The pressure is on the U.S. to get its climate house in order before it seeks to lead negotiations in Glasgow. This week, Switched On speaks with BNEF head of Americas, Ethan Zindler, and BNEF head of global policy, Victoria Cuming. They will walk us through the politics in the U.S. and what to watch out for in Glasgow, whether or not Biden shows up to the conference as a leader, or just an attendee. This episode is based BNEF's ongoing coverage of U.S. and global policy, and special coverage of...
Oct 28, 2021•35 min
Europe's energy crunch is complex and weeks in, does not yet seems to be resolving, with higher gas prices, gasoline shortages and electricity retailers going out of business. This week, Switched On speaks with BNEF head of research for EMEA, David Hostert. He will walk us through the big picture -- why the energy crunch, why now -- and talk us through how gas, coal, carbon and renewables are all tied into this. The podcast also touches on the implications for governments and consumers. This epi...
Oct 11, 2021•30 min
Hydrogen is a clean burning molecule that could be used to cut carbon emissions in some of the hardest to abate sectors like steel, cement, and aluminum production. This week, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF lead hydrogen analyst Martin Tengler about the fundamentals of hydrogen. He will talk us through the many ways hydrogen can be produced, transported and used, plus the challenging economics behind this promising energy source for the clean energy transition. This episode is based on a r...
Oct 05, 2021•56 min
International mining company Glencore has set a net-zero 2050 ambition across its operations for scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, meaning not only the mining but the use of its products, like coal. Today, Switched On speaks with Anna Krutikov, head of sustainable development at Glencore. She walks us through the company's targets, opportunities faced by Glencore in the energy transition in areas like battery metals, and some of the ethical considerations associated with decarbonization timelines. BN...
Sep 27, 2021•40 min
The urban sprawl can seem endless, but in reality, cities only cover 3% of global landmass, while accounting for 70% of global emissions. Cities around the world are therefore turning their focus to sustainability. This week, Switched On speaks with Technology & Innovation analyst for BNEF, Kirti Vasta. She will tell us about cities making moves toward sustainability and why now. How different types of cities are approaching the challenge in different ways, and how all cities are using techn...
Sep 16, 2021•23 min
The offshore wind sector is set to grow more than 10-fold over the next 15 years. Growth has been largely in Europe to date, but China is about to go big with more than 25 gigawatts coming online in the next five years, and President Biden is pushing for 30 gigawatts to be installed in the U.S. by 2030. This week, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF offshore wind analysts Imogen Brown and Chelsea Jean-Michel about why offshore wind and why now, and who is positioned to win in the boom ahead. Th...
Sep 02, 2021•31 min
BloombergNEF's Electric Vehicle Outlook is our long-term view on how electrification, shared mobility, and autonomous driving will re-shape road transport in the next three decades. This week, Switched On speaks with Colin McKerracher, the report's lead author and head of transport analysis, about when the world must start to meet net zero targets, which sectors are on track to do so, and what surprised him most in this year's analysis. This episode is based on the Electric Vehicle Outlook 2021 ...
Aug 09, 2021•44 min
Over the past four months more than $30 billion has been raised by some of the world's largest asset managers for energy transition-focused funds. The capital raised will be invested in things like wind, solar, and energy storage projects, and equity in the companies developing and supplying these projects. Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF Chief Content Officer and Bloomberg Opinion columnist Nat Bullard about this fundraising activity, why now, who's involved, and whether this is just the s...
Aug 02, 2021•36 min
Power company AES has been an energy company in transition for well over a decade, and continues to develop and own renewable and other power assets globally. Today, Switched On's Dana Perkins speaks with AES CEO, Andres Gluski. He shares his views on the many aspects of the energy business -- from generation to storage to nuclear -- as well as what AES is doing to reduce its own carbon footprint as it drives toward its net zero goal. BNEF users can hear this interview and more, on BNEF<GO>...
Jul 28, 2021•40 min
China will be a huge market for electric vehicles. In BloombergNEF's latest Electric Vehicle Outlook, published last month, we project that EVs will be 25% of China's passenger vehicle sales in 2025, 48% in 2030, and 77% in 2040. This week, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF electric vehicle analyst Siyi Mi about the policies China has in place to accelerate this growth, and how pure-play EV manufacturers - including Tesla - are benefiting. This episode is based on a report titled China’s New ...
Jul 13, 2021•32 min
U.S. benchmark oil prices are up almost 50% this year, as global demand continues its pandemic recovery. In the States, rising demand and rising prices have led to production increases - but only modest increases so far. This week, Switched On speaks with Tai Liu and Anna Dialynas, U.S. oil analysts for BloombergNEF. They will tell us us about how most U.S. oil producers are choosing fiscal discipline over major production increases, and opting for debt reductions and shareholder paybacks over d...
Jun 29, 2021•29 min
Oil major BP has ambitions to cut its greenhouse gas emissions from its own operations, its oil & gas production, and the products it sells to net-zero by 2050. Also during that time the company plans to ramp up investment in non-oil and gas activities, like renewables, hydrogen, and carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS). Today, Switched On's Dana Perkins speaks with Giulia Chierchia, executive vice president of strategy and sustainability at BP about the energy transition from an e...
Jun 21, 2021•39 min
The aluminum industry can achieve net-zero carbon emissions, and there are multiple routes to get there, starting from recycling and going all the way to carbon capture and storage (CCS) and offsets. Producers will need a combination of technologies to decarbonize fully. This week, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF analysts Sharon Mustri and Julia Attwood about the costs of decarbonizing aluminum, and the implications for policymakers and aluminum producers. This episode is based on a report ...
Jun 14, 2021•33 min
For more than a decade, BloombergNEF has been forecasting the price of carbon credits under the European Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), and in the latest edition, the forecast breaches the 100-euro barrier for the first time ever. This week, Switched On speaks with Jahn Olsen, lead carbon analyst for BNEF about the factors contributing to this price forecast, and what it means for carbon emissions and the players involved. This episode is based on the 1H 2021 EU ETS Market Outlook . BNEF cli...
Jun 07, 2021•27 min
Electric vehicles are creating a lot of buzz, but are they profitable for the manufacturers? This week, Switched On speaks with Opel Automotive CEO Michael Lohscheller about his strategy for the transition to EVs. He discusses what the automotive industry must do to drive up profit from electrified cars, which includes taking a closer look at supply chains and battery manufacturing. Nikolas Soulopoulos, advanced transport analyst at BloombergNEF (BNEF), interviewed Lohscheller as a part of the B...
Jun 02, 2021•18 min
Elon Musk put out a $100 million prize earlier this year for innovation in 'carbon negative solutions', or pulling carbon dioxide (CO2) out of the air. But BloombergNEF carbon capture analyst David Madrid says Musk is missing the point -- what is needed for direct air capture is scale, not new technologies., This week, Switched On speaks with David about direct air capture, how it works, and the pilot projects aimed at bringing the technology down the cost curve. This episode is based on a repor...
May 17, 2021•29 min
Why does the threat of climate change give some nightmares while others simply ignore it? Where do perceptions lie and how do they differ by country, age, education level, or political affiliation? This week, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF consumer research analyst, Hugh Bromley, about several recent surveys that ask how people perceive climate change and whether they see it as a top risk. This episode is based on a report titled What Divides and Unites on Climate Action and Awareness . BN...
May 06, 2021•23 min
This year is looking like a major year for dialogue on - and commitments to - climate action. This week, Switched On speaks with two BloombergNEF colleagues to put this Summit into context and discuss some early indicators of how countries plan to meet their net-zero targets: Victoria Cumming, global policy lead, and Ali Izadi-Najafabadi, Head of Asia Pacific Research. This episode is based on our ongoing research on national climate commitments and the run-up to COP26 later this year. BNEF clie...
Apr 30, 2021•33 min
The global wind market is booming, with nearly 100 gigawatts of new capacity going online in 2020. Today, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF wind analysts Isabelle Edwards and Leo Wang, who talk about what made 2020 a record year for installations, where the growth is happening, who is supplying all those turbines, and how all of this is just the start of things to come. This episode is based on a report titled 2020 Global Turbine Market Shares . BNEF clients can access this at BNEF<GO> ...
Apr 23, 2021•23 min
This week, Switched On speaks with U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, who was sworn into office on February 25th. One of Secretary Granholm's objectives at the Department of Energy will be to set the U.S. on a path to achieving President Biden’s goal of net-zero carbon emissions from the power sector by 2035 by advancing cutting-edge clean energy technologies, and creating millions of clean energy jobs. Ethan Zindler, head of Americas for BloombergNEF did the interview as part of the BNEF ...
