Podcast · Business

Switched On

The future of energy, transport, sustainability and more, as told by BNEF analysts. Each week, Dana Perkins and Tom Rowlands-Rees sit down with BloombergNEF (BNEF) analysts to uncover the key findings and stories behind their latest research.

New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 29 min
Latest: 14 Oct 2026
Language: English

Latest episode

14 Oct 2026 · 31 minNew

Europe's Power Markets Face a New Balancing Act

Europe’s power mix is changing fast. Ample output from wind, solar and nuclear means that northwest Europe could require significantly less power from fossil fuels this winter than last. At the same time, rising electricity demand from EVs and data centers is shifting market dynamics across Europe, creating new opportunities for technologies like solar and batteries. So how are Europe’s power markets evolving, and what does that mean for prices and investment? On today’s show, Tom Rowlands-Rees is joined by Arhnue Tan from BNEF’s European power team to discuss…

Play episodeWhatsApp Download

Earlier episodes 29 most recent

8 Oct 2026 · 28 min
Where Transition Risk Meets Corporate Opportunity
The energy transition is reshaping how companies make money. BNEF’s new Transition Risk and Opportunities Outlook models revenues for more than 70,000 companies as demand shifts across energy, transport and commodities. Businesses exposed to renewables, grids, EVs and transition metals could benefit, while others may face shrinking markets and rising carbon costs. So which companies are positioned to capture new opportunities, and which are most exposed to the transition? On today’s show, Kamala Schelling is joined by BloombergNEF finance policy and transition risk specialist…
30 Sep 2026 · 25 min
Water Stress Brings Risks for Thirsty Power Generators
Power plants have a water problem that’s getting harder to ignore. Coal, gas and nuclear facilities rely heavily on water for cooling, leaving some exposed as drought and heat intensify pressure on freshwater supplies. Wind and solar generation have a dramatically lower dependence on water, but thermal plants will remain critical to power systems, and many existing assets are located in areas facing growing water stress. That creates risks beyond individual generators. Water shortages can constrain power supply just as heat pushes electricity demand higher, potentially affecting prices…
23 Sep 2026 · 28 min
Global Gas Tug of War Is Brewing for Winter
Europe’s gas market is heading into winter with little room for error. Lower storage levels and disruption in the Middle East have left the region more exposed to weather and competition for LNG. BNEF’s base case sees European storage falling to 21% by the end of March, but a prolonged Strait of Hormuz disruption or a particularly cold winter could push it toward 10%. Much will depend on temperatures, renewable generation and LNG demand elsewhere, particularly in Asia. Longer term, new supply could loosen the global gas market, but BNEF expects that relief to arrive from 2028…
18 Sep 2026 · 27 min
Food and Farming Caught in Geopolitical Crossfire
No country can feed itself entirely on its own. The global food system depends on a complex web of trade, not just for food but for fertilizer, animal feed, pesticides and labor. Even major agricultural exporters rely on imports somewhere in their supply chains, leaving markets exposed when extreme weather, conflict or trade disputes disrupt these connections. Those vulnerabilities can appear in unexpected places: China and the Middle East depend heavily on imported food while supplying fertilizer to the world, and Brazil is a major food exporter that relies on imported fertilizer to sustain…
14 Sep 2026 · 17 min
US Grid Ban Hits Batteries Hardest: Analyst Reaction
US efforts to secure its power grid could come at a cost. A new executive order could restrict grid and power equipment supplied by companies tied to China, with batteries particularly exposed. Around 60% of US lithium-ion battery imports came from mainland China and Hong Kong in 2025. The rules could boost demand for non-Chinese suppliers, but also increase costs and delay battery projects as developers await further guidance. So why could batteries feel the biggest impact from the latest US move to restrict Chinese power equipment? On today’s show, Kamala Schelling is joined by Zoe…
9 Sep 2026 · 45 min
BNEF Pioneers: Buses, Bioleaching and Better Batteries
Some of the most interesting climate technologies don’t fit neatly into a category. That is the idea behind the Wildcard entries in BloombergNEF’s annual Pioneers competition, which recognizes promising innovations from across the energy transition. This year’s Wildcard winners span three very different fields: BasiGo is electrifying bus fleets in Africa, Endolith is using microbes and machine learning to recover more copper from low-grade ores, and GRST is developing a water-based battery binder designed to make lithium-ion cells less toxic and easier to recycle. On…
2 Sep 2026 · 33 min
Six Months In, the Iran War Redraws the Energy Map
The Iran war is redrawing the global energy landscape. Six months of high oil prices and disrupted trade have strengthened the case for technologies that reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels. Chinese exports of solar, batteries and electric vehicles have risen, while markets across Africa, Asia and Latin America are seeing growing demand for clean technologies. But the response varies widely. Some governments are shielding consumers from higher fuel costs, while others are leaning more heavily on domestic fossil fuels as a source of energy security. So has the Iran war changed the…
27 Aug 2026 · 33 min
Turkey's Renewables Boom Has More Than Climate in Mind
Turkey is quietly becoming a renewables heavyweight. Rapid wind and solar deployment is helping the country meet rising electricity demand while reducing exposure to imported fossil fuels. Turkey ranked among the world’s top 10 markets for new wind and solar capacity in 2025, and it is targeting 120 gigawatts of combined capacity by 2035. But sustaining that growth will require much greater investment in the grid, and meeting government transmission targets would require annual investment to rise roughly fivefold from 2025 levels. So can Turkey turn its renewable energy boom into a…
24 Aug 2026 · 15 min
States Put Data Centers on Pause: Analyst Reaction
America’s data center boom is running into political resistance. Texas, New York and Pennsylvania are moving to slow or pause new projects amid concerns over electricity costs, infrastructure and local impacts. Texas alone accounts for around 20% of the US pipeline, meaning even short delays could cost developers billions. The pushback is increasingly bipartisan, as politicians respond to growing opposition from local communities and overloaded power grids. The result is new uncertainty for developers racing to secure electricity and bring projects online. So has America’s data…
20 Aug 2026 · 32 min
EV Boom Changes Lanes as New Markets Take the Wheel
The electric vehicle boom is entering a new phase. As China’s market matures and the US steps back from EVs, emerging markets are becoming the new hotspot for electrified transport. At the same time, autonomous and shared vehicles are changing how cars are used. Robotaxis can travel much farther each year than private cars, potentially allowing fewer vehicles to provide the same amount of mobility. So as EV adoption evolves and autonomous driving takes off, what does the next phase of road transport look like? On this episode, Aleksandra O’Donovan and Andrew Grant, who lead…
17 Aug 2026 · 19 min
EU Electrification Push Lacks Pull: Analyst Reaction
Europe’s electrification ambitions are running ahead of its policies. The EU wants electricity to account for 46% of final energy consumption by 2040, but BNEF’s modeling suggests even a maximum-effort net-zero pathway would fall short. Getting closer will require greater support for electric vehicles, heat pumps and industry, while keeping electricity affordable. Much of that challenge will fall to member states, many of which are scaling back incentives or facing tight public finances. Meanwhile, the EU’s latest proposals do little to address the upfront costs of…
13 Aug 2026 · 27 min
Offshore Wind Is Outgrowing the Boats That Build It
Offshore wind turbines are getting too big for the ships that install them. BloombergNEF estimates more than 30 gigawatts of offshore wind installations could struggle to find suitable vessels through 2035 if turbine growth continues. But building bigger ships takes years and hundreds of millions of dollars, and retrofits have their limits. That leaves the industry facing a choice between expanding its installation fleet or slowing the relentless growth in turbine size. So could a shortage of sufficiently large vessels become offshore wind’s next major bottleneck? On today’s…
10 Aug 2026 · 15 min
Rhine Drought Drives Fuel Costs Up: Analyst Reaction
Europe’s energy supply chains are running out of water. Weeks of heat and drought have pushed Rhine water levels to exceptional lows, restricting barge traffic and sending gasoil freight rates to record levels. That is adding pressure to an already tight market for gasoil, diesel, jet fuel and other middle distillates, while exposing refineries, chemical plants and industries that depend on the river for critical supplies. Companies are responding with smaller cargoes, trucks, rail and shallow-draft vessels, but those alternatives come at a cost. And with warmer, drier conditions…
5 Aug 2026 · 28 min
Battery Tax Credits Are Rewriting US Solar Economics
US solar developers are building projects around batteries, not panels. Federal tax credits for energy storage are reshaping the economics of new solar projects, encouraging developers to install larger batteries and allocate more capex to the storage component. The batteries can then shift low-cost solar power into higher-value hours. As energy storage reduces curtailment and generates revenue from services provided to the grid, batteries are becoming a defining feature of the next generation of US solar projects. On today’s show, Dana Perkins is joined by Cosmo van Steenis, an…
29 Jul 2026 · 40 min
China Builds Nuclear Power While the West Reinvents It
Nuclear power is gaining momentum around the globe, but the industry’s path has diverged. China and India are rapidly expanding conventional reactor fleets, while the US and Europe are betting on smaller and more advanced designs to overcome decades of cost overruns and delays. Rising AI electricity demand, energy security concerns and decarbonization goals have all renewed interest in nuclear energy. But turning that momentum into new projects will depend on whether the industry can build reactors faster, more cheaply and with greater confidence than it has in recent decades. On…
23 Jul 2026 · 29 min
Gas Is Letting Data Centers Grow Beyond the Grid
Artificial intelligence is heating up the race to build data centers, and with BloombergNEF projecting 194 gigawatts of demand by 2035, the biggest challenge isn't computing power…. It's electricity. Faced with years-long grid connection delays, developers are turning to on-site gas generation to bring projects online faster, creating a rapidly expanding market for turbines, engines, fuel cells and battery storage. Choosing the right technology is a trade-off between speed, cost, efficiency and emissions. And while on-site generation is often seen as a temporary bridge, developers are…
20 Jul 2026 · 15 min
AI’s Edge in Hurricane Forecasting: Analyst Reaction
Artificial intelligence is beginning to transform weather forecasting. New AI models are proving remarkably accurate at predicting hurricane tracks, in some cases matching or outperforming traditional forecasting models while delivering faster results. For energy markets, those gains could be significant. Earlier and more accurate forecasts give utilities, LNG exporters and offshore operators more time to prepare for approaching storms, improving resilience and reducing disruption. Yet AI is unlikely to replace traditional forecasting anytime soon, with meteorologists increasingly using it…
16 Jul 2026 · 38 min
Mexico's Energy Future Sits Between Two Superpowers
Mexico is entering a pivotal period for its energy system. A new wave of reforms is opening the door to greater private investment in clean power, storage and grid infrastructure after years of subdued activity, creating one of the region's largest energy transition opportunities. The shift comes against a complex geopolitical backdrop. As negotiations over the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement continue, Mexico is balancing its deep integration with North American supply chains against a desire to diversify investment, strengthen energy security and reduce its dependence on imported US natural gas.…
9 Jul 2026 · 34 min
How Bitcoin Could Save Texas From an AI Power Crunch
Texas is becoming a test case for one of the biggest questions facing electricity markets. As AI-driven power demand for data centers accelerates, grid operators are exploring whether large loads can do more than consume electricity – and instead become a source of flexibility when the power system is under stress. The answer depends on the workload. Cryptocurrency mines have already demonstrated they can respond quickly to wholesale prices, while AI and colocation data centers face much stricter reliability requirements. New policies are now pushing large data centers to demonstrate…
6 Jul 2026 · 27 min
China Bets Big on Green Hydrogen: Analyst Reaction
China is emerging as the standout exception in the global hydrogen market. While many countries are scaling back ambitions, Beijing has set a new target to increase green hydrogen production eightfold by 2030, a level that could make it the world's largest producer and account for roughly half of BloombergNEF's projected global output that year. The strategy is about more than decarbonization. China sees green hydrogen as a way to strengthen energy security, reduce reliance on imported oil and gas, and build on its manufacturing leadership in technologies such as electrolyzers. Yet major…
1 Jul 2026 · 36 min
The Hidden Economics of EV Charging Networks
What does it take to build an electric-vehicle charging network that really works? As EV adoption accelerates, charging operators are shifting from installing as many chargers as possible to designing networks that can reliably attract drivers, manage grid constraints and generate sustainable returns. At the same time, retail partnerships, on-site batteries, battery swapping and dedicated charging for commercial fleets are reshaping the economics of the sector. On today’s show, Tom Rowlands-Rees is joined by Madeleine Brolly and Ash Wang, two of BloombergNEF’s EV charging…
24 Jun 2026 · 38 min
Battery Boom Is Upending Australian Power Market Rules
Australia is becoming a proving ground for the future of electricity markets. With renewables now supplying a large share of generation and batteries being deployed at unprecedented scale, the country is offering an early look at how power systems operate when storage becomes a central part of the grid. Yet batteries’ remarkable success in the country brings with it new challenges, as growing competition begins to erode the arbitrage opportunities that drove the sector’s early growth. So what happens when batteries move from a niche technology to a core part of the power system,…
18 Jun 2026 · 35 min
Defending the Power Grid in an Age of Digital Threats
As power grids become more digital and interconnected, they are also becoming more exposed. Utilities are facing a growing mix of physical and cyber threats, from attacks on substations to increasingly sophisticated efforts to infiltrate the systems used to monitor and operate the grid. Smart meters, distributed energy resources and connected devices are creating new vulnerabilities, while AI has the potential to both strengthen defenses and lower the barrier to more complex attacks. Yet security spending remains difficult to prioritize, forcing utilities and regulators to weigh uncertain…
15 Jun 2026 · 18 min
How Super El Niño Hits Power Markets: Analyst Reaction
El Niño has officially arrived, and there are concerns this time that the weather phenomenon might be more intense than most years, a so-called “super” event. With Pacific Ocean temperatures now exceeding the threshold for one of the strongest forms of the weather pattern, the risk of prolonged heat, drought, low wind and other disruptive weather events is rising across multiple regions at once. For commodity and power markets, that can mean greater volatility, from wind droughts in Europe and hydropower stress in the Nordics to shifting hurricane risks in the US. Yet El…
11 Jun 2026 · 39 min
Heat Pumps and the Economics of Clean Heating
Heat pumps are at a crossroads. After a decade of growth, global sales fell in 2025 as weaker construction activity weighed on key markets. Yet the longer-term picture remains resilient. Heat pumps have continued to gain ground against fossil fuel heating in several regions, while Europe remains a focal point for adoption, shaped by a shifting mix of subsidies, energy prices and consumer demand. So what is driving heat pump uptake today, and what will determine whether electrified heating can move into the mainstream? On today’s show, Tom Rowlands-Rees is joined by Yara van Ingen, an…
4 Jun 2026 · 35 min
What Explains the Growing Divide Between Oil and Gas
Gas and oil are on a sharply divergent path. In BloombergNEF’s Economic Transition Scenario, oil demand peaks before the end of the decade, while gas demand continues to grow as expanding power systems seek reliable sources of generation. At the same time, constraints on everything from gas turbine supply chains to grid infrastructure are emerging as critical bottlenecks. So how does the global energy system evolve from here, and what do these competing pressures reveal about what lies ahead for the energy transition? On today’s show, Tom Rowlands-Rees is joined by Ian Berryman,…
1 Jun 2026 · 22 min
China Data Signals Clean Tech Shift: Analyst Reaction
China’s latest export data is offering an early glimpse into how higher fossil fuel prices may be reshaping trade in clean energy technology. Shipments of solar products, batteries and electric vehicles rose sharply in recent months, with some of the strongest growth coming from emerging markets that are heavily exposed to oil and gas imports. The figures arrive as many fuel-importing economies face renewed pressure from elevated energy prices. While it remains too early to draw firm conclusions, the data provides some of the clearest evidence yet that energy security concerns may be…
28 May 2026 · 36 min
Wind Power Expands as Competition Heats Up
The wind industry is entering a new phase of scale. Offshore installations are set to surge in 2026 as a new generation of massive projects comes online, while onshore markets continue expanding across the globe. But the picture beneath those headline numbers is increasingly nuanced. Offshore developers are still grappling with supply chain bottlenecks, higher financing costs and policy uncertainty, even as governments accelerate deployment in the name of energy security and rising power demand. At the same time, Chinese manufacturers are rapidly expanding internationally, intensifying…
26 May 2026 · 13 min
Japan Nuclear Revival Reaches Tokyo: Analyst Reaction
Japan’s journey back to nuclear power is entering a new phase. Fifteen years after the Fukushima disaster and the shuttering of the country’s nuclear fleet, the return of the Kashiwazaki Kariwa 6 reactor marks the first restart in the Tokyo power region and one of the most significant additions since 2011. The timing is critical. Japan remains heavily reliant on imported LNG, leaving its power prices exposed to global gas shocks and disruptions from the war in the Middle East. Nuclear restarts are increasingly being seen as a way to strengthen energy security, reduce fuel imports…

About Switched On

Switched On is a English business podcast from Bloomberg. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.

Publisher: Bloomberg
Language: English
Category: Business
New episodes: Weekly
Typical length: 29 min
Latest episode: 14 Oct 2026
Feed: RSS — paste into any podcast app
Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1469286286

RSS feed Apple Podcasts

More English business

Take it with you

The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.