Energy Evolution

On this episode of Energy Evolution, our guests discuss sustainability and reporting standards for nickel mining, an industry key to supporting electric vehicle battery production. Today's guests include Alessandra Carreon, a member of the Michigan Public Service Commission; Ro Dhawan, CEO of the International Council on Mining and Metals; and Chris Showalter, CEO of Lifezone Metals. Energy Evolut...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, co-host Taylor Kuykendall interviews Curtis VanWalleghem, CEO of Hydrostor. VanWalleghem talks about his company's compressed air technology and the importance of using long-duration energy storage in the transition to clean energy. Energy Evolution co-hosts Dan Testa and Taylor Kuykendall are veteran journalists with broad expertise covering the energy and min...

Against the backdrop of Europe's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and a self-imposed deadline for a US Global Arrangement on Sustainable Steel and Aluminum, American steelmakers are stepping up investments in clean energy and working to ensure efforts to produce lower-emissions steel are recognized on the global stage. So how will policymakers view their initiatives, and will end-users be willin...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, co-host Taylor Kuykendall interviews Eric Beightel, the executive director of the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council. The council was established in 2015 to improve the transparency and predictability of the federal environment review and authorization process for certain critical infrastructure projects.  Beightel discusses the challenges of permi...

Voluntary carbon markets are facing a critical moment in their short history. Questions about the integrity and effectiveness of many carbon projects have led to a sharp fall in prices and liquidity. However, a series of quality and transparency initiatives are being adopted to restore confidence in offsets. S&P Global Commodity Insights' experts Eklavya Gupte, Dana Agrotti and Silvia Favasuli dis...

As it gets harder for bitcoin miners to access power, some say mining is a balancing opportunity for the grid. We speak to mining startup founder Andrew Webber about his vision for data centers in grid flexibility and look ahead at the scaling of AI computing. Could data centers using AI algorithms become flexibility assets, and if so, which use cases could be suitable? On that, we hear from S&P G...

The hefty premiums paid by BP and TotalEnergies in Germany's latest offshore wind auction reflect the value these companies place on diversification – but do the economics stack up? Competition for offshore concessions has been fierce, but the sector is also under extreme cost pressure from stressed supply chains and rising inflation. S&P Global Commodity Insights' news editors Henry Edwardes-Evan...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, guest Jahi Wise, senior adviser to the administrator and acting director of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund at the EPA, joins us to talk about a $27 billion grant program under the Inflation Reduction Act and efforts to use the funding to support the National Clean Investment Fund and efficiency improvements across the country, especially in disadvantaged com...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, guest Tom Schneberger, CEO of USA Rare Earth, joins us to talk about rare earths supply chains and the production of rare earth magnets key to energy transition technologies like electric vehicles and wind turbines. Energy Evolution co-hosts Dan Testa and Taylor Kuykendall are veteran journalists with broad expertise covering the energy and mining sectors. In a...

Renewable Natural Gas – also known as RNG or biomethane — has gained attention in recent years as a lower-carbon replacement for conventional fossil natural gas. Rising demand for RNG has helped push prices for the associated environmental attributes up to anywhere from five to forty times the price of physical natural gas. As the market has grown, so has the need for transparent pricing. In respo...

On this episode of Energy Evolution, our guests discuss the recent boom in jobs and manufacturing in the renewable energy sector in the United States. The one-year-old Inflation Reduction Act drives much of this growth, which is leading to significant cost savings projected for wind and solar developers using U.S.-made components. Today's guests include Matthew Rand, managing director, research an...

In this episode of the Energy Evolution podcast by S&P Global Commodity Insights, we discuss decarbonizing New Belgium's beer brewing operations. In addition to speaking with Andy Collins, the utilities and carbon neutral engineer at New Belgium, podcast host Taylor Kuykendall interviews Addison Stark, the CEO of AtmosZero. Backed by the U.S. Department of Energy, AtmosZero recently introduced a c...

India has an ambitious target to double the steel production capacity by 2030 from current levels. While the steel industry gears up for this expansion, concerns of higher carbon emissions loom large amid India lacking a distinct roadmap for decarbonization and its carbon neutrality target set as far ahead as 2070. At the same time, Europe is gearing up to implement the Carbon Border Adjustment Me...

Artificial intelligence has captured the interest of the world in recent months, particularly as advances in generative AI continue to push the envelope. In this episode of the Energy Evolution podcast, Hussein Shel, director, chief technologist for energy and utilities at Amazon Web Services, discusses the $100 million Generative AI Innovation Center launched by AWS. The program aims to help ente...

In this Energy Evolution episode, we talk about how renewable energy resources played a critical role in supporting Texas' electricity grid during a recent heat wave. Our guests discuss the importance of a mix of renewable energy sources, battery storage, and reforms that will support developers and make it easier to develop renewable energy projects. Our hosts are joined by Katya Ghosh, a busines...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, we discuss where we will find the metals and minerals necessary for the energy transition. Our guest is Kwasi Ampofo, head of metals and mining at Bloomberg NEF and the lead author of the company's recent Energy Transition Metal Production Scores report.  The report ranks the readiness of global economies to boost the production of minerals such as as lithium,...

The European steel industry is at the forefront of developing a market for lower CO2 emission steel. New production processes are being implemented, new products are being offered, but the green steel market is lacking standardization at the same time. Standardization of carbon-accounted products is one of many items on the European Commission's energy transition to-do list. The next action item i...

Residential rooftop solar is booming in popularity as policy incentives, driven by decarbonization goals, encourage homeowners to install panels of their own. But for those who rent their home or live in multifamily dwellings like apartment buildings, installing solar panels and accessing their financial benefits may be more complicated. In this episode, Mel Bergsneider, executive account manager...

The PJM Interconnection, the nation's largest electricity grid operator, is working to alleviate a logjam of renewable projects waiting to be connected to its system, while also warning in a recent analysis that thermal generation retirements could outpace these new intermittent resource replacements. Darren Sweeney, a senior reporter at S&P Global Commodity Insights, joined Energy Evolution for t...

Amid global efforts to decarbonize, US President Joe Biden's administration has set an ambitious goal to have 50% of all new vehicle sales in the US be electric by the end of this decade. However, making this shift will be heavily reliant on securing supply of battery metals. As countries around the globe are racing to electrify, Latin America, with its rich mineral reserves, is set to play a crit...

For major companies with large vehicle fleets, a core tenet of decarbonization efforts can be found in fleet electrification. A host of large corporations including Amazon, UPS, and Walmart have all made EV fleet commitments or signed agreements to purchase electric delivery vehicles. Patrick Sullivan, co-founder and CEO of EV Realty, a California-based company focused on accelerating the adoption...

Amid global efforts to decarbonize, US President Joe Biden's administration has set an ambitious goal to have 50% of all new vehicle sales in the US be electric by the end of this decade. However, making this shift will be heavily reliant on securing supply of battery metals. As countries around the globe are racing to electrify, Latin America, with its rich mineral reserves, is set to play a crit...

In this episode of Energy Evolution, co-host Taylor Kuykendall talks with Alfred Johnson, co-founder and CEO of Crux, about funding energy transition projects. Johnson, the former deputy chief of staff to U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, discusses the Inflation Reduction Act, which makes tax credits available to companies producing clean power and materials, and how Crux provides an ecosystem...

This episode of Energy Evolution by S&P Global Commodity Insights discusses the mining sector's importance in the worldwide shift to greener energy. The materials that make up energy transition technologies are often mined materials and the demand for minerals is expected to increase by as much as six times what our use is today by 2040. The podcast features interviews with Tony Sage, executive ch...

Vast has developed concentrated solar power that can capture, store and deliver dispatchable solar power and heat on a 24/7 basis. It recently proved its technology with a grid-connected project in Australia. Vast CEO Craig Wood joins Energy Evolution to talk about the revival of concentrated solar power technology and the role it can play in the energy transition.  Energy Evolution co-hosts Dan T...