Competitiveness and the energy transition

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

#Business #Kasper Thejll-Karstensen #FORESIGHT Media Group

42:18

“I used to be the largest dairy consumer on the planet. I used to eat so much dairy and meat. The more that I looked into the dairy industry, the more that I saw that it was the singular, most inhumane industry on the planet, that we've all been lied to, including myself, for years. I always believed that the picture on the milk carton, the cow standing next to her calf in the green field with the red barn in the back was true. It’s certainly the complete opposite.” – Richard (Kudo) Couto Richard (Kudo) Couto is the founder of Animal Recovery Mission (ARM), an organization solely dedicated to investigating extreme animal cruelty cases. ARM has led high-risk undercover operations that have resulted in the shutdown of illegal slaughterhouses, animal fighting rings, and horse meat trafficking networks. Recently, they released a damning investigation into two industrial dairy farms outside of Phoenix, Arizona supplying milk to Coca-Cola’s Fairlife brand. What they uncovered was systemic animal abuse, environmental violations, and a devastating betrayal of consumer trust. While Fairlife markets its products as being sourced "humanely," ARM’s footage tells a very different story—one of suffering, abuse, and corporate complicity. Despite the evidence, this story has been largely ignored by mainstream media—likely due to Coca-Cola’s massive influence and advertising dollars.…

about a year ago 50:03

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Today’s uncertain geopolitical context and the economic power of the United States, China, and others mean Europe must find new ways to collaborate and compete in the global economy. By doing so, European countries can create jobs, ensure growth, and, equally importantly, decarbonise.

In late February 2025, the European Commission produced its Clean Industrial Deal. As the name suggests, it is a blueprint to achieve these goals by increasing efforts to decarbonise as well as boost productivity—particularly in the high-carbon-emitting, energy-intensive heavy industrial sector.

On this first episode of the series, the Watt Matters team is joined by Phuc-Vinh Nguyen, head of the Jacques Delors Energy Centre, an independent think tank providing decision-makers with insights on energy transition issues. This conversation examines what exactly competitiveness means and why it matters to Europe and to society’s decarbonisation efforts.

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

72 episodes

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

Competitiveness and the energy transition

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

39 subscribers

published about a year ago

MP3•Episode home

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

72 episodes

#Business #Kasper Thejll-Karstensen #FORESIGHT Media Group

All episodes

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
The efficient use of efficiency to drive European competitiveness 41:47

2 days ago41:47

41:47

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Making Europe’s industry more efficient can have big benefits: cutting energy consumption, boosting productivity, providing international market advantages and allowing companies to hit green goals. There are low hanging fruits that industries can take advantage of, but there needs to be more awareness and a shift in thinking towards efficiency as something that is strategic for companies to invest in to really drive efficiency gains. On this episode of Watt Matters, Clemens Rohde and Lisa Neusel from the Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research join the Watt Matters team to discuss the benefits of efficient industrial efficiency, the technology needed to achieve it and how this should be reflected in policy. Even if you have energy efficient technologies, you need to use them efficiently, Rohde says. Please share your thoughts in the contribution section on the FORESIGHT app. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Industrial decarbonisation’s competitive edge 42:59

9 days ago42:59

42:59

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Europe’s energy-thirsty industries are suffering from high power prices, are at risk of being outpaced by global competitors and need to decarbonise to meet the European Union’s green targets. The energy transition can help address all of this, by increasing electrification, energy efficiency, circularity and more to develop a decarbonised, competitive industry in Europe. On this episode, Adèle Naudy-Chambaud from Schneider Electric joins the Watt Matters team to discuss how Europe’s industry can decarbonise over the next decade and what is needed from EU policy to support this. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Trade and the transition under Trump 37:02

23 days ago37:02

37:02

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Since his return to the White House, President Donald Trump has caused shock waves across global trade. On this episode of Watt Matters, Joseph Francois from the World Trade Institute joins the team to discuss the new trade paradigm and what it means for the energy transition The world has entered a new paradigm of tense trade and geopolitical relationships at a time when it should be collaborating on decarbonisation. Donald Trump's re-election and pursuit of protectionist policies made matters even more complex, throwing a spanner in the works of the energy transition and reshuffling the country’s political alliances. Recorded before Trump’s wave of new tariffs in early April, on this episode of Watt Matters, the team is joined by Joseph Francois from the World Trade Institute to discuss where the energy transition fits into this new world order and the thinking behind Trump’s approach to trade. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
China’s impact on competitiveness 42:07

