On this Memorial Day, we are excited to share a Special Edition with Representative John Curtis (R-UT). Rep. Curtis has been serving in Congress for four terms, beginning in 2017, and is currently running for the U.S. Senate. He serves on the Energy and Commerce Committee including as Vice-Chair of the Energy, Climate and Grid Security Subcommittee. Additionally, he serves as Vice Chair of the Federal Lands Subcommittee and member of the Energy & Mineral Resources Subcommittee on the Natural...
May 27, 2024•57 min
Today we had the pleasure of visiting with Max Layton, Global Head of Commodities Research at Citi. Prior to joining Citi in 2017, Max held notable leadership positions including Managing Director and Head of European Commodities Research at Goldman Sachs as well as Deputy Head of Commodities Research at Macquarie. We have been eager to examine copper’s recent record highs and were excited to have Max join us for a discussion on global commodity trends. In our conversation with Max, we discuss t...
May 22, 2024•57 min•Season 2Ep. 231
Today we had the pleasure of welcoming back Alexander Zaslavsky, Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Horizon Engage. Alex established Horizon Engage in 2003 and specializes in energy politics in Russia and the former Soviet Union. Horizon Engage merges tech and geopolitical expertise to provide country insights, data on how sanctions and counter sanctions impact your business, security analysis and advisory solutions. To help navigate a meaty Russian/Central Asian/Middle Eastern geopolitical disc...
May 15, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 230
For today’s discussion we were pleased to host Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA). Jim’s distinguished background includes roles in both the public and private sectors. Prior to joining the NRECA in 2016, he served in the public policy practice at Squire Patton Boggs based in Washington, D.C. Jim was elected as a U.S. Representative for Utah from 2001 to 2015 and has significant experience in the energy industry. The NRECA is a vital national service...
May 08, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 229
Today we had the pleasure of hosting David Holt, President of the Consumer Energy Alliance (CEA), for an important discussion on electricity affordability and reliability for consumers. David’s background is in government affairs with over thirty years of experience working for state and federal agencies and directing outreach and advocacy efforts. The CEA will be celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025 and has nearly 400 corporate members and over 550,000 individual members representing famili...
May 01, 2024•58 min•Season 2Ep. 228
Today we had the pleasure of hosting David Sacks, Fellow for Asia Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), for a comprehensive discussion on China and the intricate dynamics of US-China, US-Taiwan, and cross-Strait relations. Prior to joining the CFR in 2017, David served at the American Institute in Taiwan focused on political military affairs. David’s research spans Asia, China, Taiwan, defense and security, as well as political history and theory including the political thought of H...
Apr 24, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 2Ep. 227
Today we were delighted to host Matt Parker, Managing Director and Head of Strategy, alongside Alex Melvin, Commodity Risk Analyst, with Mobius Risk Group for an extensive discussion on commodity and power markets, as well as volatility and risk management in particular. Matt joined Mobius in 2018 and oversees fundamental analytics, decision strategies, financial trading, and physical marketing teams. Alex is the author of Mobius’ Intel Briefs and Energy Shots research and brings prior experienc...
Apr 17, 2024•59 min•Season 2Ep. 226
Today we were thrilled to be joined by Maya MacGuineas, President of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), to discuss a critical yet often ignored topic: the US national debt and budget deficits. Prior to her tenure at the CRFB starting in 2004, Maya served at the Brookings Institution and on Wall Street. Maya is a native Washingtonian, Harvard Kennedy School alumni, and frequently testifies before Congress as a leading budget expert. Founded in 1981, the CRFB is a bipartisan no...
Apr 10, 2024•58 min•Season 2Ep. 225
Today we had the pleasure of hosting our good friend Derek Podhaizer, Vice President of Equity Research at Barclays. Derek started his research career at the firm in 2014 and leads coverage of U.S. Onshore Energy Services and Geothermal. Given the recent flurry of activity within the services sector, including Tuesday’s SLB-ChampionX announcement (linked here ), it was fantastic to hear Derek’s observations on the space including overall investor sentiment, emerging trends in services and geothe...
Apr 03, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 2Ep. 224
We had a fantastic session today with Jun Nishizawa, Executive Vice President and CEO of the Natural Gas Group at Mitsubishi Corporation. Jun joined Mitsubishi Corporation in 1986 as an oil trader and has since held a variety of roles in Tokyo and overseas. As CEO of the Natural Gas Group, Jun is responsible for Mitsubishi Corporation’s LNG business globally and leads the execution of the organization’s decarbonization strategy including the company’s involvement in the Breakthrough Energy Catal...
