy projects. By helping to bridge the gap between R&D and large-scale deplo…

1
377B. Summerside from Zero Energy to 62% Renewable Energy 4:00

2M ago4:00

4:00

PART 2 - Summerside PEI had no electricity generation capacity a decade ago and then did some amazing things. First (in part 1) they added wind power, a smart grid and energy storing furnaces. Then they added AI-powered solar microgrids and a solar and battery farm right in the City. The little City with no generation capacity has achieved 62% loca…

1
377A. Summerside little city with no energy now a leader in renewable energy 4:00

2M ago4:00

4:00

PART 1 - Summerside like the province of PEI had no energy production except expensive backup diesel generators just a decade or so ago. Something had to change. So in an amazing transformation, they set up their own utility, built a wind farm in the city, installed a smart grid and thermal energy storing appliances and got to 42-46% renewable ener…

1
Is there an energy transition? 57:06

2M ago57:06

57:06

Fossil fuels still dominate the world’s energy supplies. Do we need different terminology to talk about what’s happening? We talk about “the energy transition” all the time. But is that language misleading? 20 years ago fossil fuels were 85% of the world’s energy, today they’re just a few percentage points less. If there is a transition to low-carb…

1
376. EVs are driving down the price of electricity for all consumers 4:00

2M ago4:00

4:00

This sounds counterintuitive, but a new study has found Electric Vehicles (EVs) are driving the price of electricity down and increasing net profits for utilities. Thanks to time-of-use pricing EV owners are shifting their charging habits to non-peak times thus making much more efficient use of existing grid resources. GreenEnergyFutures.ca CKUA.co…

1
Rising electricity demand in Texas: the canary in the coalmine for the rest of the US? | Bonus Episode 1:02:41

2M ago1:02:41

1:02:41

Conversations from the Gulf Coast Power Association conference. This bonus episode of the Energy Gang was recorded live during the spring meeting of the Gulf Coast Power Association in Houston, Texas. Host Ed Crooks is joined by Beth Garza, President of the Gulf Coast Power Association, Frank O'Sullivan, Managing Director for Clean Energy at S2G Ve…

1
375. The Energy Mix - 30,000 stories on climate change - interview wth Mitchell Beer 4:00

3M ago4:00

4:00

Mitchell Beer started The Energy Mix, a media service dedicated to covering climate change 10 years ago long before the conventional media took it seriously. We talk to Beer about climate change, journalism, and his media service which has published 30,000 stories on climate change and climate solutons. GreenEnergyFutures.ca CKUA.com Podcast…

1
2024 is a year of elections. What will they mean for clean energy? 54:48

3M ago54:48

54:48

As half the world heads to the polls, how important will the results be for efforts to cut emissions? Over half the world lives in a country that will be holding an election this year. The votes come at a time when resistance to the energy transition is building in many parts of the world, as concerns around energy security grow and some of the cha…

1
374. EV Lifecycle Emissions - lower, here, there and everywhere 4:00

3M ago4:00

4:00

EVs produce fewer lifecycle emissions than ICE vehicles in countries with dirty grids or clean grids. A study looked at emissions in five countries including China, the US, UK, Germany and Japan and found EVs produce much lower emissions throughout the life of the vehicle.GreenEnergyFutures.ca CKUA.com Podcast…

1
Everyone is worrying about rising demand for electricity. Do Microsoft and Google have an answer? 1:03:42

3M ago1:03:42

1:03:42

Big power users are getting together to accelerate the development of advanced clean energy technologies. The hottest topic in energy right now is the expected surge in demand for electricity. Data centers for AI, new factories, and electric vehicles are driving power consumption higher in the US, after about 15 years of stagnation. Solar and wind …

1
373B. Alberta's new renewable energy rules - $14 billion in projects at risk? 4:00

3M ago4:00

4:00

In part 2 of our series on Alberta's new renewable energy rules we learn that 57 projects worth $14 billion are potentially at risk. We talk to Jason Wang of the Pembina Institute which just prepared a map overlay showing the potential impact of new restrictions. We also talk to Vittoria Bellissimo of the Canadian Renewable Energy Association about…

1
373A. Alberta's new renewable energy rules - a red tape solution in search of a problem? 4:00

4M ago4:00

4:00

At first glance, new rules for renewable energy development in Alberta seemed ready to block renewable energy from most of the province. Two weeks on some clarifications have been announced. We talk to Vittoria Bellissimo with the Canadian Renewable Energy Association about restrictions on agricultural land, near so-called "pristine viewscapes" and…

