Aurora Energy Research Podcast

This week, we have a special episode on Energy Unplugged in which our experts discuss the ongoing crisis in the European energy sector and the impact of Russia-Ukraine war on the European gas markets. Our Head of Commissioned Projects in Central Europe, Hanns Koenig is joined by Anise Ganbold who leads our research team for Commodities and Hydrogen.Anise and the team have been looking for the past couple of weeks into this topic and have been producing a couple of reports. One report which has been released this week examines how a drop in available Russian gas export capacity, or supply, to Europe affects the European supply mix. More details can be found at: https://auroraer.com/insight/impact-of-ukraine-russia-conflict-on-european-gas-markets/Anise and Hanns discuss:• A retrospective of what happened in the European gas market over the past few weeks• The European reliance on Russian gas and coal• The increase in gas and power prices and the impact on gas supply and demandSupport the show

In this episode, our CEO John Feddersen is talking to Kellie Metcalf, Managing Partner at one of the leading energy transition investors - EnCap Investments. Kellie had a long and distinguished career in the power sector. She was a Senior Director at Pattern Development, a renewable energy and transmission development firm and held senior roles in power marketing and origination at Barclays and Fortis Bank. She began her career in 1995 at Enron North America and before her business career, Kellie was a First Lieutenant in the US Army. Kellie and John discuss:•The importance of a trading background for a C-suite of an electricity utility•The impact of the power crises in the US on the process of electricity market liberalisation •ESG investing and where are we in measuring and evaluating ESG performance of companies and investment fundsSupport the show

This week on Energy Unplugged we focus on energy data and digitalization. Our Managing Director for UK and Ireland, Dan Monzani is delighted to be joined by Laura Sandys, Non-Executive Director at SGN and at the Energy Systems Catapult.With a diverse career in energy and consumer’s rights, Laura has recently chaired two of the UK Government taskforces, one on energy data and the Energy Digitalization Taskforce which was recently launched by BEIS with the purpose to continue the Government’s focus on modernising the energy system.Dan and Laura discuss:•What would a world class digital energy system look like •The main recommendations on data and the progress made since 2019 plus the recent recommendations on digitalisation •The benefits of interoperability across the system•The need to rethink the role of the retail market as part of Net ZeroNext week we will welcome Kellie Metcalf, Managing Partner, Energy Transition at EnCap Investments. Stay tuned!Support the show

In this episode, our CEO John Feddersen is joined by Pat Wood, III, former FERC Chairman and CEO at Hunt Energy Network. With a distinguished career in energy and the public service, Pat has served as Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in the US under President George W. Bush, and of the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT). He holds a B.S. degree in civil engineering from Texas A&M University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.John & Pat discuss:* The role of the federal government in driving the push towards an increasingly clean, affordable and reliable power system* The biggest impediment to Biden’s plan to decarbonise the power grid by 2035* The potential for batteries in the US power gridNext week on Energy Unplugged we will welcome Laura Sandys, Chair of the UK Government Energy Digitalisation Taskforce. Stay tuned!Support the show

In this episode, our Managing Director for UK and Ireland, Dan Monzani speaks to Louise Kingham, Senior Vice President for Europe & UK Head of Country at BP.Prior to joining BP in May 2021, Louise was the CEO of the Energy Institute for more than 20 years, role in which she had a unique broad perspective across the energy transition. Louise is one of the sixteen CEOs on the Energy Leaders’ Coalition, organised by Powerful Women, a major professional initiative that seeks to promote the growth and leadership development of women across the energy sector. Dan and Louise discuss:* Affordability across Europe and how goverments should manage the massive impact of rising energy prices on those on the lowest incomes* BP's committment to reach Net Zero by 2050 and their focus to help the world get there too* The most likely use cases for hydrogen, where is most likely to be a cost effective part of the transition and BP's new partnership with Aberdeen City Council * Whether we are on track for the 40GW

In this episode, we’re taking a global perspective on the energy transition having as guests two experts in the field. Our Principal Benjamin Collie is joined by Sam Arie, Head of European Utilities Equity Research at UBS and Evangelos Gazis, Project Leader and Market Lead for South Eastern Europe at Aurora. Aurora and UBS worked together in the last few years in preparing a report on the state of the global energy transition with focus on emissions from the power sector. Main topics of the podcast include:•The scale of the challenge for investing to decarbonise•How much capital is needed to decarbonise some of the most difficult sectors and what are the implications for the global economy•The levels of carbon prices that might be needed across the economy to achieve the targets •The progress made at COP26 and the most likely next steps to be made by COP27Next week on Energy Unplugged we will welcome Louise Kingham, Senior Vice President for Europe and Head of Country in the UK at BP. Stay tuned!Support the

