The world economy is currently caught between two strong influences. The need for change to less carbon-intensive energy fuels is gathering in strength, and action needs to be taken now if the international community will meet the deadlines for limiting global warming to two degrees. However, the Covid-19 virus has hit demand for fuels. Economic recovery and hence energy demand appear to be patchy at best. How will these two influences affect the demand for the various fuel sources?

In this podcast, Simon Henry, Director of Carbon Markets at IETA joins the Foundation to discuss the role carbon markets will have within the context of decarbonising the global economy and achieving the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement. 

Many world leaders, captains of industry, and civil society organisations see the Paris Agreement as the last hope for humanity to address climate change’s catastrophic impact and preserve foundations for a healthy planet. Yet the current commitments by all signatories are insufficient to meet the goal of keeping global temperature rise to below 2°C. 

Consequently, Fatih Birol, Executive Director of the IEA, recently announced the launch of a comprehensive road map for the global energy sector to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. The roadmap report, expected in May, will serve as a guide for countries preparing to convene for the COP26 UN Climate Conference in November. 

The IEA estimates that the required total transformation of the world’s energy infrastructure would mean, by 2030, increasing electric cars’ share of annual sales from 3% to over 50%, expanding the production of low-carbon hydrogen from 450,000 tonnes to 40 million tonnes,; and boosting investment in clean electricity from $380 billion to $1.6 trillion. 

This massive scale of decarbonisation of the global economy will require, amongst other things, putting an international price on carbon.

In this Al-Attiyah Foundation podcast, Mr. Harry Sealy, joins the Foundation to share his thoughts and insights on our new podcast series topic “Energy Transitions, or Back to Business as Usual?”.

Mr. Sealy is the Chairman and Founding Member of the Middle East and North African Chapter of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment or (IEMA), which is an international body comprising over 16,000 sustainability and environmental professionals collectively working to facilitate the transition to a more sustainable world. IEMA’s “raison d’etre” or reason for being includes provision of support to advance the profession of those who manage and assess aspects of environmental change. 

Harry Sealy is also a Fellow of IEMA organisation.  He has over 20-years’ experience in environmental management that has spanned working on the planning, design, and environmental compliance of a wide variety of major projects from offshore marine renewables and interconnector power cables to onshore gas-pipelines, from major tunnelling/expressway projects to coastal resorts, ports, marinas. His journey has taken him from Europe to Eastern Siberia, and Qatar.

The gas industry is currently facing growing global competition from renewable sources of energy. For both electricity generation and domestic heating, gas compares favorably against coal for both efficiencies and for reduced carbon dioxide emissions. However, there is growing awareness that methane emissions from the gas industry can significantly affect climate change.

In this Al-Attiyah Foundation podcast, Mr. Bart Wauterickx, the CEO of Dutch-based company “The Sniffers” joins us to discuss the effects of Methane emissions, how they can be reduced, and what role they will play in the process of an energy transition, and in combating Climate Change.

This interview was conducted in March of 2021 with Ms. Mechthild Wörsdörfer (@MWorsdorfer). In 2018 Ms. Wörsdörfer joined the IEA as the Director of Sustainability, Technology & Outlooks (STO). Ms. Wörsdörfer plans and co-ordinates the IEA’s work on energy sustainability, encompassing clean energy technologies and climate change policy. 

Previously, Ms. Wörsdörfer held several senior management positions in the European Commission, where she coordinated the work on the 2030 Energy and Climate Framework, the Clean Energy Package, and the 2050 Energy Roadmap. She had been involved with the IEA for a number of years as IEA Governing Board Representative for the EU, and served in the Cabinet of Commissioners, in charge of industry, competitiveness, trade, and digital economy.

Between 2014 and 2017, Ms. Wörsdörfer was the Director for Energy Policy, where she notably managed the development of the Energy Union Framework Strategy, Governance, and external aspects. Prior to that Ms. Wörsdörfer worked as head of the policy unit, in particular on the 2030 Energy and Climate Framework. Before, she pursued a long career at DG Enterprise & Industry and in the Cabinet of Commissioner Erkki Liikanen, in charge of Enterprise Policy and Information Society.

Ms. Wörsdörfer studied Economics and Languages in Heidelberg, Montpellier, and Brussels.

In this Al-Attiyah Foundation podcast, Mr. Martin O'Neill joins the Foundation to share his thoughts and insights on the role of hydrogen and a way forward on carbon-free energy.

Mr. Martin O'Neill is Vice President of Product Management at GE Gas Power and leads the activities of GE’s Center for Decarbonization, as part of its steering committee.

Martin is a seasoned senior executive who brings deep domain expertise in product design, program and technical leadership spanning across the Power Generation, Marine, Aviation and Transportation sectors. He has worked at GE for over 10 years - split equally between the US & Europe - and has a keen interest in the developing power market, technological and commercial disruptors and geo-political factors that are influencing the pace of the energy transition globally. With broad experience in multiple sectors, he is as happy discussing controls, nuclear and software solutions, as he is talking about turbines, electrical equipment and plant design.

Prior to his roles at GE, Martin held leadership positions in engineering and program management at Bombardier and Rolls Royce, which has equipped him with a unique lens and perspective on the development, adoption and integration of breakthrough technologies.
Martin holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and Aeronautics from Brunel University in London and a master’s degree in Program Management & Systems Engineering from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology.

About This Interview:
In this Podcast, Dr. Bassam Fattouh, the Director of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies and Professor at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, joins us to talk about international oil pricing systems, peak oil, hydrogen, gas, OPEC pricing power and the dynamics of oil prices and oil price differentials.


More from The Al-Attiyah Foundation:
 1. Research Report - Net-Zero Carbon Economy:
      https://bit.ly/3kgEHv1
2. Research Report - Carbon Neutrality:
      https://bit.ly/2UJvjp1
3. Research Report - Climate Change Activism:
      https://bit.ly/3xE6VDz
4. Webinar - Hydrogen:
      https://bit.ly/3raNmjL

Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/36yOW5F
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3yUcmP5
Subscribe to our Publications: http://eepurl.com/giu18r

In This Podcast: 
In this follow-up edition of our first Al-Attiyah Foundation Podcast on New Fuels, and New Energy Sources, with Dr. Marcello Contestabile, Dr. Veronica Bermudez Benito, Senior Research Director at QEERI joins the Foundation to share her thoughts and insights on our new podcast series topic "Energy Transition to combat Climate Change".
1. What is QEERI and what does it do?
2. Insight into Qatar's Poto Voltaic cell research.
3. Key opportunities for PV cell technology in the Middle East and challenges faced in the Middle East with reference to climate and energy-rich economies.
4. The true future potential for Electric Vehicles (EVs)
5. The viability of Concentrated Solar Power and CSP Plants.


About the Guest: 
Dr. Benito is Senior Research Director at QEERI (Qatar Environment Research Institute) where she is the Director of the Energy Center and leads the efforts in research, technology development, and innovation in Energy. 

Under her leadership, QEERI works in Energy Management (smart grids, EV, demand-response, power management, etc.), Energy Storage (high capacity concepts and outdoor test and reliability), Energy Conversion (mainly downstream PV and adaptability and durability to Harsh Climates), Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Development, Catalysis and Process Technologies for Added Value products and Disruptive Technologies (mainly Solar Rectennas and Sensors). 

Prior to joining the organization in 2018, she was Acting General Manager of the Technology Division of the Atsugi Research Center at Solar Frontier KK in Japan. She has also held the position of Principal Scientist at EDF R&D, Senior Scientist at NEXCIS, and Head of the Optoelectronic Characterization Laboratory at IRDEP (EDF) in France, among others.

Dr. Benitohas a PhD in Physics from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid 
(Spain), and holds a number of international awards for her research activity. She is an Associate Editor in the Journal of Renewable and Sustainable Energy and acts as an independent expert for a number of international funding agencies as the European Commission and European National funding bodies. She is also the author or co-author of more than 120 scientific papers in renowned journals, including Nature, Nature Energy, and Science, has delivered a large number of invited and keynote talks in several international conferences, as well as has a relevant patent portfolio. She has extensive experience in the field of Renewable Energy, in almost the whole value chain, from materials development to grid integration for generation, storage and energy management solutions. She is an IEEE Senior Fellow and is actively engaged in promoting science among the youth, with a focus on STEM for women.

Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/36yOW5F
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3yUcmP5
Subscribe to our Publications:

About This Interview:
In this Al-Attiyah Foundation Podcast, Dr. Marcello Contestabile joins the Foundation to share his thoughts and insights on our new podcast series topic "Energy Transition to combat Climate Change".

The final fuel mix will be diverse with many different local solutions probably in place around the world. We look at where economic research is leading towards local solutions for Qatar by discussing this topic with one of the leading local experts from QEERI.


More from The Al-Attiyah Foundation:
 1. Energy Research Report - Hydrogen:
      https://bit.ly/36wb6pg
2. Research Report - CCUS:
       https://bit.ly/3wEQg1F
3. Research Report - Asian Gas Markets:
      https://bit.ly/3B1eS85
4. Webinar - Hydrogen:
      https://bit.ly/3raNmjL

Follow us on Twitter: https://bit.ly/36yOW5F
Follow us on LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3yUcmP5
Subscribe to our Publications: http://eepurl.com/giu18r

About the Guest:
In 2000, Alain was appointed Director General of the Ministry of Finance, the youngest person to be appointed a director general in Lebanon. He is notable for successfully implementing change in a complex multicultural environment, where it is said obedience to clans supersedes allegiance to institutions. 

Throughout his career, Bifani was able to implement major reforms despite strong resistance from the establishment. He has proven successful in managing national finances during major crises and the absence of a government budget for more than 12 years!
Transparency was at the heart of Bifani’s work. He introduced electronic taxation, taxpayers’ services, and a code of ethics. He was known for having reconstructed 27 years of financial accounts for the government, thus leading the way towards accountability.

He holds a B.Eng in Optics and Telecommunications from the Institut d’Optique Graduate School (France) and a higher degree in Management and Finance from the Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales (HEC), France.