Interchange Recharged

Way back in 2016, US energy storage capacity had just hit 336MWh, a 100% year-on-year increase. The growth forecast for storage was for 7.3GWh by 2022 – a US$3.3 billion market. It’s just one example of how far we’ve come; the IRA’s tax credits and incentives created a bullish environment for developers, and the renewable project pipeline grew and grew. Then came OB3, and the uncertainty arou...

The uncertainty rippling through the energy industry in the first half of 2025 hasn’t gone away. Utilities, developers, and manufacturers are still grappling with the fallout from the "One Big Beautiful Bill," the Trump administration’s reversal of parts of the Inflation Reduction Act, and the evolving tangle of trade tariffs. Sylvia Leyva Martinez, host and principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie, is...

Despite uncertainty for US clean energy investors, things are looking good for the geothermal sector. US$1.7 billion in public funding was pumped into geothermal projects in Q1 this year - 85% of 2024's entire annual allocation – as breakthrough technologies promise to transform untapped resources into commercially viable clean energy projects. Enhanced geothermal and advanced geothermal technolog...

In February this year BP announced it was cutting its investment in green energy ventures from $5B to $2B while reallocating $10B to fossil fuels, and abandoning its 2030 oil output reduction target. Shell has also scrapped its planned 20% carbon reduction cut for 2030. It’s not a good display of intent from the perspective of the energy transition. In a highly volatile and uncertain policy enviro...

The Greenhouse Gas Protocol – the global gold standard for measuring corporate emissions – is under review, and the proposed changes could dramatically reshape how clean energy is bought, sold, and reported. New draft rules are expected by the end of the year. What changes could we see? And how will they impact the energy transition? To find out, Sylvia Leyva Martinez, principal analyst at Wood Ma...

Nearly 150 days into President Trump’s second term, the outlook for wind energy in the United States - particularly offshore wind - is increasingly bleak. Trump had pledged to end offshore wind development, and now the House Ways and Means Committee is proposing a phase-out of tax credits for renewables by 2031 - a move that would severely impact an already struggling wind sector (over on our sist...

The US is risking ceding global market share of clean energy to China, permanently. New tariffs, put in place one day then removed the next. Rising costs for everything along the supply chain. The US clean energy sector is navigating one of its most unpredictable phases yet. From solar to storage, how are developers and policymakers reacting to renewed trade tensions and their impact on the energy...

Tax equity plays a significant role in clean energy finance, but are developers using it effectively, or are they stumbling over complexities and recent changes?  Sylvia Leyva Martinez is joined by Bryen Alperin, Partner and Managing Director at Foss and Company, a leading firm in renewable energy investment, to debate it.  They explore how tax credits and incentives are reshaping clean...

They called the film Avengers: Infinity War the most ambitious crossover event in history. We can’t quite make the same claim, but at Wood Mackenzie’s 2025 Solar and Energy Storage Summit, we did record a crossover episode. Sylvia Leyva Martinez, Wood Mackenz’s principal analyst for solar power and host of Interchange Recharged, is joined by Ed Crooks, host of Energy Gang,...

Wood Mackenzie’s 18th Solar and Energy Storage summit is back, in Denver this week. If you can’t make it, don’t worry – we have all the debate and key insight you need to know here on the podcast. Recorded live on day 2 of the summit, host Sylvia Leyva Martinez talks to key industry leaders in solar and storage to answer these questions: What’s best practice for battery asset management? To answer...

Wood Mackenzie’s 18th Solar and Energy Storage summit is back, in Denver this week. If you can’t make it, don’t worry – we have all the debate and key insight you need to know here on the podcast. Recorded live on day 1 of the summit, host Sylvia Leyva Martinez talks to four industry leaders in solar and storage to answer these questions: Can the U.S. solar industry keep up with demand amid trade...

Over the past couple of years unprecedented low prices for solar panels have spurred incredible growth. But there’s a big shift underway.  In this special episode of the show, recorded live from the stage at Wood Mackenzie’s Solar & Energy Storage Summit 2025, host Sylvia Leyva Martinez, Principal Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, sits down with Ben Sigrin, Senior Product Manager at GridBeyond,...