1
How will utilities meet surging power demand? 1:01:22

4M ago1:01:22

1:01:22

AI isn’t just threatening to take our jobs, it’s also draining our electricity. Data centres centers used to have power demand measured in the tens of megawatts. Now they are in the hundreds of megawatts, and the new ones that are being proposed have demand in the thousands of megawatts: gigawatts. At the Distributech conference in Feburary, Harry …

1
372. Floating solar filling important niche around the world 4:01

4M ago4:01

4:01

Ciel & Terre is making a splash with floating solar having installed more than 300 projects around the world. It costs just a little more than mounted solar but its helping utilities, companies and municipalities generate renewable energy where there is no land or roof space. We talk to Chris Bartle of Ciel & Terre US about this growing industry. G…

1
371. Alberta lifts moratorium on renewable energy, but are new rules a poison pill for the industry? 4:00

4M ago4:00

4:00

Alberta lifted it's six-month moratorium on renewable energy projects but some critics say new rules amount to a defacto moratorium. This is ironic since Alberta had a booming industry with up to $33 billion in projects under development at the time of the moratorium. We talk to renewable energy expert Dr. Sara Hastings-Simon of the University of C…

1
Bonus interviews from Distributech 1:04:58

4M ago1:04:58

1:04:58

This bonus episode of Wood Mackenzie’s The Energy Gang is our third from the Distributech conference in Orlando. Distributech is the leading event for the electricity transmission and distribution industry in North America. It gave our host Ed Crooks a fantastic opportunity to talk to many of the leading figures from the industry, including those w…

1
How can we develop new energy technologies and get them deployed at scale? 1:02:08

4M ago1:02:08

1:02:08

On this episode of Wood Mackenzie's The Energy Gang: what the history of innovation in solar power and batteries can teach us about the right ways to support clean energy breakthroughs. As the world moves towards a more sustainable energy future, government support is essential for research to develop new technologies, and for investment to deploy …

1
Bonus Episode: Evolving Power: The Impact of Electric Vehicles on Energy Utilities 20:09

4M ago20:09

20:09

When most people drive electric cars, what does that mean for the grid? This bonus episode of Wood Mackenzie’s The Energy Gang is our second from the Distributech conference in Orlando. Distributech is the leading event for the electricity transmission and distribution industry in North America. It gave our host Ed Crooks a fantastic opportunity to…

1
The Energy Gang at Distributech 2024 in Orlando 57:24

4M ago57:24

57:24

What AI means for the energy transition in the electricity industry Welcome to a special episode of Wood Mackenzie's The Energy Gang, recorded at the Distributech 2024 conference in Orlando. Distributech is the leading event in North America for the electricity transmission and distribution industry. It provides a fantastic opportunity to talk to t…

1
370B. RenuWell - Solar on abandoned oil wells powers irrigation 4:00

4M ago4:00

4:00

Part 2 in Green Energy Futures' series on RenuWell, the idea of transforming abandoned oil wells into small solar farms. In this episode, we talk to Trevor Helwig of St. Mary River Irrigation District, the owner of the two RenuWell solar pilot projects. Irrigation and solar are a good match since they both work hardest when the sun shines. GreenEne…

1
370. RenuWell - Transforming abandoned oil wells into solar farms - Part 1 4:00

4M ago4:00

4:00

Of the 466,000 oil and gas wells in Alberta on third are active and 170,000 are suspended or abandoned. What to do? Keith Hirsche was a farm kid from Taber, Alberta and his company RenuWell wrapped up two pilot projects to transform a couple of long-abandoned well sites into small solar farms which are now owned by St. Mary's Irrigation District. W…

1
2023 was a tough year for clean energy investment. Will 2024 be better? 1:00:45

5M ago1:00:45

1:00:45

There are no two ways around it: 2023 was a difficult year for low-carbon energy investment, and 2024 has so far carried on in very much the same vein. Rising interest rates, fears around future energy policy, cost inflation in some sectors, and perhaps a correction to some earlier over-exuberance, have meant that shares in clean energy companies h…

1
369. How a small town went net-zero after being told solar wouldn't work 4:00

5M ago4:00

4:00

The town of Raymond, Alberta was told solar wouldn't work on their buildings in their town in southern Alberta.This didn't sit right with them, so they hired new consultants, installed solar everywhere and became the first community in Canada to achieve net-zero electricity. We talk to Greg Robinson of the Town of Raymond about how they did it.Gree…

1
368. Helping Municipalities Adapt to the Impacts of Climate Change Imperative 4:00

5M ago4:00

4:00

Record wildfires, crazy amounts of smoke and poor air quality, droughts, and floods - municipalities are experiencing the impacts of climate change in a big way. Cutting emissions is very important to prevent even worse impacts, but what is a small town or municipality to do to adapt to and avoid some of the bigger impacts of climate change? The Mu…

