In this week's episode we’re taking a closer look at infrastructure’s use of data – how emerging digital technologies and AI tools are shaping and transforming the way we manage our built and natural environment.

To help me I am joined by James Lee, the new Chief Operating Officer at global infrastructure giant Bentley Systems in a quiet corner of the annual Year in Infrastructure tech gathering and celebration in Amsterdam.

It is clearly a moment when global infrastructure delivery faces unprecedented pressures — from net zero targets and climate resilience; to skills shortages and digital transformation.

And as we have been hearing at the event, Bentley stands at the intersection of engineering and innovation with a mission “to close the gap between what the world demands and what we are able to deliver – as chief executive Nicolas Cumins puts it.

So a lot to chat through with James today. He joins Bentley after a two-decade career spanning Google Cloud and SAP and so, I think, brings a unique perspective on operational challenges, AI integration, and the power of partnerships to drive transformation at scale.

Let’s explore how James plans to align these innovations with the realities of infrastructure delivery.

Resources

• Bentley Systems Year in Infrastructure
• Bentley Systems website
• Infrastructure Policy Advancement - TIPLive summits
• Google Cloud

In today’s episode we turn our attention to architecture and its role in shaping not just our buildings and infrastructure, but the society, environment and communities that are created by our built environment.

To tackle this challenging brief, I am joined this week in a quiet corner of the Building Centre in London by Chris Williamson, internationally renowned architect, founder of Weston Williamson + Partners – the practice that he set up in 1985 - and the freshly installed new President of the Royal Institute of British Architects – RIBA.

Chris is a man with a bold vision to reshape the profession and reshape RIBA, an organisation which has been a cornerstone for architecture for nearly two centuries.

But today, the institution faces serious questions about its relevance, its purpose, and how it can adapt to meet the needs of a fast-changing world.

And as issues like climate resilience, community engagement, and professional diversity take centre stage, there is growing pressure for RIBA to evolve — to become more accessible, more influential, and more impactful.

But to honest, it’s a challenge that Chris has been immersed in for his whole career, having worked on a huge portfolio of infrastructure projects, including notably the Jubilee Line extension station at London Bridge, Elizabeth Line stations at Paddington and Woolwich, the Melbourne Metro Tunnel project plus many urban regeneration projects, such as the Arden Cross masterplan in the West Midlands.

All of this work has emphasised Chris’s focus on the design of spaces that are not only functional but are sustainable and, crucially, enjoyable for people.

In his presidential nomination bid, Chris promised big change – in his first 100 days he vowed to review the 2021 RIBA Masterplan to create a more purposeful institution that leads on sustainability, champions diverse routes into the profession, delivers lifelong learning, and rebuilds public trust in architecture as a force for societal progress.

So what does that future look like? What will it take to deliver meaningful reform? And how can architects once again be seen — not just as designers of buildings — but as stewards of a better, fairer, more sustainable world?

Resources

• Weston Williamson + Partners website
• Royal Institute of British Architects – RIBA website
• Chris Williams elected RIBA President
• Chris Williamson's presidential bid
• The Stirling Prize
• Chris on “Your Architect” by Derek Senior
• RIBA amendments to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill

In today's episode we take a close look at the investor’s perspective on the UK’s infrastructure market — and, in particular, what the landmark Final Investment Decision on the new Sizewell C nuclear power station tells us about the appetite, the risks, and the rewards for long-term private capital.

Because, following completion of the deal last month, for the first time, the British public will be co-owners of a nuclear power station, sitting alongside a powerful mix of investors including EDF, Centrica, La Caisse, and Amber Infrastructure.

And as such I am pleased to be joined today by Jamie Hossain, Senior Investment Director at Amber Infrastructure and lead portfolio manager at International Public Partnerships (INPP), who has been leading their latest 7.6% investment in Sizewell C.

Amber is the the specialist international investment manager and investment adviser to infrastructure investment company International Public Partnerships Limited (INPP). As such he gives us his first hand perspective on the deal, what it means for UK infrastructure – and perhaps what is in his future pipeline.

Sizewell C is one of the most significant new energy projects in a generation — a £38 billion nuclear power station in Suffolk that will be a twin of the Hinkley Point C station now under construction in Somerset and provide reliable, low-carbon electricity for six million homes. It’s also a project that signals a new era for infrastructure investment in the UK.

Final Investment Decision is significant. Some 70 per cent of construction spend is expected to flow to British businesses, with tens of thousands of jobs created, and £2 billion a year in savings to the electricity system.

So it’s a project that demonstrates how public and private capital can work hand-in-hand to deliver national benefit.

But what does this mean from the investor’s perspective? How are infrastructure investor's like Amber assessing opportunity and risk and what models offer the right balance of stability, flexibility, and return for future projects?

Resources

• Amber Infrastructure Group
• INPP’s Sizewell C investor presentation
• INPP’s most recent investor factsheet
• INPP's annual report
• All about the RAB model
• Some INPP case studies
• An overview of INPP’s portfolio
• The Australian Cobberdog

In today's episode we tackle one of the construction sector’s most persistent and costly challenges: productivity.

The UK construction industry is under huge pressure as it copes with economic pressures, a shrinking workforce and a pipeline of increasingly complex projects.

Creating major infrastructure schemes to transform our energy water and transport systems, tackling a 1.5 million house construction target and the constant battle to renew the aging assets that glue our society together — and it is clear that delivering more with less is no longer optional, it’s critical.

And yet, while technology, manufacturing, and logistics have all seen huge productivity gains in recent decades, construction has stubbornly lagged behind.

That’s why the Construction Productivity Taskforce was established: to bring clients, contractors, consultants, and supply chain partners together to find practical ways to change the game.

Its latest report is called Improving Construction Productivity: Practical insights from Pilot Site Studies. And it doesn’t just set out ideas - it actually draws on three live, complex projects to demonstrate what really works on site – and of course what doesn’t.

The findings are compelling. Whether it’s reducing unproductive variability, leveraging digital technologies, rethinking crane scheduling, or embedding early supply chain collaboration, the evidence shows that measurable, repeatable improvements are possible. More importantly, they’re available now.

To explore the report’s findings — and what they mean for the industry at large — I’m joined by Peter Jones, Operations Director at Skanska and Visiting Professor at Loughborough University. As a member of the Taskforce, Peter is uniquely placed to explain not just the research, but how to embed its recommendations across the sector.

Resources

• Improving Construction Productivity paper
• Construction Productivity Taskforce
• Loughborough University School of Architecture, Building and Civil Engineering
• 1 Broadgate
• Timber Square
• Vehicle Storage Support Programme
• Egan Report 1998
• Latham report 1994

In today's podcast we are talking about bioenergy and specifically looking at how carbon capture and storage is set to transform the technology.

The UK’s net zero energy transition is firmly underway and one of the most promising new technologies is Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage, or BECCS. By combining the generation of renewable power with the permanent removal of CO₂, BECCS has been described as a “double win” for climate action.

At the heart of this opportunity is Evero, the low-carbon energy-from-wastewood company. Evero has been selected by the UK government to transform its Ince Biomass Plant into the nation’s first large-scale BECCS facility. Branded InBECCS, the project aims to capture 217,000 tonnes of CO₂ annually, generate clean electricity for more than 100,000 homes, and create skilled green jobs — all while diverting waste wood from landfill.

To explore this opportunity, I’m joined today by Alex Young, Head of Development at Evero — an engineer-turned-developer with more than two decades in renewables. Together, we’ll dive into the promise, the pitfalls, and the future of BECCS in the UK.

A bit of background. InBECCS is situated in Cheshire’s Protos energy hub, and will integrate into the HyNet carbon capture, transport and storage cluster, connecting bioenergy directly with the UK’s growing hydrogen economy.

As such it represents not just an industrial retrofit, but a potential template for scaling BECCS across multiple sites nationwide.

So how will it be delivered and what does INBECCS mean for Britain’s leadership in carbon removal and industrial decarbonisation?

Well let’s find out…

Resources

• Evero Energy website
• Ince BECCS project
• Ince plant
• The Hynet cluster
• Government policy on carbon capture and storage

In today's episode we’re talking about steel — but not in the usual way.

My guest, Ben Holmes, is Head of Sustainability at Elliott Wood, the structural and civil engineers behind, amongst many other things, 30 Duke Street, the UK’s largest steel reuse project in which some 78% of steel from the original structure is being repurposed.