4 weeks ago42:07

42:07

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. China is the world’s biggest emitter but also a key driver of the energy transition. The country is responsible for the biggest renewables rollout but also commissioned 70% of new coal capacity in 2024. The country has also been accused of unfair practices, with markets like the European Union and the United States placing tariffs on its goods. There are also fears that the EU could lose its competitive edge in producing certain technologies to China. On this episode of Watt Matters, Belinda Schäpe from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, author of China’s Climate Transition: Outlook 2024, joins the Watt Matters team to discuss China's role in the global energy transition and how to navigate geopolitical challenges in this. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Flexing our grids 55:43

5 weeks ago55:43

55:43

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. A flexible grid underpins Europe’s energy transition and helps bring more renewables online. According to statistics from SolarPower Europe, it could also bring big benefits, including saving the European Union €30 billion and avoiding 151 million tonnes of CO2 emissions every year by 2030. However, to make all of this a reality, Europe’s energy system infrastructure and energy market need to support flexibility. On this special, live episode of Watt Matters, recorded at the Solar Power Summit in Brussels, a panel of experts joins Kira to discuss flexibility's role in the energy transition and how Europe can improve it. The panel comprises: Joachim Balke, head of unit for infrastructure and regional cooperation at the European Commission’s energy department, DG ENER Juan Fernandez, chief operating officer at international renewable energy producer, Sonnedix Catarina Augusto, senior grids and flexibility advisor at SolarPower Europe Sarah Van Cleve, vice president of sales and commercial excellence for Europe, the Middle East, and Africa at energy storage company Fluence Enjoy the show. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Competitiveness and the energy transition 50:03

5 weeks ago50:03

50:03

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Today’s uncertain geopolitical context and the economic power of the United States, China, and others mean Europe must find new ways to collaborate and compete in the global economy. By doing so, European countries can create jobs, ensure growth, and, equally importantly, decarbonise. In late February 2025, the European Commission produced its Clean Industrial Deal. As the name suggests, it is a blueprint to achieve these goals by increasing efforts to decarbonise as well as boost productivity—particularly in the high-carbon-emitting, energy-intensive heavy industrial sector. On this first episode of the series, the Watt Matters team is joined by Phuc-Vinh Nguyen, head of the Jacques Delors Energy Centre, an independent think tank providing decision-makers with insights on energy transition issues. This conversation examines what exactly competitiveness means and why it matters to Europe and to society’s decarbonisation efforts. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Energy in 2030: Can we live up to the challenge? 29:37

20 weeks ago29:37

29:37

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. The energy transition is gaining momentum. For our Watt Matters series on Energy in 2030, we’ve seen growing interest in new ways to decarbonise our world and tackle climate change. We’ve looked at carbon removals, industrial electrification, ground source heat pumps, and other innovations vital for transitioning our energy systems and economies to net zero emissions by 2050. Across the series, energy efficiency has kept cropping up as a critical transition component, often underestimated but essential for reducing energy demand and enhancing system flexibility. In the series's final instalment, the Watt Matters team reflect on the key takeaways from each episode, the need for tailored approaches and clear communication, and highlights the need for ongoing ambition to reach the world’s 2030 climate and energy targets. Watt Matters will return for a new series in the Spring of 2025, so keep an eye out. And let us know what areas we should be talking about in the contribution section below. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Enabling renewables through digitalisation 34:21

22 weeks ago34:21

34:21

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Digitalisation holds big benefits for energy systems, including allowing more renewables to be integrated and providing a picture of what’s happening across the entire system without requiring any physical upgrades. When it comes to asset management, digitalisation can help companies better understand assets like power plants and allow them to provide more information to their customers. On this special episode of Watt Matters, recorded live at asset management company 3E’s SynaptiQ Connect Days conference, Kira is joined by a panel of experts to dive into the benefits these technologies can provide. Kira welcomes Werner Coppye, 3E’s co-founder and chief technology officer; Ludovica Rosato, digital transformation manager at renewables developer BayWa; and Margarida Correia Pires, head of business development at utility EDP to find out how it works and how to roll it out. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Cleaning the atmosphere of carbon 53:18

