Sponsored by KPMG

With Climate Week in full swing, tons of speeches, meetings and presentations are taking place in New York, with an eye toward how the energy transition will continue to evolve. One key technology that will continue to play a huge role in that evolution is batteries. Roger Miksad, the president and executive director of Battery Council International, stops by the show to explain how batteries of various chemistries are advancing to power things like data centers, EVs and microgrids. Roger also touches on a few policies that the battery sector is watching closely, like the USA Batteries Act. And with more and more batteries coming to the market, Roger outlines the hard work BCI and its members have put in over the years to advance recycling and develop a circular economy for raw materials and components.

More resources from KPMG
KPMG generative AI survey report: Energy, natural resources and chemicals
KPMG LLP AI & Digital Innovation Quarter Pulse Survey - Q2 2024

Key highlights
The importance of Climate Week - (2:57)
What Roger hopes to see from this year's Climate Week - (3:59)
The expanding role of batteries in the energy landscape - (4:30)
Specific areas batteries are powering the energy transition - (6:04)
The impact the Inflation Reduction Act is having on battery manufacturing - (7:53)
Other policies that are crucial for the battery industry - (10:31)
The role batteries play in powering data centers - (14:41)
Advancements in battery recycling and the circular economy - (16:42)
Roger's bold predictions - (19:58)

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Sponsored by KPMG and EDF Renewables

With the election fast-approaching, many people in the renewable energy industry are wondering how a potential shift in the current political power structure in the US might impact the push for clean energy. With that uncertainty in mind, Suzanne Leta, vice president of policy and advocacy for the Americas at Fluence, joins the show to discuss tax incentives related to the Inflation Reduction Act, with a particular focus on domestic manufacturing. Suzanne also explains how tariffs related to batteries are structured in a way that makes them surprisingly vulnerable to the whims of whoever occupies the White House. Suzanne also touches on cybersecurity and shares her insights on the impact data centers powering AI are placing on batteries and the rest of the grid … and how smart utilities and other organizations are planning to manage that increased energy demand.

More insights from Suzanne:
Powering America's Future: Grid-Scale Energy Storage Boosts Grid Reliability, Jobs and US Manufacturing

More resources from KPMG:
Survey results: High energy expectations for renewables

More resources from EDF Renewables:
What We Do

Key highlights from Suzanne:
The buzz around domestic manufacturing - (4:01)
Other IRA incentives like the PTC, ITC and other bonus tax credits - (10:45)
The whimsical nature of Section 301 tariffs on batteries - (13:20)
The politics of the election and the energy transition in the US - (17:15)
Cybersecurity and the grid - (22:12)
Manaing the boom in energy demand from AI data centers - (26:41)
'Hyperscale' data centers vs. typical data centers - (27:24)
Suzanne's bold predictions about the future of battery storage - (31:46)

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Sponsored by KPMG

In this special episode from RE+, we connect with Ryan Pfaff, EVP of Grid- and Distribution-Scale Power at EDF Renewables. Ryan discusses the massive growth in energy demand from companies and utilities, the geographic distribution of clean energy jobs across the US and what the future of automation might look like for renewables. Ryan explains how the longer duration of incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act is boosting renewables and he also outlines what customers and developers can do to quicken the pace of projects and bring more clean energy to the grid.

More resources from KPMG
Survey results: High energy expectations for renewables

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Follow the show on Twitter @RenewablesPod