Aurora Energy Research Podcast

In this episode, Emma Woodward, Project Leader on Aurora’s Advisory Team is joined by Catherine Raw, Managing Director of SSE Thermal to discuss low-carbon flexibility with focus on hydrogen and gas CCS within the power sector. Catherine joined SSE in April 2022 where she is responsible for the strategy, performance and development of the company’s flexible power generation and energy storage activities. Previous to SSE, Catherine was Chief Operating Officer for North America and Chief Financial Officer for Barrick Gold and Managing Director and Fund Manager at Blackrock.Emma & Catherine discuss:•The importance of low-carbon flexibility in the power sector •Additional system needs and how thermal technologies might be able to provide low-carbon capacity•The work SSE is doing in this space•The progress needed in 2023 in order to support the development of low-carbon flexibility in the power sectorSupport the show

In this Energy Unplugged episode we discuss the implications of the US Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Our Head of US Oliver Kerr is joined by Martin Anderson, Aurora’s Head of Research in US, Felix Chow-Kambitsch, Aurora’s Head of US West and Julia Hoos, Aurora’s Market Lead for PJM.The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is the most significant piece of climate legislation in the US in over a decade, and aims to support accelerating the energy transition. Main topics include:•The state of the energy transition in the US and key differences compared to the European approach •How quickly can wind and solar scale given the constraints around supply chain and interconnection issues•What determines whether solar will take the production tax credit or the investment tax credit•The impact on power prices, on new build vs the existing assets and variations across marketsSupport the show

In this episode, we focus on an increasingly very hot topic which is battery business models in Europe. Our Managing Director for Central Europe, Hanns Koenig is joined by Aurora’s experts Marise Westbroek and Ryan Alexander. Ryan leads our European research team and one of their most popular reports this year has been the European Battery Markets Attractiveness, which looks into market and policy drivers for shaping the attractiveness of various markets for batteries across Europe. Marise is a Project Leader in our advisory team and specialises in flexibility markets. Over the past years she had led a massive multi-client study with focus on investing battery business cases in Germany, Netherlands and Belgium in particular. Main topics include:•The current market conditions for batteries, the impact of supply chain constraints and the high power prices across Europe•The characteristics developers would need today to be successful in such a complex market•Revenue streams development and implications on tradin

In this episode, our Managing Director for Europe, Middle East & Africa, Manuel Koehler is joined by Horatio Evers, Managing Director, BASF Renewable Energy. BASF is the biggest chemical company in the world and in his current position, Horatio is responsible for the strategic direction and overall achievement of BASF’s Net Zero targets.Horatio is passionate about collecting, refurbishing and driving old racing bikes and through this reduces his CO2 output.Horatio and Manuel discuss:•BASF’s journey to decarbonisation and the company’s Net Zero targets•What kind of partnerships are important for BASF•The main changes that would need to happen at the policy level and why •The implications of the energy crisis in Europe on BASF from a renewables perspectiveSupport the show

In this episode, our Managing Director of Aurora in APAC & California, Hugo Batten is delighted to be joined by Sheldon Kimber, CEO and Founder of Intersect Power and our Founder and CEO, John Feddersen. Intersect Power is one of the most successful and dynamic clean infrastructure companies in the US today. Sheldon has had a hugely impressive and diverse career in energy, spending time at Recurrent, Calpine and at Accenture before founding Intersect Power. He also lectures at the Haas School of Business, University of California Berkeley.Main topics include:•Intersect’s thinking about the future of energy markets and decarbonisation•The US energy markets and the future of utilities in California•The energy crisis in Europe Read more from Sheldon on The Nexus of Deep Decarbonization here: https://www.intersectpower.com/the-nexus-of-deep-decarbonization/Support the show

In this episode, Nick Carter, Managing Director at Akaysha Energy and Weijie Mak, Aurora’s Head of Consulting in Australia join Hugo Batten, our Managing Director in APAC & California. Akaysha is a battery developer that has just had a major investment from Blackrock to help fund storage developments across APAC. Prior to Akaysha, Nick has worked at Macquarie, Tesla and AGL, as well as Toyota and General Motors.The focus of the discussion is very much on the nuances of battery and hydrogen investment cases in Australia and across other key Asian markets. Main topics include:•The evolution of battery investment cases in the next few years•Supply chain and CAPEX increases•The transaction with Akaysha and Blackrock that made news in Australia•Akaysha’s business plan when it comes to hydrogenSupport the show