24 weeks ago53:18

53:18

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Carbon removals technologies go beyond the more traditional carbon capture or tree-planting. They look at how to draw carbon directly out of the air so it can no longer cause the damaging greenhouse effect. Research into this area is ramping up, with a number of options on the table from Direct Air Capture to enhanced rock weathering. As with many aspects of the energy transition, the funding is growing but still the regulatory landscape is playing catch up. Joining Watt Matters to discuss this emerging sector is Dr Steve Smith, executive director of Oxford Net Zero and CO2RE—the UK's national research hub on greenhouse gas removal—at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, part of the University of Oxford. Steve and the Watt Matters team examine where the sector stands today, what its impact could be in the 2030s, and whether it could risk becoming a distraction from carbon reduction efforts. Enjoy the show. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Increasing industrial electrification 46:28

25 weeks ago46:28

46:28

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Electrifying as many sectors as possible will play a significant role in reducing emissions to net zero by mid-century. While many industrial processes can be easily switched to an electricity-based system, some are proving more difficult. As 2030 approaches, efforts to electrify are accelerating, and many businesses are exploring electrification opportunities. In this episode of Watt Matters, Richard Hart, industry director at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, joins David, Jan and Kira to discuss the low-hanging fruit of electrification that remains unutilised and how different industries can reach harder to decarbonise technologies in the next decade. Enjoy the show. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Three tasks for the energy transition 46:31

26 weeks ago46:31

46:31

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. We ask every guest who enters the Watt Matters studio to look into their crystal ball and give their vision of the energy sector in ten-to-twenty years. Their answers are often aspirational but always revealing. Many market observers provide their own visions for the future by publishing “scenarios” and “outlooks”. One thing they all have in common is showing the complexity of the energy transition. Rystad Energy’s latest forecast, Global Energy Scenarios 2024 , tries to simplify the transition by highlighting the three key tasks for a successful energy transition: growing the clean power sector, increasing electrification, and addressing residual emissions. Jon Ødegård Hansen, vice president of energy systems research at Rystad Energy, joins David, Jan and Kira to talk about the three steps and how important scenarios like this are in the conversation around decarbonisation. Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Decarbonisation’s invisible tool 48:24

27 weeks ago48:24

48:24

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. By minimising our energy needs, we can accelerate our journey to net zero, making the energy transition not only quicker but also more affordable. The COP28 climate negotiations in 2023 saw the successful “triple-up, double-down” campaign, which included the promise to double the energy efficiency improvement rate by 2030. To discuss how to ensure energy efficiency remains a top priority for governments and businesses up to 2030 and beyond, our guest this week is Rob Murray-Leach, a founder and former CEO of the Energy Efficiency Council in Australia. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Heat from below our feet 38:23

28 weeks ago38:23

38:23

Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Wind and solar energy tend to be the main focus when we talk about renewable energy, but geothermal energy also offers many benefits; it is a constant energy source and offers the potential to decarbonise heating and cooling. Ground-source heat pumps take advantage of the heat underground and can support the transition away from gas boilers, reducing a building's carbon footprint and cutting down on energy costs. For the third episode of this series, Tamsin Lishman, CEO of Kensa Group, which is rolling out ground source heat pumps in the United Kingdom, joins the Watt Matters team to discuss the benefits of the technology and what is needed to boost its use into the 2030s. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
2030’s household transformation 44:47

29 weeks ago44:47

44:47

The energy transition needs to happen across society, including in our homes. Big shifts are expected in consumer demand and the technology we use, including electric vehicles and heat pumps. To make the transition a success, it’s key that these elements work in the real world, and that households are involved in the transition and experience the benefits of a decarbonised society. For the second episode of this series, Lucy Yu from the Centre for Net Zero joins the Watt Matters team to discuss what changes we can expect in our homes and the research her team is doing into consumer behaviour trends. Enjoy the show! Download our award-winning app and enjoy access to all exclusive features. Click here to access on Apple or Android. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

Watt Matters: The FORESIGHT energy transition podcast

1
Building up to 2030 45:28

30 weeks ago45:28