Apr 15, 2021•22 min
European utility strategy continues to evolve as the energy transition moves forward. Today, Switched On speaks with BloombergNEF carbon analyst, Bo Qin, and decentralized energy analyst, Michael Kenefick. They will tell us about how low gas prices, combined with high carbon prices and renewables output, are squeezing coal out of the merit order in Europe, and how retail power continues to be a highly competitive market. This episode is based on a report titled European Utility Company Profiles ...
Mar 30, 2021•23 min
On March 15, Volkswagen signaled its ambition to compete in the growing electric vehicle market by building out battery production and charging infrastructure, as well as adding new EV models. And in January, General Motors announced its plan to only sell zero-emission light-duty vehicles by 2035, on its way to becoming carbon-neutral. This week, Switched On speaks with Colin McKerracher, head of transport research for BNEF, about VW, and electric vehicle analysts Alejandro Zamorano Cadavid and ...
Mar 18, 2021•43 min
The transition to a low-carbon economy has been at the center of policy making in the European Union over the last decade. But Europe is still not on track to meet its 2030 clean energy and climate goals. This week, Switched On speaks with Dario Traum, global head of energy transition research for BloombergNEF, and Andreas Gandolfo, head of European power research. They will tell us about progress on climate targets in Europe, and what might accelerate things. They also say that change could hap...
Mar 05, 2021•33 min
Prolonged frigid temperatures last weekend caused electricity demand in the Texas power grid, or ERCOT, to explode. The extreme cold resulted in more than 30GW of power plant outages, and a situation where demand outstripped supply by 30%. This resulted in millions of Texans being without power, heat, and clean water. This week, Switched On speaks with Anastacia Dialynas, head of US oil research, and Nick Steckler, head of North America power analysis for BNEF. They're going to tell us about how...
Feb 19, 2021•26 min
The EU Taxonomy regulation, which defines what the European Union considers an environmentally sustainable economic activity, will require additional disclosures from large listed companies in Europe starting in January 2022. This week, Switched On speaks with Maia Godemer, sustainable finance analyst for BNEF, about what the new rules mean for large European companies and asset managers. This episode is based on a report titled EU Taxonomy: How to Prepare Your Reporting for 2022 , BNEF clients ...
Feb 12, 2021•28 min
The engine behind the analysis in BloombergNEF's New Energy Outlook (NEO) is the New Energy Forecast Model, or NEFM. This week, Switched On speaks with Ian Berryman, modeling analyst for BNEF. He'll tell us how the model works, the process he and team went through in building it, and how he took cues from ants and birds in building a lot of the software that powers it. This episode is based on the model powering the New Energy Outlook 2020 , BNEF's flagship report. BNEF clients can access this r...
Jan 29, 2021•30 min
Vietnam had a boom in rooftop solar installations in December 2020 as installers raced to capture a generous feed-in tariff that expired at the end of the year. This week, Switched On speaks with Caroline Chua, BloombergNEF analyst focused on Southeast Asia, and Jenny Chase, head of solar for BloombergNEF. They talk about how this massive buildout occurred, how it beat BNEF forecasts, and what other market players and policy makers can learn from Vietnam's big year in solar. This episode is base...
Jan 22, 2021•24 min
This week, Switched On speaks with Dr. John Murton, COP26 envoy for the U.K. government. During a conversation which was part of the BNEF Shanghai Summit on December 2, he and Veronika Henze, head of communications for BloombergNEF look at the upcoming global climate conference in November 2021, carbon neutrality, and the race to net zero emissions. BNEF users can see this interview and more, including all the BNEF Analyst Talks on bnef.com or BNEF Mobile , or at BNEF<GO> on the Bloomberg ...
Jan 08, 2021•25 min
Electric vehicles, plastic alternatives, electrification of industrial processes – and more – are set to cut into demand for oil. In fact, we may have already reached a peak for the amount of oil produced in a single year, an idea known as ‘peak oil’. This week, Switched On speaks with oil demand analyst David Doherty. He will tell us about what peak oil means, how it is more than an academic concept, and how oil producers are managing this change – pivoting their business models, or going all-i...
Dec 18, 2020•27 min
Startups and food industry giants alike are working to improve the taste, texture, and appearance of alternative proteins, or fake meat. If they can get it good enough there is a huge market out there. This week, Switched On speaks with Hugh Bromley, consumer insights analyst for BloombergNEF. He talks about the various options out there for alternative proteins, along with go-to-market strategies and potential barriers for producers. This episode is based on a report titled Alternative Proteins...
Dec 11, 2020•28 min
