Decarb Connect

How does a gas utility transition to a clean energy network? Chris Kroeker, Emerging Technology Program Manager of NW Natural, joins Alex to discuss how his company (a gas utility based in Oregon) is transitioning from natural gas to hydrogen.   The conversation explores the need for any transition to deliver economical decarbonization in order to keep industrial clients and jobs in state – and we look at the roadmap to NW offering hydrogen at scale. Find out how NW looks at the opportunities and the challenges around blue and green hydrogen, and the range of plans and resources needed to deliver it. Explore how the business model for hydrogen could work and hear about the step by step approach Chris and his organisation is taking.  Show Links: www.NWNatural.comwww.decarbconnect.com  Thanks to Sassy at Janno Media for production on this epsiode. 

Neil Chatterjee was, until August 2021, the member of the commission at FERC and now is a senior advisor at Hogan Lovells. With a background in policy, legislation and regulation he joined Alex to look at his work with the commission at FERC and what he thinks is needed in the US energy market to make progress to lower carbon energy smooth – specifically his thoughts on the need for congruent state-by-state carbon pricing. We also talk about his expectations of COP26 and future energy transition needs.Links:https://www.hoganlovells.com/en/chatterjee-neilhttps://www.utilitydive.com/news/fercs-chatterjee-questions-clean-energy-standard-says-carbon-pricing-coul/605155/https://ihsmarkit.com/research-analysis/us-ferc-finalizes-carbon-pricing-policy-statement-with-biparti.htmlwww.decarbconnect.comThanks to Janno Media for all their help and support.

Global construction projections point to a massive growth over the next couple of decades which equates to building something the size of New York City every month. Think about that… the steel… the cement… the co2 that is produced as a result. So all we need are green materials, right? In the short term the challenge lies in the “green premium” and how quickly the price for carbon negative or low carbon materials can be brought down by market forces.  Governments around the world buy as much as 25% of steel and 40% of cement for infrastructure and building programs, so green public procurement has the potential to be an incredibly powerful lever.  Rana Ghoneim, Chief of the Energy Systems and Infrastructure Division at the UN’s Industrial Development Organization, talks with Alex about the work she and her organisation are doing to drive green public procurement. Through their Industrial Deep Decarbonisation Initiative, they are signing up big government buyers of the co2-intensive materials to make pledges on procurement that can spark a global green market for critical materials. Join the discussion and find out about what the ‘right’ targets are, how to set standards for green products that create a healthy market and how to unpick institutional barriers to green procurement. The ultimate goal? Major buyers and a healthy market to drive further industrial decarbonisation.  Show links: The UN IDO’s Green Public Procurement Report: https://www.industrytransition.org/insights/target-setting-for-green-public-procurement-programmes/ The UN IDO’s paper on green cement and steel procurement: https://www.industrytransition.org/insights/industry-transition-through-green-public-procurement-how-to-guide-cement-steel-sectors/ Link to the Industrial Deep Decarbonisation Initiative: https://www.unido.org/IDDI Link to Decarb Connect and our work in industrial decarbonisation: www.decarbconnect.comThanks as ever to Sassy at Janno Media for her expertise and input.

This podcast is taken from one of Decarb Connect Europe’s fireside chats. Join Cate Hight, Chief Operating Officer of the Mission Possible Partnership, and Thorsten Hahn, CEO of Holcim in Germany, to explore how Holcim's global science based target is being applied at the national level. Thorsten shares his thoughts on the low hanging fruit of co2 reduction as well as how they intend to create value from emissions. Cate and Thorsten also look at tracking the value in avoided CO2 as well as captured/abated emissions. Thanks to Janno Media for their podcasting expertise.Links: https://decarbconnect.com/events/decarb-connect-europe/https://www.holcim.com/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIh6Lt_-mw8wIVwoBQBh0qjAZDEAAYASAAEgKcpfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

As with all climate-related activities, attention on voluntary disclosures is gaining momentum. With the prospect of mandatory disclosures on the horizon - how are different stakeholders expectations going to change and what will this mean for industry and corporates? David Lammers, Deputy Director of Corporate Engagement at CDP Europe joins Alex to explore the changes and trends they are observing.  David is one of 50+ speakers at Decarb Connect Europe, October 5-7 2021 – join us there or at one our events or network meet ups. Links: https://www.cdp.net/enwww.decarbconnect.comhttps://decarbconnect.com/events/decarb-connect-europe/Thank you to Sassy and the team at Janno Media for their podcasting expertise.