Ben believes that the current public sector rescue of British Steel presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity — not just to save an industry, but to reimagine our fabrication and use of steel entirely - and at the same time give a huge boost to the communities that the industry supports.

Steel is foundational to our modern world — from the bridges we cross to the trains we ride, the buildings we work in to the wind turbines driving the energy transition.

But steel is also one of the most carbon-intensive materials we produce. If the UK is serious about hitting its net zero goals, the way we make, use, and think about steel must change.

Ben has developed five provocative “what if” scenarios that challenge us to look beyond short-term fixes and instead think about system-wide changes that could genuinely transform the steel industry and the communities that it supports.

In today’s podcast we are going to examine these and find out whether they go beyond simply being fanciful — and instead, by drawing on proven global examples from around the world to create the necessary vision and political will - they could actually prompt change.

Let’s here more

Resources

Ben' five "What ifs":

1. What if... we thought generationally, not electorally?
2. What if... we created centres of excellence beyond production?
3. What if... we made green steel the standard, not the exception?
4. What if... we connected steel to communities in new ways?
5. What if… former steelworks became mixed-use districts combining light manufacturing, creative industries, and cultural spaces?

• Elliot Wood website
• Great Portland Estates - 30 Duke Street
• Government policy on British Steel

In today's podcast we dive into the rapidly evolving world of infrastructure investment — a space that has moved from the periphery of specialist portfolios to the centre of global capital markets.

Once the preserve of a relatively narrow group of pension funds and specialist investors, infrastructure has now become a truly universal asset class, attracting sovereign wealth funds, institutional investors, private equity houses and retail capital.

And it’s an asset class that promises stable, long-term returns while underpinning the physical and digital systems that our economies depend upon.

Joining me to today to help understand why we are seeing these huge and profound changes – and why they matter - is Charlotte Madden, Partner and Co-Head of the Infrastructure Sector at global law firm Clifford Chance.

Charlotte specialises in advising private equity and infrastructure funds on complex domestic and cross-border M&A, often involving highly regulated transactions. She has helped deliver the deals that make critical infrastructure happen, from the earliest structuring stages through to completion.

And in the UK, the stakes could not be higher. The government has set out an ambitious £725 billion infrastructure pipeline, with more than half of that expected to come from the private sector. From energy security and clean transport to housing and digital connectivity, these projects are central to national growth plans — yet the tension between private investment and public service delivery remains a live and often polarising debate.

It's a complex subject so let’s dig in …

Resources

• Clifford Chance infrastructure
• 10 year infrastructure strategy
• UK infrastructure Pipeline
• NISTA website
• UK National Wealth Fund

In today's episode we’re diving into cement – a material that underpins every road, every railway, every school, hospital, bridge, and home we build.

Because without it, the UK’s infrastructure ambitions would, quite literally, crumble!

My guest today is Dr Diana Casey, executive director for cement, energy and climate at the Mineral Products Association (MPA). As she knows only too well, cement may not grab headlines in the way that high-speed rail or offshore wind does, but it is the backbone of our built environment.

And right now, the UK faces a major challenge.

As the Labour government pushes ahead with its ambitious target to deliver 1.5 million homes over the next five years, alongside a significant infrastructure pipeline, the question is simple — do we have the cement we need? And if not, where will it come from?

The Mineral Products Association, representing the UK’s cement producers, warns that domestic manufacturing has become increasingly uncompetitive in the face of high costs, leading to imports tripling over the past two decades. Relying on overseas supply exposes us to volatile global markets, supply chain disruption, and the risk of project delays.

It also means losing out on skilled, well-paid jobs in the regions where cement is made.

So, what needs to change to secure the UK’s cement future? And to secure it with the all important lower carbon footprint demanded by our net zero targets.

From a watertight Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism to fairer public procurement, and from support for carbon capture technology to a clearer industrial strategy, the debate is as much about national security and economic resilience as it is about decarbonisation.

So let’s find out out more.

Resources

• Mineral Products Association website
• MPA cement facts
• Decarbonising UK Concrete and Cement
• Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)
• MPA This is concrete campaign