Podcast
Transmission
Hosted by Ed Porter, Modo Energy · EN
Transmission is the podcast for energy professionals navigating the global shift to a low-carbon power system. Hosted by Ed Porter, Transmission goes deep on battery storage markets, power market dynamics, and the commercial forces shaping the energy transition - with the people at the centre of it.
Every week, we sit down with the CEOs, heads of trading desks, government advisors, policy architects, and leading practitioners driving change across the industry.
These are practitioner conversations - focused on how markets actually work, where the real opportunities and risks lie, and what the data is telling us.
We cover clean energy investing, capacity markets, balancing mechanism participation, and the evolving regulatory environment that shapes returns across geographies. Our coverage spans Great Britain, Germany, Spain, and the broader European energy transition, with regular episodes dedicated to the specific dynamics of each market.
Transmission tracks the inflection points that matter: when markets shift, where capital is flowing, and what experienced operators are doing next.
We also cover power markets more broadly - interconnectors, flexibility markets, grid infrastructure, and the trading strategies that sophisticated players use to extract value in increasingly complex systems.
Who listens: Transmission is built for people who work in energy - analysts, investors, developers, traders, asset managers, and policy professionals at every stage of their careers.
If you're entering the industry or building your understanding of how battery storage and power markets actually work, Transmission is one of the fastest ways to get up to speed - directly from the people shaping them.
About Modo Energy: Transmission is produced by Modo Energy, a B2B SaaS platform that helps renewable energy companies, funds, utilities, and banks manage and value their energy assets. Specializing in batteries and provides data, analytics, and forecasting to help customers understand the financial performance of their energy assets.
The Modo Energy Terminal is the one-stop shop for teams trying to understand the commercial case for grid-scale battery energy storage - bringing together trusted indices, customizable benchmarks, independent revenue forecasts, in-depth written analysis, and much more.
Guided by the principles of transparency and usability, Modo Energy’s Terminal provides owners, operators, developers and financiers with a complete view of the landscape for storage - past, present, and future - so that users can make informed, bankable decisions about their assets.
Hundreds of organizations rely on Modo’s tools and insights to navigate market trends, optimize investment strategies, and stay ahead of industry shifts. As the storage space continues to evolve, Modo is leading the way - helping businesses unlock the full value of their assets and make smarter decisions in a net-zero future.
Follow Transmission to get new episodes every Tuesd...
67episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Is Britain's Grid Ready for Clean Power 2030? - Roadnight Taylor
2d ago00:43:50Summary readyMost people assume Great Britain's grid connection queue works on a first come, first served basis. It doesn't - and that misconception is costing developers time and money. Connections reform was meant to bring clarity to the queue, but projects that were declared protected and pushed to the front are still missing their connection dates, and new contract disputes are now stalling projects that should already be moving. It all comes down to what actually gets built — and whether Britain can get anywhere close to Clean Power 2030.Catherine Cleary, Specialist Connections Engineer at Roadnight Taylor and a returning Transmission guest, joins Ed Porter to unpack what's really determining who connects to the grid, and when.They cover:- Why the grid connection queue isn't ordered by application date and how a 20MW battery project can end up waiting behind a nuclear power station for the same network reinforcements.- Why gate two offers under TMO4+ are going out with technical errors, and why fixing something as small as a typo can take months once you're one of hundreds of affected projects.- Why NESO's oversubscription numbers might be the wrong problem to solve, and what bay sharing could do instead.- Why data centres and other demand customers are pushing for independent transmission owner (ITO) status, and what Ofgem's latest signal means for future connections.- Catherine's contrarian take after 15 years in the industry: why Britain might be about to build too much grid, not too little.Want to go deeper on grid connections and battery build-out? Sign up for free to Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst https://modoenergy.com/product/ko?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast_apps&utm_campaign=catherine_cleary&utm_content=ko_signupChapters:0:00 Introduction1:13 Two myths about the grid connection queue2:05 Queue order vs. connection order: nuclear vs. battery example3:34 The 4.9MW de minimis threshold loophole4:12 TMO4+ and connections reform: from design exercise to rollout6:41 Gate two offer errors and technical query delays9:05 Clean Power 2030 deliverability under connections reform13:37 Engineering capacity for 30GW of battery storage16:01 Bay sharing and hybrid project connections17:49 CMP470: the oversubscribed technology commitment fee22:04 Co-location, AC/DC coupling and TMO4+ shortcomings for hybrids25:15 Fixing TMO4+ for hybrids: the parent/child concept28:05 Data centre and demand connections vs. generation33:39 Politics, policy and the connections queue36:35 Contract delays: the new longest pole in the tent39:16 The case for independent transmission owners (ITOs)41:50 Contrarian view: are we building too much grid?
