Energy Gang

Bill Gates is a very influential guy -- not just because he founded Microsoft, but because of his powerful foundation. With $40 billion in trust assets, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is one the biggest charitable organizations in the world focusing on global health, clean water, energy access and financing for entrepreneurs. So when Gates writes on his blog that developing countries can’t af...

In the academic world, there’s lots of debate about how expensive or cheap renewables are compared to fossil fuels. But do they actually match what’s happening on the ground? In this week’s podcast, we’ll talk with Amory Lovins, the founder and chief scientist at the Rocky Mountain Institute, about the difference between the market reality of renewables and the economic debate about their cost. In...

Last week, hackers at the Black Hat conference showed how to jailbreak a Nest learning thermostat and override the firmware, taking it under their control. The hack itself cannot be done without physical access to the device, and Nest said no devices have been hacked maliciously. But it’s one of many recent hacks of connected devices in the home. So are we safe? In this podcast, we’ll talk about t...

Are your solar panels facing the wrong way? Is your utility focusing on the wrong types of energy efficiency? These are the questions that Pecan Street Inc. has attempted to answer through its data collection from smart grid projects. The findings may surprise you. In this week’s podcast, we’ll talk with Brewster McCracken, the CEO of Pecan Street Inc, about the organization’s most compelling anal...

How do we calculate the true cost of intermittent renewables? The levelized cost of wind and solar are falling by the day. But how cheap are they really? A recent study from the Brookings Institution concludes that they are higher than presumed when using a cost-benefit calculation. In this podcast, we'll debate the merits of the Brookings study and ask what assumptions one should make when evalua...

The biggest investors in the world are pouring their money into renewable energy projects. Want to join them? Now you can. Up until recently, it was nearly impossible for most investors to directly support solar, wind and other projects that offer stable returns. But YieldCos are changing that. In this week’s podcast, we’ll tell you about how publicly traded YieldCos work, why so many companies ar...

In the last couple of years, five nuclear power plants in the U.S. have been put on the list for closure. These plants are getting challenged from two sides: competitive natural gas and renewables are eroding the economics of merchant projects, while technical challenges associated with age are making the plants more expensive to operate. Some are cheering the slow, creaky demise of nuclear in the...

Today, solar’s dominance feels inevitable. But in 1979, when Neville Williams started promoting the industry at the Department of Energy, it felt like a far-off dream. That didn’t stop the early pioneers from thinking big and pushing the government to invest in the early technology – helping solar module costs fall from $55 per watt in the 1970s to 50 cents per watt today. In this podcast, we’ll t...

Former Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson recently made a bold comparison between the financial risks that led to the 2008 economic collapse and emerging climate risks: "We’re staring down a climate bubble that poses enormous risks to both our environment and economy. The warning signs are clear and growing more urgent as the risks go unchecked." New data suggests that Paulson is correct. In this wee...

This week, SolarCity shocked the solar industry by announcing its intentions to acquire Silevo, and move quickly into cell and module manufacturing. America's largest solar installer now wants to be one of the most powerful producers of solar products. But does the move make sense? In this week's show, we'll debate the technology risks and cost upsides of SolarCity's manufacturing play. Then, we'l...

It’s been a year and a half since Sandy destroyed the East Coast electric grid and left more than 8 million people without power. So has anything materially changed in the utility sector since October of 2012? In this week’s podcast, we feature a discussion on Greentech Media’s new eBook about the legacy of the storm: “Resiliency: How Superstorm Sandy Changed America’s Grid.” We’ll talk with Gary...

In theory, solar PV is the ultimate democratized energy technology. But is it living up to its potential? Historically, solar has been accessible to wealthy environmentalists, utilities and large corporations. But it has been less available to low-income people who most need relief from their rising utility bills. And while the industry fares better than others in diversity, it is still lagging in...

This week, the U.S. government indicted five hackers working for the Chinese military who allegedly stole trade secrets from six major energy and industrial companies operating in America. One of those companies was the solar manufacturer SolarWorld. The case once again raises concerns about the growing problem of corporate espionage in the clean energy industry, where companies are often targeted...

How could a bipartisan energy efficiency bill described as "innocuous" fail so many times in Congress? Once again, the Senate failed to pass the Shaheen-Portman bill, a piece of legislation that would have created new standards and financing mechanisms for commercial and industrial efficiency. But the failure was less about energy and more about mid-term politics. In this week's podcast, we'll loo...

Nine years ago, Walmart announced its landmark initiative to reduce waste and cut greenhouse gas emissions. But today its emissions are 14 percent higher. That sounds like the initiative was a failure, right? Maybe not. In this week's podcast, the Gang sits down with corporate sustainability expert Andrew Winston to chat about how to judge the success of greening efforts at big companies. Later in...

Earlier this week, New York officials issued a report calling for structural changes to the way utilities are regulated. The proposal would make distribution utilities into Distributed System Platform Providers that get compensated for their ability to integrate clean energy, demand response and efficiency on the grid. It's a fundamentally new way to think about how power companies should plan for...

In this week’s podcast, we have a conversation with leading solar executives on whether solar has reached the point of no return. We’ll talk about vertical integration, evolving business models, international markets and the economics of projects. The Energy Gang is produced by Greentechmedia.com. The show features weekly discussion between energy futurist Jigar Shah, energy policy expert Katherin...

Could solar paired with battery storage make utilities obsolete? That's the question analysts are asking as the economics of the technologies improve. The short answer is "no." Utilities operate an extremely valuable set of infrastructure and still benefit from legacy customer relationships. And the economics of grid defection are usually not favorable. But it's an important question to ask, says...

This week, the Gang is live from the Building Energy Summit in Washington, DC. In this episode, we talk with some of the leading thinkers and practitioners in sustainable design and get their thoughts on how our built environment is evolving. The Energy Gang is produced by Greentechmedia.com. The show features weekly discussion between energy futurist Jigar Shah, energy policy expert Katherine Ham...

A new study from PJM, America's largest wholesale competitive energy market, once again shows that high amounts of renewables can be integrated without harming the grid or raising energy prices. In this week's show, we'll look at the real-world challenges of renewable energy integration, and ask why so many myths persist about their role on the grid. Then we'll take a look at what Minnesota's new...

U.S. Natural Gas is being touted as a tool to weaken Russian President Vladimir Putin's influence in Europe. But how effective would an export strategy really be? In this week's show, we'll look at the reality of using American natural gas as a geopolitical tool. We'll also discuss the push among Democrats to talk about climate change in the lead up to the 2016 elections, and we'll look at the sig...

As expected, 2013 was yet another record year for solar in the U.S. With 5.1 gigawatts of PV and CSP coming online, the solar industry was the second largest provider of electricity capacity behind natural gas. But how long will it continue? With a tax credit expiration looming, conflicts over net metering and a brewing solar trade war, it is far from assured that this boom will go on forever. Thi...

This month, the U.S. government agreed to take up another case against China for its solar trade practices. The complaint was filed by German solar producer SolarWorld, but most of the solar industry agrees that the case could be terrible for the U.S. solar market. So will we reach a settlement? In this week's show, the Energy Gang will debate the consequences of the U.S.-China solar trade war. We...

ARPA-E was modeled after a successful defense research agency called DARPA, which helped create the foundation of the internet. So can the government's energy innovation agency do something equally groundbreaking for clean energy? This week, we'll talk with ARPA-E's director, Dr. Cheryl Martin, who describes how she thinks about developing groundbreaking energy technologies. We'll also debate the...

The electricity sector in the U.S. is nearing a tipping point for clean energy. But transportation isn't seeing the same level of change. In this week's podcast -- recorded live at the Department of Transportation -- we'll look at where the tipping points may occur in electric vehicles, car sharing, public transport and freight. The Energy Gang is produced by Greentechmedia.com. The show features...