This week on Energy Unplugged, we discuss about how to decarbonize transport with Trudy Harrison MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the UK Department for Transport, in an episode hosted by our Research Director, Richard Howard. Trudy was appointed in the current role on 17 September 2021 and she was elected Conservative MP for Copeland in 2017. Her career outside politics includes working for Sellafield nuclear site and in renewable energy and sustainable community projects.Richard and Trudy discuss:•How does a Net Zero system need to look like and what are the key enabling technologies•What does government need to do to accelerate this shift •How do we ensure that the costs and fiscal impacts of this transition are manageableNext week we will welcome Sam Arie, Research Analyst at UBS. Stay tuned!Support the show

In this episode, our CEO John Feddersen is joined by Tony Cocker, Senior Independent Director of SSE plc. Tony is also Chair of Infinis Energy Management Ltd, a distributed power generator. Between 1996-2017 he worked for E.ON SE and Powergen in a number of roles, including Chair and CEO of E.ON UK and Chair and CEO of E.ON Energy Trading SE.John and Tony discuss:•The change in the role of a director in the renewables space•The future of the British retail power market•Reforms needed to most ease the transition to Net Zero•SSE as a major sponsor of COP26Next week on Energy Unplugged we will welcome Trudy Harrison MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Transport. Stay tuned!Support the show

In this episode, our Managing Director in Australia Hugo Batten speaks to Farhad Billimoria, Energy Systems Researcher, Energy & Power Group at the University of Oxford and Rowan von Spreckelsen, Principal in our Sydney office. Farhard is currently completing his PhD on energy markets in Oxford and he has worked for Australia’s system operator AEMO, Mercer, CalPERS and AMP Capital Investors. The focus of the discussion is around the Australian energy market and incentive structures to bring on new renewables and firming capacity. Main topics include:•The major challenges and opportunities for renewables and storage investment in Australia•Market design reforms and incentive structures shifting through renewables•The New South Wales Government contracts structures, key components and implications for market participantsNext week on Energy Unplugged we will welcome Tony Cocker, Senior Independent Director of SSE plc. Stay tuned!Support the show

This week on Energy Unplugged we have a Christmas special episode in which we focus on waste management and energy from waste in particular. Our Research Director, Richard Howard is joined by two waste experts: Julia Watsford, CEO at Enfinium, the largest pure-play waste-to-energy operator in the UK and Chris Jonas, Director at Tolvik Consulting, one of the expert advisors on waste markets in the UK and Europe. Main topics include:•COVID impact on the waste-to-energy sector•The role of waste management in the Net Zero transition •Views on a potential incineration tax •Negative emissions and the potential of energy from waste to incorporate CCSSupport the show

In this episode, our Head of Commissioned Projects for Western Europe, Felix Chow-Kambitsch is talking to Boris Schucht, Chief Executive Officer of Urenco, an international supplier of uranium enrichment services.Boris joined Urenco in May 2019 from 50Hertz, the North-East German Transmission System Operator, where he has held the position of Chief Executive Officer since 2010. Previously he held a number of senior executive positions within the energy sector across Germany and Europe, including WEMAG AG and the Vattenfall Group.Felix and Boris discuss:•The role of nuclear in the energy transition and nuclear innovation•Key takeaways from COP26 and what is needed to ensure the targets are met•Pairing hydrogen and nuclear to decarbonize hard to abate sectorsNext week on Energy Unplugged we will welcome Julia Watsford, CEO at Enfinium & Chris Jonas, Director at Tolvik Consulting. Stay tuned!Support the show

Our Commercial Manager Lisa Langer is joined by Christoph Strasser, Co-CEO of Pacifico Renewables Yield, a renewable energy producer with a quickly growing portfolio of roughly 170 MW. Christoph joined Pacifico Renewables Yield as Co-CEO in October 2019 and prior to that he spent few years in J.P. Morgan‘s Corporate & Investment Bank. Christoph has a B.Sc. in Business Administration from University of Mannheim and M.Sc. in Management from University of Mannheim and ESSEC Business School. Lisa and Christoph discuss:•Pacifico’s market expansion to The UK, Netherlands and Australia•Moving to less established markets and taking on merchant exposure in Pacifico’s projects•Power prices affecting renewables investment •The next big challenge for the energy transitionSupport the show

Thekla von Bülow, Principal for Commissioned Projects in our Berlin office is joined by Shaun Kingsbury, Chief Investment Officer of Just Climate. Shaun started his career working for Shell and in 2012 he has set up the world’s first low carbon investment bank – Green Investment Bank, which was later acquired by Macquarie Group. Currently Shaun is Chairman of Renewable Power Capital, Co-founder and Board member of Climate Transition Capital, Chairman of CNG Fuels and Chief Investment Officer of Just Climate, a new business launched in the beginning of November. The focus of the conversation is on sustainable finance and climate impact investment helping to accelerate climate action. Thekla and Shaun discuss:•Subsidy schemes for renewables vs. merchant / PPAs •The role of the private sector in investing into clean energy technologies •The ESG investment movement •Corporate PPAs as a tool for decarbonisationSupport the show