In this episode, our Managing Director in APAC and California, Hugo Batten and our CEO, John Feddersen are joined by Elliot Mainzer, President and CEO of the California Independent System Operator (CAISO).Elliot has had an impressive career in energy, spending time at Enron, 18 years at the Bonneville Power Administration where he rose to CEO, and over the last 3 years being the CEO of CAISO.Main topics include:•Californian energy markets - reality versus plans•Market design in CAISO evolving over the very long-term •Innovation in storage investment cases in CAISOSupport the show

This is a special podcast episode featuring one of the speakers at the Aurora Hydrogen Conference 2022, taking place on Wednesday 9th November in London.Our Co-Head of Advisory in Central Europe, Thekla von Bülow speaks to Alexander Voigt, CEO and Co-Founder of HH2E.Alexander is a serial entrepreneur and one of the pioneers of the global energy transition. He has studied physics and started his career at an engineering bureau working on solar thermal solutions. He has founded several companies in the energy sector such as Solon in the solar space, Younicos in the battery space, Lumenion in the high temperature heat storage space, and as well as STOFF2 & HH2E in the hydrogen space.Thekla and Alexander discuss:• What does HH2E do? And what role will it play in the European hydrogen space?• How can the growth of the hydrogen economy be accelerated and what are the main hurdles?• What is the right way to integrate hydrogen in the wider energy system?• What will the future of the European hydrogen landscape lo

In this episode, our Research Lead in Aurora’s Australian office James Ha is delighted to be joined by Frank Jotzo, Professor at the Australian National University and our Managing Director for Australia and California, Hugo Batten. Frank is a professor of environmental economics at the ANU’s Crawford School of Public Policy, the inaugural director at the Centre for Climate Economics and Policy, and Head of Energy at the ANU Institute for Climate, Energy & Disaster Solutions. He has been a lead author of the IPCC’s 5th and 6th Assessment Reports, and is the co-editor-in-chief of the journal Climate Policy. He has advised both the Australian and Indonesian Governments, and contributed to the Garnaut Climate Change Review.Main topics include:•Australia’s NetZero commitments and whether they are squaring with the goals of the Paris Agreement•Decarbonising the Australian economy and views on carbon pricing•Energy policy and the role of economic modellingSupport the show

In this episode, our Founder and CEO, John Feddersen is delighted to welcome Jimmy Glotfelty, Commissioner on the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT). With a distinguished career in public service in the electricity sector, Jimmy has been appointed as Commissioner on the PUCT in August 2021. Previously, he had several public senior roles including Senior Policy Advisor to U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham, Energy Policy Director to Texas Governor George W. Bush and Legislative Director to Congressman Sam Johnson. He has also served as Founder and Executive Vice President of Clean Line Energy.Jimmy and John discuss:•The PUCT’s role in the US energy system•The impact of the Russian war in Europe and effects seen in the US•The Government’s role in enabling the electrification of the vehicle fleetSupport the show

This episode is second in a series on global project finance, organized in partnership with SMBC Group. With a number of 4 episodes covering Europe, Australia, Asia and the US, this series is hosted by Aurora, with guests from SMBC Group, various law firms and Aurora.In this episode, we have our Managing Director in APAC & California, Hugo Batten talking to Jeremy Hasnip, Head of Energy Transition at SMBC, Elizabeth Charlesworth, Partner at Herbert Smith Freehills and Rowan von Spreckelsen, Principal at Aurora. Main topics include:•An overview of the project finance space in Australia•The largest areas for debate and negotiation at the moment •The impact of a higher-inflation and higher cost environment on typical project finance terms•The financing of newer technologies and the largest impediments to debt funding of storageSupport the show

In this episode, our Managing Director for Australia and California, Hugo Batten is joined by Benn Barr, the Chief Executive of the Australian Energy Market Commission (AEMC) and James Ha, Aurora’s Project Lead in our Sydney team.AEMC is the rule maker in the Australian energy markets and decides on any proposed rule changes in Australia’s electricity and gas markets. Prior to joining the AEMC, Benn was Deputy Director General in the Queensland Department of Natural Resources, Mines and Energy. Main topics include:•The current priorities for the AEMC including the role of rule makers and the impact of the current crisis •The role of market modelling when it comes to challenges around market re-design•The pros and cons of capacity marketsSupport the show

This week on Energy Unplugged, Fraser Thompson, Co-founder & Chief Strategy Officer of Sun Cable joins our Managing Director for Australia and California, Hugo Batten and Weijie Mak, Aurora’s Head of Consulting across Asia-Pacific for our podcast episode. Fraser is the co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer for SunCable. He also founded AlphaBeta, an economic strategy consultancy headquartered in Singapore which has now been acquired by Access Partnership. Prior to this he spent 9 years at McKinsey, in particular, at McKinsey’s Global Institute. The main topics discussed include:•Key fundamentals of the Sun Cable project•Long-term trends in energy markets•Fraser’s career and the value of doing a PhDSupport the show

