This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re joined by Ana Marques, Executive Board Member at EDP. She joins Ana Barillas, Aurora’s Managing Director for Iberia & LatAm, to explore how flexibility, grids, and system resilience are becoming central to the next phase of the energy transition, alongside continued growth in wind and solar. 

Ana sits on EDP’s Executive Board and oversees the group’s global renewable generation platform, alongside responsibility for digital, technology, and safety. Drawing on EDP’s international footprint, she shares how scale, technology diversification, and disciplined value creation underpin the company’s strategy, and why renewables must increasingly deliver not just clean energy, but also reliability and system services.

You will learn:

This week on Energy Unplugged, Jesse Hetema, Aurora’s Head of the Netherlands and Belgium, is joined by Simon Bushell, Founder and CEO of Sympower, to explore why flexibility has become a critical pillar of Europe’s energy transition. They discuss how rising price volatility, negative prices and grid congestion are shifting the focus from pure decarbonisation towards system resilience, and why demand-side response and batteries are now essential to keeping renewable-heavy power systems stable and investable.

Simon founded Sympower in 2015 and has grown the company into a leading provider of flexibility services across Europe, with a strong presence in the Nordics and Greece. Drawing on his experience working with industrial customers, he explains how flexibility is unlocked in practice – from identifying low-cost demand-side opportunities to optimising batteries across multiple markets – and why digital platforms, advanced dispatch and supportive regulation are key to scaling flexibility across Europe.

Listeners will also hear how tools like Aurora’s Flex subscription help market participants understand flexibility opportunities and price dynamics, and how CHRONOS supports the optimisation and valuation of battery assets across volatile power markets.

You will learn:

2025 has been a landmark year for the global energy sector and the energy transition, marked by rapid change and significant challenges.

Aurora has brought together the key themes shaping the energy transition into a special end of year report and accompanying podcast – hosted by our Global Research Director, Richard Howard and with contributions from 12 Aurora experts from Aurora’s global network.

Key themes explored are:

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Steve McMahon, Ofgem’s Director for Network Price Controls. He joins Dan Monzani, Aurora’s Managing Director for the UK & Ireland, to unpack Ofgem’s final determinations for RIIO-3 and what the next regulatory period means for networks, consumers and investors. The discussion explores the scale of required electricity and gas network investment, how strategic planning and new procurement approaches aim to accelerate delivery, and the challenges posed by surging demand, connection queues and rising system constraints.

Steve leads Ofgem’s regulation of the onshore electricity and gas networks, overseeing the current price controls and the development of the RIIO-3 settlements, as well as serving as Ofgem’s Head of Scotland. He brings deep experience from senior roles across UK and Scottish Government, including in transport infrastructure and economic analysis.

You will learn about:

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Mariglen Nora, Head of the Green Energy Segment at Elevion Group, joining Casimir Lorenz, Aurora’s Market Lead for Central Europe & the Nordics, for a deep dive into how European renewable and flexibility markets are evolving across Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, the UK, and beyond.

Mariglen oversees Elevion’s portfolio of specialist companies spanning PV, battery storage, biomethane, and other clean technologies, and serves on the boards of BELECTRIC, BELECTRIC GREENVEST, and EnergyShift. Drawing on extensive experience at Elevion and CEZ Group, he offers a granular, cross-market perspective on how utility-scale PV, BESS, biomethane, and grid constraints are shaping investment priorities across Europe.

You will learn about:

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome the Honourable Matt Kean, Chair of Australia’s Climate Change Authority and Director at Wollemi. He joins Hugo Batten, Aurora’s Managing Director for APAC, and James Ha, Aurora’s Head of Research for APAC, for a deep conversation on how Australia is reshaping its energy system - through policy reform, market design, and strategic investment - to deliver a cleaner, more secure, and more affordable power sector

Matt draws on over a decade in senior government roles - including NSW Minister for Energy & Environment, NSW Treasurer, and Deputy Leader of the NSW Liberal Party - where he led major reforms in renewable energy, grid investment, and climate legislation. Now at Wollemi, he is helping scale climate-positive investments while continuing to shape Australia’s national climate strategy through the Climate Change Authority.

You will learn about:

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Nawal Saini, Managing Partner in Brookfield’s Renewable Power & Transition Group. He joins Dan Monzani, Aurora’s Managing Director for the UK & Ireland and India, alongside Debabrata Ghosh, Aurora’s Head of India, for a deep dive into how renewable deployment and transition investment are accelerating in India and other emerging markets.

Nawal leads Brookfield’s renewable and transition business across these regions, drawing on extensive experience in energy and infrastructure investment at CDPQ, JP Morgan, and Jacob Ballas, as well as banking roles with ABN Amro Bank and SBI Capital Markets. His perspective combines large-scale capital allocation, platform building, and first-hand insight into navigating policy, regulatory, and market complexity in fast-growing economies.

You will learn about:

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Karol Wolański, Head of Flexibility & Aggregation at Respect Energy, and Roch Baranowski, Chief Strategy Officer at Respect Energy Holding. They join Piotr Dobrzynski, Aurora's Market Lead for Poland, Czechia, and Slovakia, to discuss how Poland and the wider CEE power markets are evolving in response to renewable growth, regulatory reforms, and market volatility.

Karol brings deep expertise in balancing markets and cross-border power exchange, leading the development of flexibility and aggregation services for renewables and storage assets. Roch oversees Respect Energy’s growth strategy, combining commercial and environmental value creation, with extensive experience in energy transition, consulting, and sustainable innovation.

You will learn about:

• How flexibility and balancing services are reshaping operating models and creating new revenue streams for renewable generators and storage operators.

• Strategic approaches to optimizing battery energy storage and capturing ancillary service revenues.

• Innovative PPA structures and other mechanisms that unlock additional value in evolving power markets.

• Opportunities for early movers in Poland, the CEE region, and beyond, as the power market adapts to higher renewable penetration and new regulations.

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Anna von Bremen, Partner and Head of Energy Innovation at Osborne Clarke. She joins Nico Leicht, Project Leader in Aurora’s Berlin Advisory Team, to discuss market design, regulatory frameworks, and innovation in the German power sector.

Anna brings deep expertise in energy regulation and co-located battery storage projects, advising on both technical and commercial aspects of the evolving market. Nico and Anna explore how Germany’s grid, regulatory processes, and market mechanisms are adapting to increasing renewable penetration and new storage technologies.

Main topics include the following:

• The role of regulators and grid operators in enabling a more flexible, digitalized, and grid-friendly energy system.

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Marcio Trannin, Managing Director for LATAM at Sunco Capital and Vice-President of the Board of Administrators at ABSOLAR, and Ricardo Motoyama, Senior Vice President of Commercial & Business Development at Elera Renewables. They join Rodrigo Borges, Aurora’s Market Lead for Brazil, to explore how Brazil’s liberalising power market, rapid renewable expansion, and evolving policy landscape are reshaping the country’s energy future.

Marcio brings nearly three decades of experience across renewables, M&A, and regulatory affairs in Latin America’s electricity markets. Ricardo complements this with a strong commercial and financial background, offering insights into how trading, innovation, and risk management are driving new business models and accelerating Brazil’s transition to cleaner power. Together, they reflect on how Brazil can remain competitive in a global energy transition increasingly defined by flexibility and investment scale.

Main topics include the following: