The Energy Crisis

04/08/22 • 59 min

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The energy crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is the most serious since the oil shocks of the 1970s. Rising prices for oil, gas and coal are hitting living standards and putting people under financial strain around the world. We are facing some tough decisions about how to relieve hardship and energy poverty, while still cutting greenhouse gas emissions to limit the impact of climate change. In this edition of the Energy Gang, the gang discusses the war in Ukraine and the consequences for the rest of the world. How can we work through the short-term impacts whilst keeping the energy transition on track?

Ed is joined on today's episode by two returning guests. We’re happy to welcome back again Melissa Lott, the Director of Research at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia. Our other guest has not been on the show for almost a year, and we are very glad she’s back. Amy Duffuor is Co-founder and General Partner at Azolla Ventures and leads our second topic on climate innovation investments. VC funds are heavily invested in some sectors and steer clear of others. What sectors get the most investment and why?

One of the impacts of the current energy crisis is the surge in gas prices in America. The gang discusses the options open to American policy makers and what’s being done to ease the pain at the pump. And we talk about the innovations in energy that can help resolve these complex challenges. Stick around to the end for the free electrons to hear what the hosts are up to outside of the show.

The Energy Gang is brought to you by EPC Power.

EPC Power manufactures self-developed energy storage smart inverters made in their American factories with gigawatt level capacity.

Visit epcpower.com/energygang to learn more about their utility scale and C & I product lines and schedule a call to learn how they can help you power your energy storage projects.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Energy Gang is brought to you by EPC Power.

EPC Power manufactures self-developed energy storage smart inverters made in their American factories with gigawatt level capacity.

Visit epcpower.com/energygang to learn more about their utility scale and C & I product lines and schedule a call to learn how they can help you power your energy storage projects.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Previous Episode

Managing Large-Scale Solar [Special Content]

Of all the stages of a solar project, the operations and management stage is arguably the most crucial. When you’re thinking about project efficiency and financial returns in solar, you need to have a concise plan for the O&M stage.

Greg Shambo is Vice President of Business Development at Borrego Energy. He says that ‘when you get into the operations stage, this is where you make the money. If you can’t operate profitably from day one, you end up losing money. We call these walking dead sites, because they were doomed to start with.’

For the last forty years, Borrego have established themselves as one of the nation’s most reliable names in the Solar and Energy Storage industry. From their early days as solar pioneers, to today - as leaders on the national energy storage stage – Borrego have delivered timely and secure management to solar projects. In 2014, Borrego launched a stand-alone O&M business for both EPC and non-EPC customers to help optimise and maintain system performance and help their clients achieve their financial goals.

Jay Smith also joins us, he's the Director of Asset Management at Standard Solar, a client of Borrego.

On the show, Greg and Jay take us through the management of large-scale solar projects, and how clients can ensure they pick the best O&M provider for the job.

This episode was produced in collaboration with Borrego, a leading developer, EPC and O&M provider for large-scale renewable energy projects throughout the United States. With over 1.4 GW and more than 1,000 sites under its management nationwide, Borrego O&M is comprised of technical experts that have been helping customers maximise their asset performance and value for the last decade.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Next Episode

Happy Earth Day: Why a Low Carbon Life is Within Reach

On April 22nd, 2022 the world will be celebrating the 52nd annual “Earth Day”. Does Earth Day serve any useful purpose? How can we utilize the celebration of Earth Day for good? How is Earth day viewed by the world today, and how does this celebration push us closer to a low carbon life? In today's special episode of the Energy Gang, the conversation focuses on solutions and recent positive findings from the IPCC report.

Making up the “Gang” this week is returning guest Emily Chasan, who is the Director of Communications at Generate Capital, the green investment firm. Also, another returning guest, Dr. Destenie Nock, an Assistant Professor of Engineering and Public Policy and Civil and Engineering at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh. As always, our host Ed Crooks, Vice-Chair of the Americas at Wood Mackenzie leads the conversation.

Keeping the positive theme in observance of Earth Day, the gang discusses the recent IPCC report and some positive findings that were reported. Earlier this month, the 6th cycle working report gives a clear view to the current state of our knowledge of climate science. The good news, though, is that even the more demanding goal of the Paris agreement – limiting global warming to just 1.5 degrees – is not out of sight.

The last talking point in the episode is the topic of Energy Poverty, and what it currently looks like in today's climate. The gang discusses how energy poverty is a massive problem today and explores the dangers of how addressing climate change, could make things worse. Destenie leads the conversation on this topic and shares some of her key findings from her research and describes to the gang what an Energy Equity Gap is. This week's episode is focused on solutions and has an optimistic tone.

We hope you enjoy and don’t forget to reach out to us on Twitter with any inquiries.

The Energy Gang is brought to you by EPC Power.

EPC Power manufactures self-developed energy storage smart inverters made in their American factories with gigawatt level capacity.

Visit epcpower.com/energygang to learn more about their utility scale and C & I product lines and schedule a call to learn how they can help you power your energy storage projects.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.