This week on Energy Unplugged, we explore the debates surrounding the technical and topical issue of Locational Marginal Pricing (LMP). Drawing once again on the knowledge of some of Aurora’s global leadership: Dan Monzani, Managing Director of UK and Ireland, is joined by Hanns Koenig, Head of Consulting for Central and Eastern Europe, Hugo Batten - MD for Asia-Pacific and California and Oliver Kerr – Head of USA.The main questions the team sought out to answer are as follows:• What is LMP?• What is the context surrounding the economic/ market design for LMP?• What are the pros and cons of LMP?Support the show

Jeff Dimery, Managing Director & CEO of Alinta Energy joins our Managing Director for Australia and California, Hugo Batten, in our latest #EnergyUnplugged podcast episode.Jeff has had a long and distinguished career in Australian energy. He has held senior roles at AGL (another Australian “gentailer”) and is now the Managing Director and CEO of Alinta Energy, one of the major vertically integrated utilities in the Australian market.Hugo and Jeff discuss the following topics:•Unprecedented times caused by the current crisis facing the Australian energy market•The role of utility in decarbonising energy markets•Market design, focusing on capacity marketsSupport the show

In this week’s episode of Energy Unplugged, our Managing Director for UK and Ireland, Dan Monzani is delighted to be joined by Dan McGrail, Chief Executive at RenewableUK.Dan joined RenewableUK as Chief Executive in May 2021. Previously, during his time as a senior leader at Siemens for close to two decades, Dan played a critical role in the innovation and manufacture of key energy technologies including wind turbine blades and efficient thermal engines. As well as being the CEO of Siemens Engines until last year, Dan was also the Chair of the Association for Decentralised Energy from 2016 to 2019.The main topics include:•How broadly should green hydrogen be defined•What is needed to hit the government’s new offshore wind targets•The disruptions in the global supply chain •The current debates around market designSupport the show

This week, we have a special Energy Unplugged podcast episode on the topic of the current energy price crisis and the implications for market design. The Head of our Berlin office, Hanns Koenig is joined by two very distinguished guests: Lion Hirth – Professor of Energy Policy at the Hertie School in Berlin and Robert Gross – Director at UKERC (The UK Energy Research Centre) and also a Professor of Energy Policy at Imperial College London. Lion is one of the leading thinkers on power market design in Europe and Rob is an authority in power market design in Great Britain. Main topics include:•What is going on in the European power markets at the moment•Why are power prices so high and what are the implications for market design•Splitting markets for renewables and conventional generation•Gas price caps for the power sector and the windfall taxSupport the show

In this episode, our Managing Director in Australia and California, Hugo Batten is delighted to be joined by Rob Wheals, CEO and Managing Director of APA. APA is an energy infrastructure business with gas pipeline, electricity, solar and wind assets and the 30th largest publicly listed Australian company on the Australian Stock Exchange. Prior to APA, Rob had a varied career across tech, consulting, telco and energy. Rob and Hugo discuss:•The long-run impact of the current price/security of supply crises in Europe and Australia•The major steps needed to deliver a more orderly transition•Hydrogen and the timeline of cost competitivenessSupport the show

In this episode, Hanns Koenig, our Head of Commissioned Projects for Central Europe, is joined by one of the leading voices of the Polish energy sector - Monika Morawiecka, Senior Advisor at The Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP).RAP is a think-tank advising predominantly governments in creating better energy sector regulation. Prior to RAP, Monika had a distinguished career in the energy sector, with more than 15 years at Poland's largest utility PGE. Her roles at PGE included Head of Strategy at PGE Group and CEO of PGE's Offshore Wind division, PGE Baltica.Hanns and Monika discuss:•The current state of the Polish energy market•The energy crisis and the impact of Russia’s war in Ukraine on the energy transition in Poland•The role offshore wind can play in the Polish energy mixSupport the show

This week on Energy Unplugged we’re doing a deep dive on capacity markets with some of Aurora's leadership from around the world. Our Founder and CEO, John Feddersen is joined by Dan Monzani – MD for GB and Ireland, Hugo Batten - MD for Asia-Pacific and California and Oliver Kerr – Head of USA. The main questions we’re trying to answer are: 1) What are capacity markets?; 2) Why are they used?; and 3) When do they work?As in Europe capacity markets have largely won the debate, the focus is on markets outside Europe. Main topics include: •The core elements of capacity markets, procurement targets, timings & frequency of auctions•Political context and in what ways does it matter•Key strengths of the capacity marketsSupport the show