Summary
Is Britain's Grid Ready for Clean Power 2030? - Roadnight Taylor
2d ago00:43:50Tap to summarizeMost people assume Great Britain's grid connection queue works on a first come, first served basis. It doesn't - and that misconception is costing developers time and money. Connections reform was meant to bring clarity to the queue, but projects that were declared protected and pushed to the front are still missing their connection dates, and new contract disputes are now stalling projects that should already be moving. It all comes down to what actually gets built — and whether Britain can get anywhere close to Clean Power 2030.Catherine Cleary, Specialist Connections Engineer at Roadnight Taylor and a returning Transmission guest, joins Ed Porter to unpack what's really determining who connects to the grid, and when.They cover:- Why the grid connection queue isn't ordered by application date and how a 20MW battery project can end up waiting behind a nuclear power station for the same network reinforcements.- Why gate two offers under TMO4+ are going out with technical errors, and why fixing something as small as a typo can take months once you're one of hundreds of affected projects.- Why NESO's oversubscription numbers might be the wrong problem to solve, and what bay sharing could do instead.- Why data centres and other demand customers are pushing for independent transmission owner (ITO) status, and what Ofgem's latest signal means for future connections.- Catherine's contrarian take after 15 years in the industry: why Britain might be about to build too much grid, not too little.Want to go deeper on grid connections and battery build-out? Sign up for free to Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst https://modoenergy.com/product/ko?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast_apps&utm_campaign=catherine_cleary&utm_content=ko_signupChapters:0:00 Introduction1:13 Two myths about the grid connection queue2:05 Queue order vs. connection order: nuclear vs. battery example3:34 The 4.9MW de minimis threshold loophole4:12 TMO4+ and connections reform: from design exercise to rollout6:41 Gate two offer errors and technical query delays9:05 Clean Power 2030 deliverability under connections reform13:37 Engineering capacity for 30GW of battery storage16:01 Bay sharing and hybrid project connections17:49 CMP470: the oversubscribed technology commitment fee22:04 Co-location, AC/DC coupling and TMO4+ shortcomings for hybrids25:15 Fixing TMO4+ for hybrids: the parent/child concept28:05 Data centre and demand connections vs. generation33:39 Politics, policy and the connections queue36:35 Contract delays: the new longest pole in the tent39:16 The case for independent transmission owners (ITOs)41:50 Contrarian view: are we building too much grid?
Transcribe →Trailer: Transmission
6d ago00:00:51Summary readyNo description available
SummaryWhy Batteries Are Changing Faster Than the Industry Expected - Marek Kubik
1w ago00:42:53Summary readyBattery storage costs have fallen by two-thirds since 2022 and the cell chemistry currently dominates the grid barely existed at scale five years ago, and the same disruption could be about to happen again. Meanwhile, the supplier market is fragmenting rather than consolidating and the biggest names today aren't guaranteed to stay on top.Marek Kubik has watched these shifts happen from inside the industry since the early days. He joins Ed to explain why the balance of power in battery storage keeps changing, and what's coming next.They coverWhy battery storage costs have fallen two-thirds since 2022 - and why that could be about to reverse.The real reason CATL's battery market share has dropped from 32% to 20%.Why sodium-ion batteries could repeat LFP's rapid takeover of grid-scale storage.How battery container design is changing again, from bigger cells to taller stacks.The battery duration limit everyone assumed was fixed - until 16-18 hour systems broke it.Want to dig deeper into battery cell chemistry and pricing trends? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analystChapters00:00 Introduction01:50 Saudi Arabia battery storage market update02:16 UAE 24/7 renewable energy project03:18 Solar plus battery storage economics explained05:10 Battery storage prices: are we near the floor?06:38 Lithium carbonate prices and battery raw material costs08:22 Battery storage cost per kilowatt-hour explained11:07 China battery prices and the race to $50/kWh13:36 Sodium-ion batteries vs LFP: the next chemistry shift21:18 CATL market share and battery supply chain competition26:14 Battery procurement trends and container design innovation29:39 Battery storage service, warranties and spare parts30:54 Lessons from a decade in battery storage32:09 Long duration energy storage and the Ofgem LDES scheme34:48 How much renewable energy storage is enough?38:18 Flow batteries, iron-air and CO2 energy storage39:32 Sodium-ion's future in grid-scale battery storage
Summary
Why Batteries Are Changing Faster Than the Industry Expected - Marek Kubik
1w ago00:42:53Tap to summarizeBattery storage costs have fallen by two-thirds since 2022 and the cell chemistry currently dominates the grid barely existed at scale five years ago, and the same disruption could be about to happen again. Meanwhile, the supplier market is fragmenting rather than consolidating and the biggest names today aren't guaranteed to stay on top.Marek Kubik has watched these shifts happen from inside the industry since the early days. He joins Ed to explain why the balance of power in battery storage keeps changing, and what's coming next.They coverWhy battery storage costs have fallen two-thirds since 2022 - and why that could be about to reverse.The real reason CATL's battery market share has dropped from 32% to 20%.Why sodium-ion batteries could repeat LFP's rapid takeover of grid-scale storage.How battery container design is changing again, from bigger cells to taller stacks.The battery duration limit everyone assumed was fixed - until 16-18 hour systems broke it.Want to dig deeper into battery cell chemistry and pricing trends? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst:Read the companion article: [companion article link — TBC]Chapters00:00 Introduction01:50 Saudi Arabia battery storage market update02:16 UAE 24/7 renewable energy project03:18 Solar plus battery storage economics explained05:10 Battery storage prices: are we near the floor?06:38 Lithium carbonate prices and battery raw material costs08:22 Battery storage cost per kilowatt-hour explained11:07 China battery prices and the race to $50/kWh13:36 Sodium-ion batteries vs LFP: the next chemistry shift21:18 CATL market share and battery supply chain competition26:14 Battery procurement trends and container design innovation29:39 Battery storage service, warranties and spare parts30:54 Lessons from a decade in battery storage32:09 Long duration energy storage and the Ofgem LDES scheme34:48 How much renewable energy storage is enough?38:18 Flow batteries, iron-air and CO2 energy storage39:32 Sodium-ion's future in grid-scale battery storage
Transcribe →What Happens When The State Take Risks Private Capital Won't? - GB Energy
