The Energy Transition Show with Chris Nelder

Robyn Beavers shares some of her insights from a 15-year career in energy transition. How did we get here, and what’s next?

Europe is about to fix its cap and trade system for carbon emissions. But will carbon prices rise high enough to meet the Paris targets?

Is the transition of transportation to electric vehicles good for society, or just a new set of problems? We explore some common questions in this episode.

Can behavioral changes and better delivery of services help us limit global warming to 1.5 °C without relying on negative emission technologies like CCS?

How can we ensure that utility regulators aren’t unduly influenced by the companies they’re supposed to regulate as we proceed with the energy transition?

What’s next for solar, as it becomes the cheapest form of new power generation? Do we still need solar advocates and incentives, or can it now stand on its own?

Australia is at the cutting edge of energy transition, with the world’s largest grid battery and rapidly replacing coal with renewables. How are they doing it?

Contests over the control of wholesale markets are a core feature of energy transition and raise complex legal questions, which we explore in this episode.

If 13 US states and parts of Canada and Mexico were to join the California ISO system, how would it affect power markets across the West?

How can we count the uncountable in energy transition, and turn it into relevant data that can inform climate policy?

What do disruptive companies like oil and gas frackers and Tesla have in common, and what can they tell us about energy transition? Part 2 of 2.

What do disruptive companies like oil and gas frackers and Tesla have in common, and what can they tell us about energy transition? Part 1 of 2.

The changing jet stream is associated with many of the extreme weather events in recent years, and tree-ring data shows that climate change is to blame.

Energy expert Eric Gimon answers questions submitted by Energy Transition Show subscribers.

As we transfer loads from transportation and space heating over to renewably-powered electricity, will we discover a limit to the “electrify everything” mantra?

How did utilities in the South squander more than $40 billion on failed nuclear and coal plants, and how can such boondoggles be prevented in the future?

How should we value storage services? Will CSP and EVs change the grid? How can machine learning and data analytics accelerate energy transition?

How does utility resource procurement need to adapt to a changing world? Can wholesale markets survive the transition to more distributed resources? Is there a risk of becoming too dependent on natural gas to provide grid balancing services? And how does storage may need to be valued in order to fulfill its greatest potential on the grid?

Why motivates students in the Energy and Environment program at Duke, what topics do they find the most challenging, and why are they interested in energy transition?

How well do we understand the melting of our glaciers and ice caps, and how much sea levels might rise as a result…and when?

How can artificial intelligence, machine learning, and the Internet of Things turn demand flexibility into a core grid asset and displace fossil fuels?

What is lifecycle assessment, and how can it help us choose between various energy options during the transition? NREL’s Garvin Heath explains.

NREL’s Paul Denholm explains how solar + storage systems participate in wholesale electricity markets, and when they can compete with natural gas peaker plants.

What do carbon budgets really say about the future warming of the planet, and how much warming should we expect? Climate scientist Dr. Glen Peters explains.

Could the blockchain be a powerful new enabler of energy transition, or is it just another overhyped solution in search of a problem?

How can we maintain stable voltage and frequency on the power grid as we replace conventional synchronous generators with wind and solar?

When humanity’s demands exceed Earth’s ability to satisfy them, is energy transition even possible? Father of ecological footprint analysis Bill Rees explains.

In space heating, “deep decarbonization” is about a lot more than just swapping old furnaces. It requires a complete understanding of human health and comfort.

For our two-year anniversary, we discuss some of the most interesting questions in energy transition today. And Chris muses on the lessons of Hurricane Harvey.

How does the IPCC climate modeling process work, and does any of it project a successful energy transition happening this century?

To realize our renewable energy potential in the U.S., we’ll need more long-distance transmission lines. But there are a lot of obstacles, which we’ll discuss

How should we think about the influence of the global energy system on the climate over the next century?

How does the carbon cycle work, and what’s its relationship to global warming? And what are the most effective ways of teaching climate science?

Claude Turmes, a 15-year Member of the European Parliament, relates the history of Europe’s energy transition policies and his hopes for the future.

Can we run the world on 100% renewables? Is that even the right goal? A new critique of Prof. Mark Jacobson’s work on 100% renewables offers some insights.

What can the history of Earth’s climate tell us about its future, and what is the relationship between climate change and the economy?

Each state and country has its own unique set of resources and energy transition challenges, so there are different speeds and techniques for each one.

What is PURPA and why are utilities trying to change it in their fight against solar? What are the legal issues in around-market reforms?

Is the net energy of renewables high enough to actually power human civilization? Or will low EROIs doom energy transition?

Utility Dive editor Gavin Bade explains how independent power producers are using around-market reforms and re-regulation to survive energy transition.

This deep dive into ocean science reveals how we take the Earth’s temperature, the truth about the “Climategate” business, and the “Pausebuster” paper.

How will Australia manage its energy transition, with both the most residential rooftop solar PV per capita, and the second-dirtiest power grid in the world?

What are the hard problems and interesting questions on the road to energy transition, and what are their solutions? An astronaut and professor has answers.

Corporations have emerged as some of the top buyers of renewable electricity, even buying it from wind and solar farms in other states. But why are they doing that when they could just buy grid power? And how do “virtual PPAs” work, anyway? Erin Craig has the answers.

We discuss the current state of climate science and rebut the arguments of climate change skeptics, and look ahead to what must be done to halt climate change.

What are green bonds, and how can they help mobilize private capital to fund energy transition and climate change mitigation measures? What kinds of things can green bonds be used to fund? What are the various roles for private, corporate, and sovereign issuers? Why does the green bond market need to grow by roughly 10x over the next few years to $1 trillion a year globally, and is there even enough capital out there willing to accept single-digit returns to buy that amount of green bonds? Are green bonds an answer to the stranded assets problem in the fossil fuel sector? And what can the appetite for green bonds tell us about monetary policy and appropriate discount rates for climate change mitigation measures? We get deep into all of these questions with the CEO of the Climate Bonds Initiative, an international NGO working to mobilize debt capital markets for climate solutions.

This is a special, free "extra" episode recorded at RMI’s eLab Annual Summit in December 2016 in Austin, Texas. The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) based in Golden, Colorado provides a wide range of research, guidance, and policy support to the whole government stack in the U.S., from the local and city level all the way up to the federal and tribal level. From supporting the rebuild of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, to informing policies with things like calculating the Value of Solar (VOS) and figuring out better ways of doing demand response, NREL is helping to lead the way on energy transition. We interview Elizabeth Doris of NREL at RMI’s eLab Summit 2016. Disclaimer The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the author and those providing comments on these podcasts are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of Rocky Mountain Institute or any employee thereof.

This is a special, free "extra" episode recorded at RMI’s eLab Annual Summit in December 2016 in Austin, Texas. Should utilities be allowed to own EV charging infrastructure, or should that be reserved for private charging companies? How many Level 3 high-voltage chargers do we need at workplaces and shopping areas? And how do we build charging infrastructure now that won’t become stranded assets if and when we transition to fleets of autonomous vehicles? We interview Jonathan Levy of Vision Ridge Partners at RMI’s eLab Summit 2016 to find out. Disclaimer The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the author and those providing comments on these podcasts are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of Rocky Mountain Institute or any employee thereof.

This is a special, free "extra" episode recorded at RMI’s eLab Annual Summit in December 2016 in Austin, Texas. Through a variety of programs, Austin Energy, the eighth largest publicly-owned electric utility in the U.S., has led the way to an EV future in Texas, installing the first EV charging infrastructure in the region, offering rebates for installing charging stations and the ability to charge up at 250 charging stations throughout the city for a low flat rate using 100% renewable energy. Karl Popham, the Electric Vehicle & Emerging Technologies Manager at Austin Energy, explains how he did it and what other similarly positioned utility leaders can do in an interview from RMI’s eLab Annual Summit 2016. Disclaimer The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the author and those providing comments on these podcasts are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of Rocky Mountain Institute or any employee thereof.

This is a special, free "extra" episode recorded at RMI’s eLab Annual Summit in December 2016 in Austin, Texas. What are some of the ways that New York is building its resilience capacity while executing its Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) energy transition plan, particularly as a response to the damage it suffered in Superstorm Sandy? Is it possible to have a successful energy transition without also securing justice and equity, particularly for the underserved and disadvantaged among us? And what is the future for energy transition in the U.S. in the era of President Trump? Eleanor Stein of America’s Power Plan, who was Project Manager for New York’s REV initiative, shares her insights from a lifetime of work on climate and justice issues at RMI’s eLab Annual Summit 2016. Links Disclaimer The views, opinions, and positions expressed by the author and those providing comments on these podcasts are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of Rocky Mountain Institute or any employee thereof.