The Power Current with Chris Berry

In this episode of The Power Current podcast, host Chris Berry interviews Dr. Cormac O'Laoire, Managing Director at Electrios Energy, discussing the evolution of the battery industry, particularly focusing on lithium-ion and LFP technologies. They explore the current trends in the battery supply chain, the shift in battery chemistry narratives, and the overlooked areas within the industry. The conversation also delves into the comparative dynamics of North American and European supply chains, the balance between innovation and scale, and the future of battery technologies, including recycling challenges and the potential for battery swapping.

This interview was done in collaboration with Fastmarkets and the Live Lounge set at their Lithium Conference in Las Vegas last month.

In this episode, Trevor Hall takes the host seat to interview Paul Lusty, Head of Battery Raw Materials at Fastmarkets. This conversation delves into the future projections of the lithium market, exploring the dynamics of supply and demand, the role of renewable energy, and the importance of other battery raw materials like cobalt and manganese. The discussion highlights the challenges and opportunities within the industry, emphasizing the need for supply discipline and the impact of external factors on market trends.

In this episode of The Power Current, host Chris Barry interviews Ken Brinsden, CEO of Patriot Battery Metals, discussing the current state of the lithium market, the evolution of off-take agreements, and the importance of vertical integration in lithium mining. Brinsden shares insights on the demand dynamics, processing challenges, and unconventional takes on the future of the lithium supply chain.

This week we continue with a deep dive into how tariffs and regulatory policy are impacting the ways in which the critical material supply chain is being built. In the wake of the podcast with Tantalus Systems where we looked deeper into the challenges and opportunities of the electricity grid, today’s podcast centers on material science with a deep dive into Ferroglobe. 

Ferroglobe is a global leader in advanced metallurgical products critical for hundreds of consumers and industrial applications and is the largest merchant producer of silicon metal in the Western World.

Regular listeners of the podcast will know just how critical silicon metal is for both the battery and semiconductor businesses.Our guest today is Bill Hightower, VP of Corporate Affairs for Ferroglobe. Bill has an enormous amount of experience both in the public and private sector and helps walk us through both the opportunities and challenges this market faces as the criticality of silicon has dawned on policymakers. We discuss the background of the company, the silicon metal and alloy markets, partnerships, tariff issues, and what the future of the silicon supply chain looks like in batteries with a deep dive on silicon anodes. As an aside, Ferroglobe is a publicly traded company and so please be aware that nothing that is said during the course of this discussion should be considered investment advice and please as always do your own due diligence.

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Chokepoints - American Power in an Age of Economic Warfare with Eddie Fishman

As China and the US jockey for geopolitical pre-eminence, the war to decide the victor will not necessarily be fought with missiles and drones. In fact, the economy has become the true weapon of choice with tariffs, export controls, currencies, and clearing networks serving as ammunition. Evidence of this economic warfare is obvious with China, Russia, and Iran specifically.

My guest today has written a terrific book on these topics. Eddie Fishman is a scholar of international relations and former diplomat in the State Department who is currently a Senior Research Scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy and an Adjunct Professor of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University.

In this episode we discuss how economies have become weaponized and specifically what those weapons are. We dig into the use of tariffs, export controls and the power of the US Dollar and discuss whether or not the course we are on in dealing with Russia, Iran and China isn’t ultimately self-defeating or if there is light at the end of the tunnel in the new “America First” geopolitical environment.If you enjoyed this discussion on export controls, tariffs, USD hegemony and their impacts, please share it far and wide and don’t forget to like and subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen.

Thanks again and we’ll see you next time.

The recent blackout in Spain and Portugal was a wake-up call. Why did it happen? What can prevent something like this from happening again? While there were multiple factors that led to the collapse of the grid, there are solutions, and here to talk about one such pathway forward is Peter Londa, CEO of Tantalus Systems Holdings.

Tantalus is a tech company that helps utilities modernize their distribution grids by leveraging data across systems deployed along the grid to make for a smarter, more efficient delivery and use of electricity. As an aside, Tantalus is a publicly traded company and so please be aware that nothing that is said during the course of this discussion should be considered investment advice and please as always do your own due diligence.