1
A pause in US gas export approvals: a big win for the climate? 54:05

5M ago54:05

54:05

The US is the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), super-cooled to about -160 °C (or -260 °F) so it can be shipped in tankers. An investment boom means export capacity will soar over the next few years. But last month the Biden administration signaled it was putting the brakes on future growth, announcing a “pause” in new approv…

1
367. Energy Managers Help small towns and cities save energy and money 4:00

5M ago4:00

4:00

Many small towns and municipalities want to do energy efficiency projects or install solar and save money, but most have neither the money, expertise or the capacity to figure it all out. The Municipal Climate Change Action Centre in Alberta knows this so they created a program that has helped small towns and municipalities hire 26 energy managers …

1
366B. Municipalities take climate action with a little help from their friends 4:00

5M ago4:00

4:00

This week we head off to three small towns: Pincher Creek, Raymond and Leduc Alberta to learn about what they are doing to take climate action. We find them embracing energy efficiency, solar, electric vehicles and climate adaptation actions and it's all thanks to support from a little-known organization called the Municipal Climate Change Action C…

1
Is AI really a game-changer for energy? 54:00

5M ago54:00

54:00

The World Economic Forum held its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, last week, bringing together leaders from business, finance, politics, academia and culture. Regular Energy Gang guest Dr Melissa Lott was there, talking about one of the meeting’s central themes: long-term strategies for the climate, nature and energy. On this week’s show, she…

1
366A. MCCAC Helping municipalities save energy, money and emissions 4:00

6M ago4:00

4:00

You may not have heard of the Municipal Climate Change Action Centre (MCCAC), but you may have seen their work.They have helped more than 150 communities in Alberta complete 878 climate actions including energy efficiency, installing EV chargers, solar, and electric vehicles and even climate risk assessments and resiliency plans for towns.We talk t…

1
365. Deploy Energy Storage, Save $600m, Head for Net-Zero 4:00

6M ago4:00

4:00

How energy storage can be used to get the grid to net-zero using mostly existing infrastructure. For folks who want to preserve the old centralized grid, the sky is falling. However according to James Bererton an expert in low-carbon energy we can get fossil fuel-based grids like Alberta's most of the way to net-zero using current infrastructure, e…

1
What does 2024 have in store for energy? 1:08:49

6M ago1:08:49

1:08:49

Ed Crooks is joined by Amy Myers-Jaffe and Dr Melissa Lott to look ahead to 2024. They explore the people, places, and technologies that could have a big influence on energy this year. Amy kicks things off with a look ahead to the US elections in November. The results of that vote will have big impact on policy in the US, and there are several othe…

1
364. Decentralised Energy Canada at 20 - An interview with Anouk Kendall 4:00

6M ago4:00

4:00

Decentralised Energy Canada is 20 years old. We talk to innovator and founder Anouk Kendall about how her organization went from being an advocate for decentralized energy such as solar that didn't exist then to today when its members represent billions in revenue and are busy building the resilient and affordable decentralized electricity grid of …

1
363. The Year of the Heat Pump 4:00

6M ago4:00

4:00

Heat pumps are the future of heating and cooling. We found them heating and cooling in net-zero homes, in water heaters and clothes dryers and now there are models rated to -35C. The reasons are quite simple: they are incredibly energy efficient, and since they run on electricity it's pretty easy to run them and produce few or no emissions.GreenEne…

1
COP28 - Ed's notebook 51:36

7M ago51:36

51:36

Further conversations from this year’s summit. COP28 was the largest climate talks to date, with global industry leaders, governments, analysts, journalists and climate activists converging on Dubai for the summit. The Energy Gang's schedule was packed, and host Ed Crooks was joined by many interesting and influential people from the world of energ…

1
Be of good cheer! Reasons to feel optimistic about the energy transition at the end of 2023 44:03

7M ago44:03

44:03

As 2023 comes to a close, the Energy Gang reflects on the events and trends of 2023 that provided grounds for optimism about the transition to a lower-carbon world. On this week’s show, Ed Crooks is joined by Melissa Lott and Amy Myers-Jaffe as they share their reasons to be cheerful this holiday season. Ed chooses the precipitous drop in the cost …

1
362. Bow Valley Green Energy Coop Takes Flight 4:00

7M ago4:00

4:00

The Bow Valley Green Energy Cooperative in Canmore, Alberta has just wrapped up its fourth solar project in just a few years. This is blazing fast progress for green energy cooperatives in Canada that must navigate a network of challenging provincial electrical systems.We talk to Jeff Roberts about the coops success getting started in the shadow of…

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Energy Podcasts

Podcasts Worth a Listen

Quick Reference Guide