Shows
Resources RadioLarge Loads: Who Bears the Costs of Meeting a Growing Demand for Electricity, with Ben Hertz-ShargelIn this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes talks with Ben Hertz-Shargel, global head of a research team at Wood Mackenzie that investigates the connections between energy consumers and the electric grid, about how the increasing energy demand from artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping electricity markets in the United States. In a recent report for Wood Mackenzie, Hertz-Shargel investigates large-load tariffs—a new utility rate plan for large customers, like data centers, whose exceptionally high electricity demand necessitates constructing additional infrastructure. Hertz-Shargel outlines ongoing uncertainty around whether the existing electricity market can accommodate data centers, along with potential avenues for data...
2025-07-0832 min
Catalyst with Shayle KannThe great Bitcoin energy debateDepending on who you talk to, Bitcoin mines are either great for the grid or the worst thing that’s ever happened to it. These warehouses of computers essentially turn electricity into bitcoins. Proponents argue that mines can do a number of things for the grid, like:
Support grid reliability by reducing demand during peak hours
Incentivize new renewable generation by raising the prices that solar and wind farms receive
Reduce methane emissions by capturing flare gas from fossil fuel wells and then using that gas to generate electricity for mine operations
Meanwhile, opponents argue that the mi...
2023-05-1148 min
Interchange RechargedThe Great Digitization Of The Power Sector Is UnderwayHow do we manage the explosion of data across the grid?Digitization is transforming the way energy is produced, directed and spent. Power plants are using real-time data to drive efficiency, smart grids are directing energy where needed and data models are now essential to help us make sense of the market. Across devices and sensors, we’re seeing an explosion of data which needs to be analysed to drive efficiencies. Machine learning and digital twins are tools which can be used for modelling, which in turn helps us make better decisions around where an...
2023-04-2848 min
Bracewell Crypto BitsBitcoin Mining, Renewable Energy and ESG – What You Learn Will Surprise You, With Special Guest Ben Kincaid, Founding Partner of Bridger SolutionsOn this episode of Crypto Bits, Ben Kincaid, a founding partner of Bridger Solutions, joins hosts Seth DuCharme and David Shargel to discuss crypto mining, including public perceptions and its place in the future of the energy transition.
2022-12-1945 minInterchange RechargedThe Interchange Recharged podcast: Live at the Grid Edge Innovation Summit – Day OneWood Mackenzie’s Grid Edge Innovation Summit is now on and we’ll be bringing you all the action from the two days of talks right here on The Interchange Recharged. Host David Banmiller is live in Phoenix, bringing you highlights from each day of the conference. Across the next three episodes, David talks to experts and representatives from the leading distribution utilities, software technology developers, public utility commissions and distributed generation players in North America. On day one, David is joined by:Chris Seiple, Vice-Chairman, Energy Tr...
2022-12-0754 min
The Blockchain Debate PodcastMotion: Bitcoin mining is good for the grid (Lee Bratcher vs. Ben Hertz-Shargel)Guests:Lee Bratcher (twitter.com/lee_bratcher)Ben Hertz-Shargel (twitter.com/benhertzshargel)Host:Richard Yan (twitter.com/gentso09)Today’s motion is “Bitcoin mining is good for the grid.”Bitcoin advocates think bitcoin is a good invention for many reasons, one of which is that it makes the power grid more robust. In 2021, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas made the claim that Bitcoin is, and I quote, “a way to strengthen our ener...
2022-05-121h 15