“If you don't think in 15 years that we're going to value decarbonisation, or if you're worried about the 45Q, it's pretty tough to write that multi-billion dollar cheque,” says Peter Findlay, Director of CCUS Economics at Wood Mackenzie. In this week’s Interchange Recharged, Peter sits down again with host Sylvia Leyva Martinez to look at the challenges for new CCUS projects. It’s tough, as Peter...

The US is projected to add an additional 26 GW of solar capacity in 2025. Solar has been one of the energy transition’s biggest success stories, but there are dark clouds gathering. Uncertainty is the biggest barrier to deployment at the moment: there’s potential changes coming with federal tax credits and trade policies (some of which are already having an impact), and the perceived risks are hig...

In 2025, the US will consolidate its position as a blue-focused hydrogen market, driven by policy developments under a second Trump administration. A surge in blue hydrogen investment – with at least three large-scale blue hydrogen projects reaching FID – will see the US emerge as the world's leading blue hydrogen producer. So what about the much-hyped green hydrogen? Has the industry given up on...

Former President Biden's final days in office involved signing an US$840 million energy contract with Constellation - a statement of intent for the US’s largest nuclear supplier. Since then, what’s changed with nuclear policy?  To find out, host Sylvia Leyva Martinez – a principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie – welcomes Maria Korsnick, President and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute to the sho...

The fires in Los Angeles of January 2025 were devastating. They were also made about 35% more likely due to climate change. This is true all over the world; a recent study authored by Research Fellow Pierre Masselot at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that rising temperatures could kill an extra 2.3 million people in Europe by the end of the century. Sylvia Leyva Martinez,...

How a major US utility plans for sustainable growth. The US is on track to see over 25% growth in annual clean energy installations this year, despite uncertainty around permitting and grid connections. The new Trump administration threatens much clean energy legislation, so how can the industry plan ahead? Annual clean energy installations are set to average 102 GW over the next 11 years, quadrup...

The trends, challenges and breakthroughs. Clean energy in 2025 will face challenges from rising electricity demand, inflation-driven costs, and political pressures. How can these challenges be solved? And what else lies ahead this year? To find out, host Sylvia Leyva Martinez, principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie, sits down with fellow analysts Chris Seiple (Vice Chairman of Wood Mackenzie’s Power...

In conversation with Abigail Hopper  Policy changes which will impact US solar – both manufacturing and demand - are on the horizon. To discuss the current state of the solar industry in the wake of the US election, the implications of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), potential changes to tax credits, and the impact of tariffs and energy demand on the industry, Sylvia Leyva Martinez is join...

Could the potential repealing of the IRA halt the progress of solar manufacturing? A second Donald Trump presidency will have a big impact on the energy transition. The Biden administration’s landmark climate bill the Inflation Reduction Act had incentives for domestic solar manufacturing and installations. Tearing up the act could slow down the exponential growth in the sector. Sylvia Leyva Marti...

The future of carbon capture With global emissions on the rise, the pressure to decarbonise is driving interest in CCUS (carbon capture, utilisations and storage) … but is CCUS a viable path to net zero, a temporary solution or a high-cost gamble that may simply just perpetuate the use of fossil fuels?   Sylvia Leyva Martinez, principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie, sits down to talk with fellow...

Strategic solar for a stronger grid The solar industry is at a turning point, shifting from niche investments to a cornerstone of America’s clean energy future. With renewable energy investment soaring and energy needs intensifying, solar's role has never been more crucial. Sylvia Martinez, Principal Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, and David Banmiller sit down with Gregg Felton, CEO of Altus Power, to...

Global investment in renewables is projected to surpass US$2 trillion by 2030, with wind, solar and storage projects leading the way. Syliva Martinez, Principal Analyst at Wood Mackenzie is joined by Ray Long, President and CEO at ACORE (American Council On Renewable Energy), to look at how the energy transition is creating jobs, lowering costs and making the U.S. more competitive in the global ma...

Part two of our analysis of safety developments for energy storage and batteries. Guest host Sylvia Leyva Martinez, Principal Analyst at Wood Mackenzie, joins us to explore the challenges and solutions to lithium-ion battery safety. In part one of our two part series, thermal runaway events (which can lead to fires) were a key issue. What are the big players in manufacturing doing to address these...