In this episode we explore how the MIDDEN project in the Netherlands collects data that ensures industrial groups can accelerate decarbonisation. Using data from across Dutch industry (energy usage, material flows, greenhouse gas emissions) the MIDDEN project offers publicly available insights and data that help hard to abate sectors make the right decarbonisation decisions.  Join Dick Van Dam from PBL (the Dutch environmental assessment agency) and Silvana Gamboa from TNO (an independent, applied research organisation) to learn about the Dutch industrial landscape and how MIDDEN is helping better decision making. The data and reports are publicly available – an invaluable resource whether you’re based in the Netherlands or not.  Hear more about how industrials are driving decarbonisation – follow the link below for more info on Decarb Connect’s upcoming events. We’ve also included MIDDEN’s project link:  Show links: middenweb.nl - follow this link to find the MIDDEN data set and reports into key sector activities in decarbonisationwww.decarbconnect.com - Decarb Connect’s global network hub for info on decarbonisation of hard to abate sectorshttps://bit.ly/DCEU-podlink -  Download the programme for our EU-focused event - October 5-7 2021 Many thanks to Sassy and the team at Janno Media for their support in producing the Decarb Connect podcast. 

Join Ben Moens, Managing Director of Sustainability Solutions at Engie Impact, as he talks with Alex about the real predictors of decarbonisation success. How can companies graduate from pilot/single-project thinking to systems transformation? What could a shift from ROI thinking to Total Cost of Ownership reveal? What kinds of partnerships and collaborations are the most effective decarbonizers already forging? Listen in to find out about the much-needed short term steps as well as how companies can shift their behaviours to deliver decarbonisation. For info on Engie Impact’s work with industrial clients: https://www.engieimpact.com/ To join Engie Impact and hundreds of others at Decarb Connect Europe: https://bit.ly/DCEU-podlinkTo learn more about Decarb Connect’s team and who we are: www.decarbconnect.com Many thanks to Sassy and the team at Janno Media for all their support in producing this podcast: www.jannomedia.com

Andrew Smith of Greenbackers joins Alex to explore their success in matching investors to the right decarbonisation tech with true commercial potential. They talk about how to reverse engineer net zero by 2050 and how much of it requires new business models vs new tech. They also explore the role that CVCs, VCs & PE play best. Listen in to find out about the characteristics of strong start up leadership teams, what industrials need to ensure they bring to early stage projects and the role for policymakers in supporting market adoption of new tech. Links: https://greenbackers.com/ 26ForCOP26 Cleantech investment program: https://bit.ly/26-for-COP26 www.decarbconnect.com - find out more about our global decarbonization network & platform

With CCUS projects emerging across Europe and around the world, the role of carbon capture in industrial decarbonisation is gaining pace. Join Alex and Aniruddha for a discussion that covers both his hopes and expectations for COP26 and the emerging CCaaS business model, as well as exploring the company’s established and more nascent projects.Links: https://decarbconnect.com/events/  (click for more insights on the projects and technologies being deployed to decarbonise energy-intensive industries) Many thanks to our podcast partners, Janno Media, for all the support in the production of the Decarb Connect podcast: https://jannomedia.com/ 

Claes Fredriksson, CEO of Liquid Wind, joins Alex to talk about the work they are doing to develop at-scale production of green methanol from biogenic co2. They explore the development of green fuels projects at scale and how they piece together the key partners & technologies. A great opportunity to hear about the project development of at-scale projects and the reuse of co2.  Links: https://www.liquidwind.se/https://www.liquidwind.se/news/liquid-wind-raises-4m-in-equity https://decarbconnect.com/events/  (click for more insights on the projects and technologies being deployed to decarbonise energy-intensive industries) Many thanks to our podcast partners, Janno Media, for all the support in the production of the Decarb Connect podcast: https://jannomedia.com/