Energy Connects Podcast

In the next episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta speaks to Ashish Khanna, Director General of the International Solar Alliance, as the organisation celebrates a 10-year milestone. In this revisited conversation, Khanna reflects on the organisation’s journey and how it has grown to its current strength of 25 member countries, highlighting the rapid growth of solar deployment, the need to unlock private-sector investment, and the importance of building local skills and institutions. He also explores how AI and digitalisation can expand energy access, support distributed renewable energy systems, and help developing nations leapfrog into a more sustainable future.

In the latest episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta talks to Dr Sama Bilbao y León, Director General of World Nuclear Association, about the growing momentum behind nuclear energy and the opportunities for private capital investment.

As geopolitical tensions and energy security concerns rise, Dr Sama explains how shifting investor sentiment, stronger policy frameworks and public–private partnerships can help make nuclear projects more bankable. The discussion also highlights opportunities across the nuclear value chain, from large reactors to small modular ones, and what it will take to deliver long-term, sustainable investment at scale in the years ahead.

In the latest episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta talks to Vandana Hari, Founder & CEO of Vanda Insights and Energy Connects columnist, explores the uneven recovery of oil flows following the US–Iran peace deal. Highlighting how oil markets are cautiously moving towards normalcy despite persisting uncertainty around the Strait of Hormuz, Vandana warns against reading too much into short-term data. She also discusses ongoing geopolitical risks, the role of strategic reserves in stabilising prices, and why oil did not surge to levels beyond $120 during the crisis. The conversation also looks at diversification of supply routes and offers a pragmatic outlook on long-term oil demand, highlighting its continued importance in meeting rising global energy needs.

In the latest episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta sits down with Lisa Wee, Chief Sustainability Officer at AVEVA, in Milan to explore how the global energy system is evolving beyond the transition to a dual challenge of energy addition and decarbonisation. Lisa highlights the growing role of digital solutions, data transparency and AI in helping industries balance resilience, sustainability and profitability, while highlighting the importance of breaking down data silos to unlock real progress. She also underscores the biggest challenge energy companies face when trying to digitise their sustainability data, and the one sustainability trend that will have the biggest impact on the industry.

In this episode of the Energy Connects Podcast ahead of NOG Energy Week in Nigeria, host Chiranjib Sengupta speaks with Anibor Kragha, Executive Secretary of the African Refiners and Distributors Association (ARDA), on how Africa is strengthening its downstream energy sector amid ongoing global disruptions. The discussion explores the growing importance of resilience, highlighting efforts to build integrated, self-sustaining supply chains, harmonise fuel standards, and unlock intra-African investment. With rising demand and shifting geopolitics, Africa is increasingly prioritising energy security and regional collaboration. The conversation sets the tone for key themes expected to take centre stage at NOG Energy Week in Abuja, where industry leaders will focus on scalable, future-ready solutions.

In this episode of the Energy Connects Podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta speaks with Andrew Smart, EMEA Senior Managing Director & Energy Lead at Accenture, to discuss the global energy industry’s response to the unprecedented disruption caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Smart examines how resilience, supply flexibility, alternative routes, and strategic reserves, alongside the evolving definition of energy security, are helping the energy sector navigate the extraordinary situation. The conversation also highlights the growing role of AI and technology in enabling faster, smarter decision-making, and considers how companies and governments can build greater agility to withstand future shocks and volatility across global markets and evolving energy landscape.

In the latest episode of the Energy Connects podcast,ahead of Global Energy Show Canada in June, we examinehow Canada is advancing from energy transition tofull-scale transformation. Featuring insights from Hon. Tim Hodgson, Canada’s Minister of Energy and Natural Resources and Danielle Smith, the Premier of Alberta, host Chiranjib Sengupta explores the rise of sovereign compute, growing AI-driven power demand, and the push for large-scale decarbonisation. Minister Hodgson and Premier Smith talk about the critical role of CCS, hydrogen, and data centre-ledinfrastructure growth, alongside efforts to build resilient and secure energy systems. The discussion highlights how policy,technology and resource strength are aligning to shape the next phase of energy intelligence in Canada and beyond.

In this episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta speaks with Norbert Rücker, Head of Economics and Next Generation Research at Julius Baer, to unpack the structural shifts reshaping global energy markets amid unprecedented volatility. The conversation explores the implications of the Strait of Hormuz disruption, the UAE’s exit from OPEC, oil market fundamentals, and the role of storage and geopolitics in price formation. Rücker also examines Europe’s resilience and how the energy transition is strengthening energy security during periods of crisis.

Two months into a conflict that has rewritten the rules of global energy security, this episode of the Energy Connects podcast examines how resilience is shifting from physical infrastructure to digital intelligence. With the Strait of Hormuz emerging as a systemic stress point, the industry faces growing cyber‑physical risks alongside traditional supply challenges. Featuring insights from Secretary Doug Burgum, US Secretary of the Interior and the Chair of the US National Energy Dominance Council; Saravan Penubarthi, Chief Technology Officer at AIQ; and Jake Loosararian, CEO of Gecko Robotics, the discussion explores why AI is now central to managing disruption, strengthening asset resilience and safeguarding global energy systems in an increasingly volatile world.

In this episode of the Energy Connects podcast, host Chiranjib Sengupta speaks with Grant Dougans, Partner at Bain & Company, about how geopolitical tensions and market volatility are elevating energy infrastructure as a strategic asset. Recorded as a part of ADIPEC’s Energy and Geopolitics series, the discussion focuses on why resilience has become critical to energy security. Dougans highlights the practical strategies companies and countries can adopt to strengthen infrastructure and supply chains in an increasingly fragmented world. He also discusses the outlook on potential consolidation and restructuring across the industry.