Mar 27, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 223
We are thrilled to share this Special Edition COBT episode featuring Peter Orszag, CEO of Lazard. Peter assumed the role as Lazard CEO in the fall of 2023, after serving as CEO of Lazard’s Financial Advisory business. Prior to his tenure at Lazard, Peter’s wide-ranging career includes serving as Director of the Office of Management and Budget and as Director of the Congressional Budget Office during the Obama Administration. Peter also served as Special Assistant to the President for Economic Po...
Mar 26, 2024•52 min
Today we had the honor of hosting Mike Wirth, Chairman and CEO of Chevron. Mike’s journey at Chevron began as a design engineer in 1982 and since then, he has held senior leadership roles in several divisions of the company. Most recently, Mike served as the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors and as Executive Vice President of Midstream and Development before assuming his role as CEO in 2018. Beyond his role at Chevron, Mike is engaged in industry advocacy and global initiatives, serving on...
Mar 20, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 222
It was our privilege today to welcome Paul Dabbar, CEO of Bohr Quantum Technology. In addition to his position at Bohr, Paul is a Senior Research Scholar and Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, a Board Member of Dominion Energy, and a Contributor to the Wall Street Journal. Paul’s distinguished career in the energy sector spans several significant roles including his tenure as the Under Secretary for...
Mar 13, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 2Ep. 221
Today we had the pleasure of welcoming back Jigar Shah, Director of the U.S. Department of Energy Loan Programs Office (LPO). Jigar joined the LPO in 2021 and is the former founder of SunEdison and former co-founder of Generate Capital. As you may know, the LPO is equipped with more than $400 billion in loans and loan guarantees to help deploy innovative clean energy, advanced transportation, and Tribal energy projects in the US that support a cleaner and stronger energy economy. With 205 active...
Mar 06, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Season 2Ep. 220
Today we were thrilled to welcome our good friend Pat Wood, CEO of Hunt Energy Network. Pat’s extensive career in power and energy includes serving as Chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and Chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas during the administration of President George W. Bush. Additionally, he has held several independent director and advisor roles in solar, power, and utility-related organizations. Pat is also a civil engineer Aggie who went and got a Harvard...
Feb 28, 2024•1 hr 9 min•Season 2Ep. 219
One of the issues that we have become fascinated with over the last couple of years is power: power availability, power costs, power reliability, growth in demand for power, and the overall complexity of our power systems. We’ve also become extremely interested in how these power issues are meaningfully affecting states, countries and industries. With all of that in mind, we read with particular interest recent publications from today’s COBT guest, Susan Shelley, Columnist and Member of the Edit...
Feb 21, 2024•52 min•Season 2Ep. 218
Today we had the pleasure of hosting Fred Hutchison, President and CEO of LNG Allies, for a comprehensive discussion on an important and timely topic, LNG. Fred founded LNG Allies in 2014 and is a leading spokesman for the US LNG export industry with over four decades of experience in government and public relations. LNG Allies is an independent, non-profit association focused on advancing the interests of the US LNG industry and promoting the benefits of LNG exports. We were thrilled to visit w...
Feb 14, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 217
Today we had the very interesting opportunity to visit with Ernest Scheyder, Senior Correspondent at Thomson Reuters and author of the newly released book entitled "The War Below: Lithium, Copper, and the Global Battle to Power Our Lives." The book was officially published on January 30th and examines the multifaceted world of metals, mining, and processing with insights from investors, miners, landowners, environmentalists, and politicians. Ernie provided a balanced perspective in telling this ...
Feb 07, 2024•59 min•Season 2Ep. 216
For today’s discussion we were delighted to welcome back our good friend Robert Bryce. Robert is the author of six books (his most recent being "A Question of Power: Electricity and the Wealth of Nations"), host of the Power Hungry podcast, and a former journalist with more than 30 years of experience reporting on the energy sector. He is a frequent contributor to the energy discussion and his Substack is linked here . Robert has just released his latest docuseries focused on power titled "Juice...
Jan 31, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 215
We have been intrigued by some of the news coming out of the World Economic Forum (i.e. Davos) and have been on the lookout for someone who could give us an objective, independent summary and assessment of the gathering. We were elated to connect with our special friend Dr. Dan Yergin for such a discussion. While impossible to succinctly summarize his achievements and contributions to the energy industry, Dan is the Vice Chairman of S&P Global, the Chairman of CERAWeek, and the author of sev...