In this episode, our Head of Commissioned Projects in Central Europe, Hanns Koenig is joined by Christian Thiel, CEO of EnergyNest, a high temperature energy storage company. Christian started his career at BMW and prior to joining EnergyNest in 2014 he worked as Investment Banker at UBS and as Consultant at McKinsey and he was the Vice President for Business Development and Marketing at Senvion. Christian has a PhD in Economics and Marketing focussing on designing sales structures in foreign markets. The focus of the discussion is around the importance of addressing industrial heat for reaching Net Zero. Main topics include:•EnergyNest’s technology and its role in the energy transition•The challenge of addressing the emissions coming from the heat sector•The current and future gas and carbon prices •Hydrogen vs electrificationSupport the show

With National Grid just announcing that the group expects profits to hit top end of range on soaring energy prices as a result of interconnectors, the focus of today's show is on interconnectors’ role in delivering NetZero and the North Sea Link project as the world’s longest subsea interconnector linking the UK and Norway. In this episode, our Managing Director for UK and Ireland - Dan Monzani is delighted to be joined by Cordi O’Hara, President of National Grid Ventures at National Grid. Cordi has more than 20 years’ experience in the energy industry, managing key relationships with government officials, regulators and customers. She began her career trading power and gas for Centrica and between 2014 and 2017 she was Director of the UK System Operator. Prior to joining National Grid Ventures, Cordi was Chief Operating Officer for the US Gas Business for National Grid. Dan and Cordi also discuss:•The UK’s 40GW offshore wind target by 2030 and the technical barriers to get there•COP26 and the opportuni

In this episode we’re talking about power exchanges as a vital part of traded power markets. Our CEO John Feddersen is joined by Georg Aasen, Vice President at Nasdaq Commodities, which runs one of Europe’s largest power exchanges. Prior to this role, Georg was Head of Marketplace at Nord Pool and built up deep experience in the economics of power exchanges. John and Georg discuss:•The key characteristics of a successful power trader•Social contribution of markets and what would the European power market look like in the absence of power exchanges•The evolution of renewables offtake and PPAs •The future of non-power contracts and hydrogenSupport the show

This week on Energy Unplugged we have a special episode which comes right after the UK Government published its Net Zero Strategy in response to the Climate Change Committee’s recommendations for the Sixth Carbon Budget and during COP26 taking place in Glasgow.Our Managing Director for UK and Ireland - Dan Monzani is joined by Lord Deben, Chairman of the Climate Change Committee (CCC) in a conversation about Net Zero and prospects for COP26. Lord Deben has over 50 years’ experience in public life, consistently as a deep influential voice on climate change and the environment. He was the UK’s longest-serving Secretary of State for the Environment (1993 to 1997) and he has held several other high-level ministerial posts, including Secretary of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (1989 to 1993). Since 2012 he is the Chair of CCC, an independent, statutory body established under the Climate Change Act 2008 with the main purpose to advise the UK and devolved governments on emissions targets. Dan and Lord Deb

In this episode, our Managing Director in Australia, Hugo Batten is joined by Rupert Maloney, Head of Hydrogen at the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) and Weijie Mak, Principal in Aurora’s office in Australia. Before joining CEFC, Rupert was General Manager of Strategy & Corporate Development at Ampol, an Australian fuels player, as well as a banker at Macquarie and a lawyer at Baker & McKenzie. The discussion is focused on hydrogen and the opportunities for developing a hydrogen industry in Australia. The main topics include:•Key takeaways of CEFC’s recent Australian hydrogen market study•Hydrogen as an export opportunity for Australia and prioritization of domestic opportunities •How the Europeans are designing their markets around hydrogen •The low electrolyzer CAPEX and the cost of capital reductionsSupport the show

In this episode, we continue the discussion on the role of world’s largest utilities in decarbonising society. Our CEO John Feddersen is talking to Alberto De Paoli, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Enel. Alberto was appointed CFO in November 2014 and joined the Enel Group in 2008 as CFO for Enel Green Power, the Group's renewable power generation subsidiary, a position he held until 2012. Between 2012 – 2014 he was the Head of Group Strategy. Alberto is also Co-chair of the UN Global Compact CFO Taskforce for the sustainable development goals. John and Alberto discuss:•Enel’s role in the energy transition and ensuring sustainability at the centre of the company’s business model•The driving force behind Enel’s internationalization •ESG investment movement and what has enabled it to grow the way it hasSupport the show

In this episode, our CEO John Feddersen is joined by Peter Cramton, Professor of Economics at the University of Cologne to discuss the future of power markets. Peter is one of the world’s foremost experts on electricity systems economics, he’s been a leading thinker in market design across energy, telecommunications and health procurements in the US, Europe and beyond. Since 1983, he has conducted research on auctions and market design, with a focus on the design of complex markets to best achieve goals. Between 2015-2021, he was an independent director of the board of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).John and Peter discuss:•Whether privatisation of parts of the power markets worked globally in the sense that enhanced human welfare •The meaning and targets for decarbonisation in Europe vs the US•Security of supply and the impact of the recent events in ERCOT on capacity markets and energy only marketsSupport the show