188. US/Petrostate vs EU/Electrostate – a joint episode with Open Circuit

On July 7th, Gerard and Laurent were invited to appear on the U.S. podcast Open Circuit, alongside Jigar Shah, Katherine Hamilton, and Stephen Lacey. It was an emotional reunion—Jigar and Katherine were part of the original Energy Gang, the very show that inspired us to create our own.

We had a rich, two-part conversation. The first part revisited the Spanish blackouts, a topic we had already explored in Episode 185. The second part delved into Europe’s energy security and the evolving dynamic between “Petrostates” and “Electrostates”—the main focus of this episode.

Twenty years ago, Europe and the U.S. shared a broadly aligned energy landscape. But the rise of American energy dominance has since driven a wedge between the two, contributing to today’s political fractures across the Atlantic.

Together, the five of us explored the implications of this growing misalignment—and where we might go from here. It was a passionate and thought-provoking discussion.