Montel Weekly

It’s been 10 years since the Paris Climate Agreement entered intro force. Yet, tariffs, trade wars, and the reversal of the US’s climate policies are putting the global energy transition at risk.  Where does this leave the relationship between the EU, the US, and other global trading partners? And should Europe’s solar and wind developers shun Chinese products? In this week’s episode, Richard speaks to Lord Adair Turner - Chair of the Energy Transitions Commission about carbon pricing, the cost of the energy transition, and China’s influence in the future of green energy.  Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel News Contributor: Cem Bektas - Carbon correspondent, Montel News Guest: Lord Adair Turner - Chair of the Energy Transitions Commission Editors: Bled Maliqi, Oscar Birk Producer: Sarah Knowles

This is the fifth episode of Plugged In’s five-part CEO summer series, where Richard interviews prominent leaders in Europe’s energy sector. In this final special episode, Richard speaks to Dr Annegret Groebel, President of the Council of European Energy Regulators and Director of International Relations at the German Regulatory Authority, BNetzA. They talk about the challenges with energy regulation in 2025, and what the next move is for Germany and its bidding zones. Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuest: Dr Annegret Groebel - President of the Council of European Energy Regulators & Director of International Relations at BNetzAEditors: Bled Maliqi, Sarah KnowlesProducer: Sarah Knowles

This is the fourth episode of Plugged In’s five-part CEO summer series, where Richard interviews prominent leaders in Europe’s energy sector. In this episode, Richard sits down with Jarand Rystad, CEO and Founder of energy research and intelligence company, Rystad Energy.They talk about the changes in China’s oil demand, the production - or lack - of hydrogen, and the challenges with battery and solar power in Europe.Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuest: Jarand Rystad - CEO and Founder, Rystad EnergyEditors: Bled Maliqi, Sarah KnowlesProducer: Sarah Knowles

This is the third episode of Plugged In’s five-part CEO summer series, where Richard interviews prominent leaders in Europe’s energy sector. In this episode, Richard speaks to Asta Sihvonen-Punkka, CEO of Finnish TSO, Fingrid. They discuss the ongoing issues with balancing Finland’s power market, the oversupply of renewable energy in the Nordics, and the future of Finland’s nuclear energy programme. Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuest: Asta Sihvonen-Punkka - CEO, FingridEditors: Bled Maliqi, Sarah KnowlesProducer: Sarah Knowles

This is the second episode of Plugged In’s five-part CEO summer series, where Richard interviews prominent leaders in Europe’s energy sector. In this episode, Richard interviews Leonhard Birnbaum, CEO of Eon, about Europe’s power market. They discuss the boom in renewable energy, the issues surrounding security of supply, and the importance of investing in Europe’s grid infrastructure. Presenter: Richard Sverisson - Editor-in-Chief Guest: Leonhard Birnbaum - CEO of EonEditors: Bled Maliqi, Sarah KnowlesProducer: Sarah Knowles

This is the first episode of Plugged In’s five-part CEO summer series, where Richard interviews prominent leaders in Europe’s energy sector. In this episode, Richard speaks to Dhara Vyas, CEO of Energy UK about the state of the UK’s energy sector one year on from the Labour government coming into power. They discuss the UK’s renewable energy targets, the UK government’s green energy policies, and the problem of rising energy prices. Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief Guest: Dhara Vyas - CEO of Energy UKEditors: Bled Maliqi, Sarah KnowlesProducer: Sarah Knowles

The US, China, and now Europe are seeing a surge in data centres as big tech firms and other businesses develop their AI models. But, will these data centres cause the dramatic rise in power consumption that many are predicting? In this episode, Richard goes deep into the subject with data centre experts from RISE and Greenscale to understand who the tenants of these data centres are, what challenges the tech and energy industries need to overcome together, and how data centres will continue to evolve with the exponential growth in AI. Presenter: Richard SverrissonContributor: Alina Trabattoni - Italy Correspondent, Montel NewsGuests:Tor Björn Minde - Head of ICE Datacenter Unit at RISE (Research Institutes of Sweden)Liam Newcombe - Senior Vice President of Product, Energy Strategy and Innovation, GreenscaleEditors: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

This week, LNG prices rose to a 10-week high in Europe in response to the escalating conflict in the Middle East.  With the shadow of a threat from Iran to close its vital waterway for global LNG shipments, in this episode, we discuss the likelihood of this happening, the political power dynamics at play and the implications for global energy markets.Richard speaks to Eurasia Group’s Head of Energy and Kpler’s Principal LNG Analyst about the changes in shipping movements that we have seen around the strait in response to Israel and Iran’s attacks, and what this tells us about how the energy markets have so far reacted.Host: Richard SverrissonContributor: Laurence Walker - Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuests:Laura Page - Principal LNG Analyst, KplerHenning Gloystein - Practice Head of Energy, Climate & Resources, Eurasia GroupEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

Since spring 2025, power prices in the Nordics have been below zero, thanks to a myriad of factors, including low power demand and a glut of green power production. Whilst this has been good news for some consumers in the region - who have been paid to use their electricity - the prevalence of sub-zero prices has created jitters for investors and many in öthe markets are feeling the impact of the negative downturn. In this episode, Richard speaks to a panel of experts from Montel’s Energy Day in Helsinki about why the Nordics are experiencing the most dramatic level of negative prices vs the rest of Europe. We also look at PPAs, the impact of an increase in nuclear energy, and how renewables can coexist with other growing energy sources. Presenter: Richard SverrissonGuests:Suvi Paaso - Managing Director, Power Deriva Riku Merikoski - Senior Power Analyst, Axpo Solutions AGVesa Ahoniemi - Chief Commercial Officer, Winda EnergyPriyanka Shinde - Market Expert Nordic, Montel AnalyticsEditors: Bled MaliqiProducer:

In May, Danish energy producer, Orsted, pulled out of the UK’s Hornsea 4 project, citing "economic reasons", and earlier this week, industry leaders in The Netherlands have expressed their serious concerns about the high costs and potential delays which threaten the delivery of key offshore wind projects.In this episode, Richard speaks to the CEO of WindEurope about the state of Europe’s renewable energy sector. He also speaks to a panel of experts from the UK and The Netherlands - including a former Dutch MP - about how delays and rules set by governments are causing serious issues for the industry. Presenter: Richard SverrissonContributor: Karolin Schaps - Dutch Reporter, Montel NewsGuests: Giles Dickson - CEO, WindEuropeFintan Devenney - Senior Energy Analyst, MontelJan Vos - Chairman, NedZeroBas Sudmeijer - MD, Boston Consulting GroupEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

Spain and Portugal will be sending joint letters to the EU energy commissioner and French energy minister, urging them to apply pressure on the current plans for interconnections, following April’s blackout in the Iberian Peninsula. But are high costs, local resistance, and fears over the impact of cheap imports stiffening Paris’s opposition  to further power links with Spain.This week we speak to key Spanish and French market experts to unpack some of the issues that the topic of further interconnection raises for the two countries. And for the rest of Europe.Presenter: Richard Sverrisson Contributors:Muriel Boselli - France Correspondent, Montel NewsBelen Belmonte - Spain Correspondent, Montel News          Guests:                     Ana Barillas - Managing Director, Iberia and LATAM at Aurora Energy ResearchEmeric de Vigan - Managing Director, 42 Advisors Editor: Oscar BirkProducer: Sarah Knowles

As Europe eyes an end to Russian gas imports by 2027, fresh geopolitical tensions are reshaping energy markets once again. Could Trump’s mediation efforts result in a ceasefire in the Ukraine and could Russian gas re-enter Europe—directly or via shadow routes?In this week’s episode, Richard speaks to two policy experts about what peace versus a ceasefire could really mean for gas prices, energy security, and the green transition. How do emerging interdependencies with the US, Qatar, and Africa shift Europe’s leverage—and what happens when offshore wind, solar, and LNG become pawns in great power rivalries?Presenter: Richard Sverrisson – Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsContributor: Andrés Cala – LNG Correspondent, Montel NewsGuests: Francesco Sassi – Postdoctoral Fellow, University of OsloTobias Federico – Chief Product Officer, MontelEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

In recent months, the European Commission has published what it describes as “simplified rules” of the carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), but is the policy still unclear and too complicated for energy and metals traders?In this episode, Richard talks to experts about the CBAM, and why some commodity trading firms  are holding off - despite the official January 2026 start date. Could some be at risk of ceasing trading temporarily?Host: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsContributor: Gabriel Power - UK Power Reporter, Montel NewsGuests:Dan Maleski - Senior Environmental Markets Advisor, Redshaw AdvisorsNick Ogilvie - Product Manager, Carbon ChainEditors: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

Since parts of Spain, Portugal, and France temporarily lost power on Monday 28th April, TSOs and policy makers across Europe have been quick to try and assess how much their own networks are at risk of a similar blackout.Whilst we await conclusions from Entso-e’s investigations as to the cause of the outage, in this week’s episode Richard speaks to the Secretary General of Eurelectric and Rystad Energy about what this incident tells us about the reliability of Europe’s grid and our increasing dependency on electricity. What does the outage tell us about the need for flexibility and storage in an increasingly green power system?Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsContributor: Pablo Bronte - Editor, Montel IberiaGuests: Kristian Ruby - Secretary General, EurelectricPratheeksha Ramdas - Senior New Energies Analyst, Rystad EnergyEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

After a long delay, European TSOs finally released their bidding zone review this week. The report was met with much backlash from Germany’s government and industry leaders strongly opposed to the proposal to split its zone into five.In this week’s podcast episode Richard speaks to commentators for and against dividing Germany’s price zone, and explores how the industry can expect TSOs in Germany and the Nordic region to respond in the next six months.Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, MontelContributor: Siobhan Hall - Brussel’s CorrespondentGuests:Casimir Lorenz - Managing Director for Central Europe, Aurora Energy ResearchTobias Federico - Chief Product Officer, Montel Morten Pindstrup - International Chief Engineer, EnerginetEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

Norway is the largest exporter of guarantees of origin certificates. Yet last month, the country's government published guidance for industry and union leaders that supported a localised approach, opening up the possibility for double counting of GOs.After Iceland was accused of a similar move last year, we explore whether this latest move is pulling the reliability of the GO market into question amid continuously falling prices.In this week's episode, Richard speaks to Daniel Arnesson from Veyt about where the confidence is in the GO market, and when prices will start to rise again.Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, MontelContributor: Gert Ove Mollestad - Norway Editor, MontelGuest: Daniel Arnesson - Manager of Renewable Power Certificates, Veyt Editors: Oscar BirkProducer: Sarah Knowles

Oil and gas prices plummeted in the immediate aftermath of the trade war between the US and China.With many expecting oil and gas prices to continue to decline as a result of Trump's tariffs, the trade war raises raises fundamental questions about the profitability of oil production. Will oil producers feel inspired to "drill baby drill", as Trump famously promised, if prices continue to fall?In this episode, Richard speaks to Saul Kavonic, Head of Energy Research at MST Marquee, about the impact on global trade flows, prices and why an expected boost in LNG in 2026 may not materialise.Host: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsContributor: Laurence Walker - Deputy Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuest: Saul Kavonic - Head of Energy Research, MST MarqueeEditor: Oscar BirkProducer: Sarah Knowles 

This week, Trump's staggering tariffs on Asia and Europe caused turmoil in global equity and energy markets - as they took effect and were paused - raising many concerns within the energy sector about prices, trade flows, and the future of renewables investments.With the situation changing day-by-day, even hour by hour, Richard speaks to Norges Bank Investment Management - Norway's Oil Fund - about the state of the global renewables markets, and what long-term impact the events of this week will have on the energy transition.Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, MontelContributor: Olav Vilnes - Norway Editor, MontelGuest: Harald von Heyden - Global Head of Energy and Infrastructure, Norges Bank Investment ManagementPodcast Editors: Oscar Birk, Bled MaliqiPodcast Producer: Sarah Knowles

In this week's episode, the president of the federal network agency discusses the critical issues facing Germany's energy market as the country waits for the new government to take the reins.How will Germany - and Europe - fill gas storage ahead of the winter, given the current unattractive prices? We also talk about the pressure the country faces to split its price zone, and the outlook for power demand amid a challenging macro-economic environment for German industry. Presenter: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel NewsGuest:  Klaus Müller - President, The German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur); Nathan Witkop - Editor, Clean Energy DeskEditor: Bled MaliqiProducer: Sarah Knowles

Last Friday, one of the world's largest transport hubs came to a halt for 18 hours after a fire broke out at one of its substations in North Hyde.Since the incident, National Grid's CEO responded to accusations that Heathrow bosses were forced to shut down the airport due to a lack of power, confirming that the two other substations were operational and fully capable of powering the airport.Why, then, was the airport not able to connect the power, and why did it take so long to return to its operations?In this week's episode, Richard speaks to Simon Gallagher, grid expert and MD of UK Network Services, a leading independent energy networks consultancy, about some of the wider concerns this outage raises about the country@s energy security. How vulnerable is some of its crucial infrastructure? Host: Richard Sverrisson - Editor-in-Chief, Montel News Guest: Simon Gallagher, Managing Director of UK Network Services Editor: Bled Maliqi Producer: Sarah Knowles