Reservoir levels in southern Norway are at their lowest for 30 years raising concerns about power prices in the months ahead and the Nordic region’s ability to balance domestic needs with exports to neighbouring markets.

In this episode of Plugged In, we examine the state of Nordic hydropower, the outlook for reservoir refilling and what current weather patterns could mean for power markets in the months ahead. The discussion explores the role of interconnectors, changing power flows between countries and how weather uncertainty continues to shape market expectations.

Looking beyond this winter, our guests also consider how the Nordic power system may evolve over the next five to ten years as demand rises, generation changes and the energy transition gathers pace.

Host: Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson – Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:
Gert Ove Mollestad – Norway Editor, Montel News
Gro Klæboe – Product Manager, Mid- and Long-term Modelling, Volue Data & Forecasts
Silje Eriksen Holmen – Head of Fundamentals and Hydrology, Volt Power
Sigbjørn Seland – Chief Analyst, StormGeo

Editor: Alexandra Carlon
Producer: Alexandra Carlon

#Nordics #PowerMarkets #Hydropower #EnergyTransition #ElectricityMarkets #Reservoirs #NordicPower #EnergySecurity #Montel #PluggedInPodcast

Extreme heat and drought are putting Europe’s power system under pressure on close to an annual basis. 

Low river levels and high water temperatures are constraining nuclear and hydropower generation, just as demand for cooling rises. Meanwhile, solar has emerged as a bright spot — providing a quarter of the EU’s power mix in June and helping meet increased daytime demand.

In this episode of Plugged In, we look at how extreme weather is reshaping Europe’s power markets, why countries overly reliant on one generation source may be particularly vulnerable, and what growing price volatility tells us about the need for storage and flexibility.

We also ask whether Europe is prepared for a future in which today’s extreme summers become increasingly commonplace; and what needs to happen now to make the power system more resilient.

#Energy #PowerMarkets #ClimateChange #ExtremeWeather #EnergyTransition #Renewables #SolarPower #NuclearEnergy #EnergySecurity #Europe #Drought #PowerSystems #PluggedInPodcast 

Host: Richard Sverrisson – Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:

Maja Žuvela -  SEE Correspondent, Montel News

Dr Chris Rosslowe -  Senior Energy Analyst, Europe, EMBER 

Professor Mark Maslin - British climate scientist and Professor of Earth System Science, UCL 

Chiara Cagnazzo - Principal Scientific Officer at Copernicus Climate Change Service 

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

Producer: Alexandra Carlon

After a summer spent exploring the technologies, markets and policies shaping Europe's energy transition, the final episode of the Plugged In Summer Series asks one key final question: is the green shift slowing down, or speeding up?

Richard is joined by two expert academics. David Reiner of the University of Cambridge and  Michael Grubb of University College London to explore what's next for the energy transition. Together, they assess how geopolitical instability, rising electricity demand and shifting global dynamics are reshaping the path ahead—from energy security and electrification to market reform, investment, China's growing influence and the future of clean energy policy. 

The conversation concludes by returning to the central question that has run throughout the series: is the energy transition accelerating, stalling, or taking a different path?

Host: Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:

Dr David Reiner, Professor of Technology Policy, Judge Business School, University of Cambridge

Professor Michael Grubb, Professor of Energy and Climate Change, University College London

Producer: Alexandra Carlon

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

#EnergyTransition #NetZero #EnergySecurity #ClimatePolicy #Electrification #CleanEnergy #ElectricityMarkets #Geopolitics #Decarbonisation #EnergyMarkets #MontelNews #PluggedInPodcast

Artificial intelligence is transforming the global economy at extraordinary speed, but it's also creating one of the biggest new sources of electricity demand Europe has faced in decades. As hyperscale data centres continue to expand, are Europe's power systems, grids and energy markets ready to keep pace?

In this episode of the Plugged In Summer Series, we explore what the AI boom means for the energy transition. The discussion centres around power supply and how grid constraints could shape investment, to the role of flexibility, policy and smarter energy management. We chat about the challenges and opportunities facing Europe's electricity system in the wake of such a growing industry. 

Featuring insights from experts in technology policy, data centre strategy and the power sector, this episode asks whether AI's growing appetite for energy can be aligned with Europe's ambitions for a secure, affordable and low-carbon future—and what needs to happen next.

Host:

Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:

Katie Berriman Davies, Head of Energy, TechUK

Liam Newcombe, SVP Product, Energy Strategy & Innovation, GreenScale

Steve Smith, Group Chief Strategy & UK External Affairs Officer, National Grid

Producer: Alexandra Carlon

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

#AI #DataCentres #EnergyTransition #ElectricityMarkets #PowerSystems #GridInfrastructure #Renewables #Flexibility #Decarbonisation #EnergyPolicy #Hyperscalers #DigitalInfrastructure #CleanEnergy #PluggedInPodcast #MontelNews

Europe's electricity system is changing fast. As renewables continue to reshape the power mix, new challenges are emerging; from negative pricing and falling pofitability  to the increased need for flexibility, storage, long-term investment signals and the growing demands of AI-driven data centres.

In this episode of the Plugged In Summer Series, host Richard speaks with market experts Cillian O'Donoghue of Eurelectric and Fabian Huneke of Agora to explore whether Europe's electricity market design is still fit for purpose.

The discussion examines whether the current market framework is delivering the right incentives for investment, the role of contracts for difference (CFDs) and power purchase agreements (PPAs), the importance of forward market liquidity, and why flexibility (from batteries to demand response) will be critical to keeping the energy transition affordable and secure. The guests also discuss how Europe can accelerate grid development, respond to rising electricity demand from data centres, and ensure market reforms keep pace with a rapidly evolving power system.

Is Europe's market design driving the clean energy transition; or at risk of holding it back? 

Host: Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests: 

Cillian O'Donoghue, Director, Policy, Eurelectic

Fabian Huneke, Project Lead Energy Transition in the Power Sector, Agora

Producer: Alexandra Carlon 

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

#PluggedInPodcast #EnergyTransition #ElectricityMarkets #MarketDesign #Renewables #PowerMarkets #EnergyPolicy #GridFlexibility #EnergyStorage #CfDs #PPAs #DataCentres #EuropeanEnergy #MontelNews#Datacentres

Europe has made remarkable progress in developing renewable energy, but grids – both at distribution and transmission level, are struggling to keep up. Congestion, long connection queues and ageing infrastructure are holding back the energy transition. So, is the answer simply building more grid infrastructure; or making better use of the network we already have?

In this third episode of the Plugged In Summer Series, host Richard is joined by experts from across the electricity sector to explore how Europe can ease its growing grid bottlenecks. Frank Boerman-Lima shares insights from the front line of transmission system operation and cross-border electricity markets. Luuk Veeken explains how AI, forecasting and automated trading are helping integrate more renewable power, while Brian Lonn discusses the growing role of battery storage and flexibility markets in supporting the grid. 

Together, they explore how smarter market design, flexibility and digital innovation can unlock more capacity from Europe's electricity networks and keep the energy transition moving.

Host:

Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:

Frank Boerman-Lima, Flow-Based Capacity Calculation Expert

Luuk Veeken, CEO, Dexter Energy

Brian Lonn, Head of UK Flexibility, Statkraft

Producer: Alexandra Carlon

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

#EnergyTransition #PowerGrids #RenewableEnergy #GridFlexibility #ElectricityMarkets #EnergyTransition #PowerGrids #CleanEnergy #BatteryStorage #AI #EnergyTransition #ElectricityMarkets #PowerGrids #GridFlexibility #Renewables

Europe is developing green energy at lighting speed.  But as solar and wind generation reaches record levels, new challenges are emerging across the electricity system. Negative prices, grid congestion, curtailment and falling capture prices are raising a fundamental question: has renewable deployment reached its limits, or is the rest of the energy system failing to keep pace?

