How can engineers and economists collaborate to deliver WA's energy transition?

Giles took the long road to economics, by way of a decade of bartending and a late return to university. After eight years in state government and a stint in consulting, he now plays a leading role in AMGC's $8 million wind energy manufacturing co-investment program in WA.

Welcome to the second episode of The Engineer's Next Door. In this episode we sit down with Mike Johns, Chair of Chemical and Process Engineering at UWA and Research Director of the Future Energy Exports CRC. 

Mike's route into research ran through five years on an oil refinery before a chance conversation on a beach sent him to Cambridge and then eventually a relocation to Perth, where today he works at UWA on the techno-economics of energy systems (amongst other things). Mike takes us through one of the key economic challenges of the energy transition: solar, wind and batteries have become dramatically cheaper per megawatt hour, but not necessarily at the hours they are needed.

This was a fascinating conversation on both the role of research in enabling the energy transition and the economic realities of reducing emissions in WA.

This episode is hosted by Nathan Hayward and Howard Thomas, members of theEngineers Australia WA Energy Transition Working Group.

In the first episode of The Engineers Next Door, we hear from Jai Thomas, Coordinator of Energy at Energy Policy WA, on how the WA state government is planning for Western Australia's energy transition.