Energy Evolution

Latest Episodes:

Energy transition to be shaped by world response to COVID-19 Apr 30, 2020

Show notes

The coronavirus pandemic could help accelerate the investment shift from oil and gas to renewable energy. But the pace of that transition depends heavily on how governments direct economic recovery spending, and whether the consumer behavior changes induced by the pandemic prove permanent. In this episode, the Energy Evolution team spoke about these issues with Fatih Birol of the International Energy Agency, environmentalist and writer Bill McKibben, Amy Myers Jaffe of the Council on Foreign Relations, and Mark Lewis, head of climate change investment research at BNP Paribas Asset Management. Check out the article accompanying the episode here. Co-hosts Dan Testa, Allison Good and Taylor Kuykendall are veteran journalists with broad expertise covering the utility, oil and gas and mining sectors. Subscribe to Energy Evolution to catch upcoming episodes!

Small reactors could be a big deal for nuclear industry Mar 30, 2020

Show notes

States developing long-term plans to zero out carbon emissions by mid-century are key to driving adoption of advanced nuclear technology, Dr. José Reyes, a co-founder of NuScale Power said on S&P Global Market Intelligence's Energy Evolution podcast.

NuScale is developing a new design for nuclear small modular reactors, or SMRs, which could be useful for states moving toward a system in which "firm" carbon-free power generation technology is needed to complement renewables.

Co-hosts Dan Testa, Allison Good and Taylor Kuykendall are veteran journalists with broad expertise covering the utility, oil and gas and mining sectors. Subscribe to Energy Evolution to catch upcoming episodes!

Lithium demand heads for 2020 decline as market feels effects of coronavirus Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

Joe Lowry of Global Lithium -- known as "Mr. Lithium" -- forecasts lithium demand to fall in 2020 compared with 2019, the first annual decrease in many years.

Lowry examines the impacts of the coronavirus outbreak on the lithium market with Henrique Ribeiro of S&P Global Platts.

Coronavirus pandemic, oil price crash shake up energy industry Mar 13, 2020

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As the COVID-19 pandemic drives crude oil prices into the $30 per barrel range, the Energy Evolution team takes a look at what the global economic slowdown means for fossil fuels, utilities and renewable energy. Listen to the episode, and subscribe to catch future episodes. (Photo: AP)

China battery metals sector remains optimistic about 2020 demand despite weak Q1 Mar 05, 2020

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In this episode of the S&P Global Platts Battery Metals podcast, Platts head of APAC Metals Insights Paul Bartholomew, analyst Lucy Tang, and associate editor Joyce Zhang discuss how the coronavirus outbreak is affecting China's automobile and new energy vehicle industry, and illustrate the details of the latest Platts survey on battery metals and lithium outlook.

Climate concerns are driving the financial world away from fossil fuels Feb 20, 2020

Show notes

BlackRock Inc., the world's largest asset manager, recently announced it would be pulling out of its investments in certain parts of the coal sector. The move is part of a broader trend where banks, insurers and other parts of the finance world are pledging to stay away from fossil fuels to address concerns about climate change. Join us on Energy Evolution, where this month we check in on what is being said about the rising fossil fuel divestment trend and talk to activists, analysts and a representative of the largest coal company in the U.S. about what is going on and what may be next.

What's in store for Nickel over 2020? Feb 04, 2020

Show notes

The S&P Global Platts Battery Metals podcast kicks off 2020 with a deep dive into nickel. Platts Editor Henrique Ribeiro is joined by Jason Sappor, nickel analyst at S&P Global Market Intelligence, to discuss his expectations for the nickel market in 2020, the implications of the Indonesian ore export ban, and what this means for the EV battery industry. You can learn more in our quarterly Platts Battery Metals Insight.

The forces driving a gas-fired power plant glut Jan 23, 2020

Show notes

After an S&P Global Market Intelligence investigative team uncovered the powerful incentives to build natural gas-fired power plants in the U.S., the Energy Evolution podcast interviewed some of the "Overpowered" series' sources and authors to follow up on why utilities are adding gas generation despite flat demand and some states' efforts to adopt more renewable energy.

Energy Evolution also talked to sources from the Overpowered series about why the PJM Interconnection — the country's largest market for electric power — may continue to over-procure gas generation capacity, how Virginia state officials are starting to push back against Dominion Energy Inc.'s electricity demand forecasts and what the Oxnard, Calif., city council is doing to acquire more power from renewable resources after rejecting the Puente Power Project proposed by NRG Energy Inc. and Edison International utility Southern California Edison Co.

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(Photo: AP)

A very special Energy Evolution holiday episode Dec 18, 2019

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From turkeys and LED lights to celebrating Hanukkah with solar energy, the Energy Evolution team breaks down power usage during the holidays with efficiency tips, fun facts and a cooking tutorial.

The fourth episode also features answers to questions about the history behind Americans' holiday light tradition, which variety of stuffing is best and how regional grid operators prepare to accommodate soaring demand.

Subscribe to Energy Evolution on Soundcloud, Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.

(Photo: AP)

Why solar energy could get even cheaper Nov 20, 2019

Show notes

The price of producing electricity from solar energy has dropped rapidly in the last several years and nothing is stopping it from dropping even further, an expert recently told the hosts of Energy Evolution, an S&P Global Market Intelligence podcast. There is still room for reducing the cost of solar, both by improving the physical workings of the technology itself and by reducing the cost of production and deployment of solar photovoltaics, said Greg Nemet, a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who researches technological shifts and how public policy can affect those changes. Once denounced as too expensive, solar energy is already displacing other fuel sources as the cheapest form of generation in some regions. Nemet, who wrote the recently published book "How Solar Energy Became Cheap," noted one of the challenges with solar energy is that once it is installed it essentially becomes a zero variable cost source of electricity. That could contribute to under investment on the part of utilities. The solution, he said, is to modernize utility regulations that in many cases were created decades ago in order to better accommodate renewable energy resources and other technologies.

Listen to the full episode to hear more, and subscribe to Energy Evolution to catch future episodes.

(Photo: AP)