In this episode of the Plugged In Summer Series, we explore whether Europe's next challenge is no longer building renewable generation, but integrating it.

Host Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief of Montel News, is joined by Dr Lion Hirth, one of Europe's leading energy market economists and Professor of Energy Policy at the Hertie School; Luca Pedretti, Chief Product Officer & Co-Founder of Pexapark; and Professor Jan Rosenow, one of Europe's foremost experts on energy efficiency and electrification, and Professor of Energy and Climate Policy at the University of Oxford.

Together they examine whether current market structures, grids and policy frameworks are fit for a predominantly green energy system,, how investors are responding to growing merchant risk, and why flexibility, storage and electrification could determine whether Europe's energy transition continues to accelerate…or begins to slow down.

Host:
Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson, Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests:

Dr Lion Hirth, Professor of Energy Policy, Hertie School

Luca Pedretti, Chief Product Officer & Co-Founder, Pexapark

Jan Rosenow, Energy Programme Leader and Professor of Energy and Climate Policy, University of Oxford

Producer: Alexandra Carlon 

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

Europe's energy transition has delivered record renewable deployment and significant emissions reductions, but a new wave of geopolitical instability is once again putting the resilience of the energy system to the test.

This episode launches the Plugged In Summer Series, where we'll be asking one overarching question throughout: is the energy transition slowing down, or speeding up? Across six episodes, we'll explore the market, policy and technology trends shaping the answer.

To kick off the series, we're joined by three of the sector's leading voices: Professor Jan Rosenow of the University of Oxford, one of Europe's foremost experts on energy policy and the energy transition; Simon Flowers, Chairman and Chief Analyst at Wood Mackenzie and one of the industry's most respected market commentators; and Saul Kavonic, Head of Energy Research at MST Marquee, internationally recognised for his analysis of global energy markets and geopolitical risk.

Together, they explore how conflict, energy security and volatile gas markets are reshaping policy, investment and market dynamics across Europe. They discuss whether Europe has learned the lessons of previous energy crises and why politics, not technology, may now be the biggest barrier to progress.

This opening episode sets the scene for the rest of the series, asking a simple but critical question: can Europe's energy transition stay on course when the world around it becomes more unstable; and is this latest period of disruption ultimately slowing the transition down, or speeding it up?

#PluggedInPodcast #EnergyTransition #EnergySecurity #Geopolitics #GasMarkets #PowerMarkets #NetZero #EuropeanEnergy #Renewables #EnergyPolicy

Host:Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson – Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guests: 

Simon Flowers, Chairman, Chief Analyst at Wood Mackenzie

Saul Kavonic -  Head of Energy Research, MST Marquee

Jan Rosenow - Professor of Energy and Climate Policy, University of Oxford 

Producer: Alexandra Carlon 

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

The UK has set one of the most ambitious energy targets in Europe: a fully clean power system by 2030. But achieving it will require a transformation of the country's electricity network, unprecedented levels of renewable investment, and difficult political and regulatory decisions.

Recorded in Whitehall, Richard Sverrisson sits down with Chris Stark, Head of UK’s Mission for Clean Power, UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, to discuss whether the country is on track to meet its target and what still stands in the way.

Can the UK build the grid, generation and flexibility needed in time?  And what lessons could the rest of Europe learn from its approach?

The conversation explores the UK's efforts to reform grid connection queues, accelerate infrastructure delivery, expand battery storage, develop new nuclear capacity and strengthen links with European energy markets. Or as Chris Stark put it the tough choices needed to “ungum the system”.

#PluggedInPodcast #EnergyTransition #CleanPower2030 #EnergyPolicy #GridInfrastructure #RenewableEnergy #EnergySecurity #NetZero #ChrisStark

Host:Snjólfur Richard Sverrisson – Editor-in-Chief, Montel News

Guest: Chris Stark – Head of Mission Control for Clean Power 2030, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Editor: Alexandra Carlon

Producer: Alexandra Carlon