If you enjoyed this discussion of the threats and opportunities along the electricity grid, please share it far and wide and don’t forget to like and subscribe to the podcast wherever you listen.

Thanks again and we’ll see you next time.

One of the major changes we have seen globally in recent years along the clean energy supply chain is the willingness of governments in countries like China, the US, and the EU to jumpstart funding for projects through investment or production tax credits or grants and loans. The Trump Administration has thrown some of this into doubt with a reshuffling of priorities and threats to somehow cancel or rewrite legislation such as the Inflation Reduction Act.

My guest today provides a clear-headed view on the need for funding and how to navigate the increasingly rocky seas as the race for green energy dominance accelerates. Ashley Zumwalt-Forbes has a varied and deep history in both the public and private sectors and most recently worked in the Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains Office (MESC) in the Department of Energy where she served as the Deputy Director for Batteries and Critical Materials. While there, she oversaw the deployment of ~$6B in non-dilutive equity and ~$10B in tax credits into the US battery supply chain during the Biden Administration. She is currently Principal at Smoketree Advisors.

If you liked today’s pod on policy, please let me know. I’m on Twitter/X @cberry1 and also find me on Linked In. Further to that, if you’ve got a topic you’d like to see us go deeper on or a good guest, please let me know. Also don’t forget to like and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts. Thanks so much for listening and we’ll see you next time.

This episode of Power Current delves into the intricacies of black mass production with Lee Allen of Fastmarkets, exploring its definition, importance, and the current landscape of the recycling market. Lee Allen shares insights on the geographical distribution of black mass production, challenges in scrap battery supply, and the competitive dynamics affecting pricing. The discussion also highlights China's regulatory changes, the trading ecosystem, and the role of OEMs in the recycling process. Looking ahead, the future of battery recycling is examined, with forecasts indicating significant growth in the sector.

Our guest today is Mr Erik Olson. Erik is President of Venn Strategies and Spokesperson for the North American Graphite Alliance.  He has a wealth of experience in Washington DC serving for 14 years on the staff of Congressman Ron Kind (D- Wisconsin).

The North American Graphite Alliance (NAGA) represents producers of battery-grade natural and synthetic graphite, both of which are used to create anode material for lithium-ion batteries. NAGA’s members are American producers Anovion Technologies, Epsilon Advanced Materials, and NOVONIX, as well as Canadian producers Northern Graphite and Nouveau Monde Graphite.On the pod today we discuss the state of the graphite market, the origins and goals of NAGA, the efficacy of targeted tariffs, the future of green growth and the IRA given the Trump Administration's priorities, competition with China and specific policy proposals for building a strong and resilient graphite supply chain in North America. 

Venn Strategies website: https://vennstrategies.com/

NAGA website: https://graphitealliance.org/

BMTC website: https://batterymaterials.org

Oxford Economics Paper on the Graphite Market: https://graphitealliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Enabling-North-American-Graphite-Growth.pdf

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My guest today is Mr. Tem Tumurbat. Tem is co-founder and managing partner at Nomadic Venture Partners. Nomadic is an early-stage venture capital firm that invests in digital and light hardware technologies focused on decarbonizing the metals, manufacturing, and transport sectors.

Tem co-founded Nomadic in 2021 and focuses on fund strategy, fundraising, portfolio construction, valuation, and financial analysis.Prior to co-founding NVP, Tem was an investment professional at Resource Capital Funds, managing early to late-stage investments.

Prior to RCF, Tem worked for Newmont Mining Corporation as a mining engineer and then project engineer. In this episode, we discuss Tem’s background and what led him to co-found NVP, his screening process, the state of the investment landscape, what it takes to successfully grow and scale digital technology companies, and hat Tem calls "the 5 T's". 

Nomadic VP website: https://nomadicvp.com/

Nomadic on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nomadicvp/

Thanks for listening and if you enjoyed this episode, please don’t forget to hit the like button and subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts.