193. The Seven Deadly Sins of the Energy Transition
Redefining Energy1 Sep 2025

193. The Seven Deadly Sins of the Energy Transition

Three wise men met and discussed the Seven Sins of The Energy Transition. Laurent, Gerard and Michael dissect seven sectors that have captured attention, investments and public money and are at best dead ends, at worst disasters waiting to happen.
  1. Greed — “Subsidy Mining in a Lab Coat” (Carbon Capture & Direct Air Capture)
    A capital-intensive detour that soaks up public money while delivering trivial abatement at extreme cost, great PR for incumbents, weak climate math.
  2. Gluttony — “Three Kilowatt-Hours to Move One” (Hydrogen-for-Energy)
    An energy-wasting appetite: make H₂ with clean power, then throw most of that power away moving, compressing, liquefying, and reconverting it—useful only in narrow industrial niches.
  3. Sloth — “Always ‘On Time’ by 2040” (Small Modular Reactors)
    Perma-prototype promises that stay years late and dollars short while wind, solar, and storage deploy at scale now.
  4. Pride — “We Will Bottle the Sun” (Fusion Salvationism)
    Technological hubris as strategy: a captivating physics quest, but not a climate plan for the 2030s. Invest in science, don’t budget on miracles.
  5. Lust — “Drop-In Fantasies for Every Engine” (Biofuels-Everywhere)
    The seductive promise of pouring yesterday’s fuels into tomorrow’s problems; keep them for hard-to-electrify edges, not as a universal fix.
  6. Wrath — “Culture War at Sea” (America’s Offshore-Wind Own-Goals)
    Ideological backlash, litigation, and policy whiplash torch viable projects and local supply chains while the rest of the world builds.
  7. Envy — “Green Halo by Checkbox” (ESG Box-Ticking)
    Chasing ratings and labels instead of real-world decarbonization and cash-flow-relevant risk; better to separate E, S, and G and measure outcomes

Episoder(174)

191. “How Big Things Get Done” with Pr. Bent Flyvbjerg (hosted by Michael Barnard)

191. “How Big Things Get Done” with Pr. Bent Flyvbjerg (hosted by Michael Barnard)

This is a re-release of the legendary interview by Michael Barnard of Pr Bent Flyvbjerg on our sister show ”Redefining Energy Tech” Professor Bent Flyvbjerg, an expert on megaprojects and author of Ho...

18 Aug 20251h 19min

190. Solar and Flex – Solar Power Summit 2025

190. Solar and Flex – Solar Power Summit 2025

This Spring, Laurent Segalen was invited by Solar Power Europe to moderate a panel, during the Solar Power Summit, around the theme ”Winning the Flex challenges”.The Speakers were:Andrea Wechsler, Mem...

11 Aug 202539min

189. Energy Disruptions - (Gerard on "Clean Titans")

189. Energy Disruptions - (Gerard on "Clean Titans")

This is Summer time, so we publish some contents that we have created on other channelsA few weeks ago, Gerard came on the ”Clean Titans”The YouTube channel “Clean Titans” focused on clean energy, is ...

4 Aug 20251h 9min

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

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 we...

28 Jul 202532min

187. Texas: Power Surge or Power Splurge? - Jul25

187. Texas: Power Surge or Power Splurge? - Jul25

Texas is an oddity in the western electricity world: fastest growing load, ultra-low prices, crazy development of renewables. Texas consumes now more power than France, despite having only half the po...

21 Jul 202526min

186. Power under Pressure: Fortum’s CEO on Datacenters’ growth and Russian Attacks (Eurelectric)

186. Power under Pressure: Fortum’s CEO on Datacenters’ growth and Russian Attacks (Eurelectric)

Laurent had the pleasure and privilege of sitting down with Markus Rauramo, CEO of Fortum, during the Eurelectric “Power Play” conference in Brussels this June.  Fortum, the Finnish energy company als...

14 Jul 202524min

185. Blackouts - Jul25

185. Blackouts - Jul25

What Really Happened During the Iberian Blackout This Spring? And How Should We Make Sense of the Conflicting Reports?  To shed light on the events, Gerard and Laurent are joined by global energy expe...

7 Jul 202524min

184. Market dynamics and Pricing of Battery Materials - Jun25

184. Market dynamics and Pricing of Battery Materials - Jun25

Six years ago, Simon Moores, CEO of Benchmark Minerals Intelligence shook the world in a now legendary testimony in front of the US Senate. Then, Simon predicted the exponential growth of batteries an...

22 Jun 202533min

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