Jan 24, 2024•40 min•Season 2Ep. 214
Today we had the pleasure of hosting Rob Gramlich, Founder and President of Grid Strategies. Rob previously oversaw transmission and power market policy for the American Wind Energy Association as SVP and Interim CEO, served as Economic Advisor to FERC Chairman Pat Wood III, and was Senior Economist at PJM Interconnection. Grid Strategies is a power consulting firm headquartered in Washington, D.C. that helps their clients advance grid integration solutions. Given the recent winter weather much ...
Jan 17, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 213
Today was a big one – the first regular COBT of the year, and also the second anniversary of Veriten. Accordingly, we thought about something that would be truly special to mark the occasion and reached back for two COBT All-Stars… on the same show! Today’s episode features two great friends: Dr. Lars Schernikau, energy economist, entrepreneur, commodity trader, strategic advisor, and the author of “The Unpopular Truth about Electricity and the Future of Energy” AND Rob West, Founder and Lead An...
Jan 10, 2024•1 hr•Season 2Ep. 212
We hope you all had a fantastic holiday season and that you are excited about the New Year! We had a special guest join us yesterday to kick off 2024. We have been lucky enough to get to know a number of Senators, Governors and Congressional Representatives over the past few years. One that we have been getting to know better recently is Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana. Sharp, informed, well read, very funny, and representing a very important energy and industrial state, Senator Kennedy never ...
Jan 05, 2024•35 min
Today we were thrilled to visit with Brian Lee, Vice President and Head of US Clean Technology Research at Goldman Sachs, for 2023’s final COBT episode. Brian has been with the firm since 2011 and offers a unique vantage point with his experience covering cleantech. Recently, Brian and his team released their 2024 Americas Clean Technology Outlook ( linked here ). With 2023 coming to a close, it was fantastic to hear Brian’s end of year reflections as well as observations on the space heading in...
Dec 20, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 211
We had a fantastic session today with Amy Roma, Partner and Global Energy Practice Leader at Hogan Lovells. Amy has served at Hogan Lovells since 2007 and as you will hear, her work focuses on the commercial nuclear energy industry. Her efforts have earned her recognition as one of the Top 10 most innovative lawyers in North America by the Financial Times and the National Law Journal named her one of the most impactful minds at the "intersection of energy and the environment." Amy is freshly bac...
Dec 13, 2023•1 hr 8 min•Season 2Ep. 210
Today we were very fortunate to host Fernando Oris de Roa for an insightful discussion on Argentina and the recent dramatic election result there. Fernando served as the Ambassador of Argentina to the United States in 2018 and 2019 is currently an Independent Director of Allkem. He is an accomplished entrepreneur and business leader in Argentina and earned his MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School. With the country’s recent election of political newcomer Javier Milei as President, we were thrilled...
Dec 06, 2023•57 min•Season 2Ep. 209
Today we had the pleasure of hosting David Whitehouse, CEO of Offshore Energies UK (OEUK), for a comprehensive discussion on UK and North Sea energy. David joined OEUK in January of this year and previously held senior roles at CNR International UK and Shell, working on projects from deepwater frontier developments in the Gulf of Mexico to managing mature assets in the UK’s North Sea. As you will hear, David is pursuing a Master of Engineering in Renewable Engineering to complement his Ph.D. in ...
Nov 29, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Season 2Ep. 208
We’re so pleased today to be able to bring you what is now the fourth in a series of COBT Thanksgiving episodes. When we think about the joys of Thanksgiving Day, it’s striking how many of those things are connected to energy. The energy to warm our homes, to cook our food, to help our families fly and drive to see us, to power everything from the TV to the refrigerator, etc. The list goes on and on. What’s always struck us is that not only is energy needed for this great holiday, but so many of...
Nov 22, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 207
We are pleased to share with you a unique and special COBT episode. Late last week, The KBH Energy Center in partnership with Vinson & Elkins and Veriten, hosted a discussion in Houston featuring Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison and Secretary Dan Brouillette. Senator Hutchison is a Founding Member of The KBH Energy Center and most recently served as the US Ambassador to NATO following a distinguished career spanning both the public and private sectors. Secretary Brouillette is an Executive Counc...
Nov 15, 2023•46 min•Season 2Ep. 206
We have been paying a lot of attention to and thinking a lot about power, power costs, power reliability, power systems, access to power, etc., and have focused a number of episodes on these issues. Earlier this June, we had a great conversation with John Bear, CEO of MISO (episode linked here ) and in that discussion, we asked John what the country could be doing to better understand the system and reliability issues as a whole. John informed us that there was indeed such an organization dedica...
Nov 08, 2023•58 min•Season 2Ep. 205