2w ago00:45:04Summary readyGB Energy's £1 million solar investment freed up savings a Hull hospital had left on the table for years. It's an example of what can happen when a state-backed investor takes risks the market won't. GB Energy calls itself an activist investor, built to put public money behind the frontiers where private capital moves too slowly: deepwater wind, long duration storage, public sector solar. The interesting question now is how far this model can scale, and how well it keeps sharing that risk with private capital as it grows.Dan McGrail, CEO of Great British Energy, joins Ed Porter to explain how Britain's state-owned energy company decides where to invest, and why it's taking on the risks private money won't take first.They cover: - Why the "activist investor" model can justify riskier bets than pure-return investors would take - and where that logic stops making sense- How to identify an investment "frontier": the areas of high ambition where private capital isn't moving fast enough to hit national targets- What a queue of 50GW+ in unsolicited co-investment enquiries reveals about investor appetite for state-backed risk-sharing- Why community-owned local energy can outperform national schemes on economic impact - one Orkney turbine now funds housing, buses and insulation- Why chasing niche global market share, not local content quotas, may be the smarter industrial strategy for competing with ChinaGot a question about the build-out of batteries, solar or wind in GB or Europe? That's what Ko is for - sign up to try for free.Transcript available hereYou can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy.Chapters00:00 £1m Solar Saving At A Hull Hospital00:43 Guest Introduction: Dan McGrail, CEO Of GB Energy01:11 GB Energy's Company Model And DESNZ Ownership02:42 Investment Committee Discipline Vs Government Thinking03:23 The "Frontiers" Strategy Explained07:44 Floating Wind And The Deepwater Frontier09:03 ScotWind, Rising Costs And Investor Confidence12:33 Three Strategic Pillars: Offshore, Onshore, Local19:56 Public Entrepreneurship Vs Maximising Profit21:17 The Siemens Story: Why Private Capital Wants In22:35 50GW Of Unsolicited Investment Enquiries26:00 Electrically Qualified Workers And The Skills Gap30:45 Shapinsay's Community-Owned Wind Turbine34:34 Solar On Hospitals And Schools37:16 Balancing Solar With Battery Storage39:56 GB Energy's £8.3 Billion Budget: Progress So Far41:14 Contrarian View: Industrial Legacy Over Cheap Energy
Summary
What Happens When The State Take Risks Private Capital Won't? - GB Energy
2w ago00:45:04Tap to summarizeGB Energy's £1 million solar investment freed up savings a Hull hospital had left on the table for years. It's an example of what can happen when a state-backed investor takes risks the market won't. GB Energy calls itself an activist investor, built to put public money behind the frontiers where private capital moves too slowly: deepwater wind, long duration storage, public sector solar. The interesting question now is how far this model can scale, and how well it keeps sharing that risk with private capital as it grows.Dan McGrail, CEO of Great British Energy, joins Ed Porter to explain how Britain's state-owned energy company decides where to invest, and why it's taking on the risks private money won't take first.They cover: - Why the "activist investor" model can justify riskier bets than pure-return investors would take - and where that logic stops making sense- How to identify an investment "frontier": the areas of high ambition where private capital isn't moving fast enough to hit national targets- What a queue of 50GW+ in unsolicited co-investment enquiries reveals about investor appetite for state-backed risk-sharing- Why community-owned local energy can outperform national schemes on economic impact - one Orkney turbine now funds housing, buses and insulation- Why chasing niche global market share, not local content quotas, may be the smarter industrial strategy for competing with ChinaGot a question about the build-out of batteries, solar or wind in GB or Europe? That's what Ko is for - sign up to try for free.Transcript available hereYou can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy.Chapters00:00 £1m Solar Saving At A Hull Hospital00:43 Guest Introduction: Dan McGrail, CEO Of GB Energy01:11 GB Energy's Company Model And DESNZ Ownership02:42 Investment Committee Discipline Vs Government Thinking03:23 The "Frontiers" Strategy Explained07:44 Floating Wind And The Deepwater Frontier09:03 ScotWind, Rising Costs And Investor Confidence12:33 Three Strategic Pillars: Offshore, Onshore, Local19:56 Public Entrepreneurship Vs Maximising Profit21:17 The Siemens Story: Why Private Capital Wants In22:35 50GW Of Unsolicited Investment Enquiries26:00 Electrically Qualified Workers And The Skills Gap30:45 Shapinsay's Community-Owned Wind Turbine34:34 Solar On Hospitals And Schools37:16 Balancing Solar With Battery Storage39:56 GB Energy's £8.3 Billion Budget: Progress So Far41:14 Contrarian View: Industrial Legacy Over Cheap Energy
Transcribe →
Why Would A German Battery Agree To Switch Off? - Green Flexbility
3w ago00:37:43Tap to summarizeGermany looks like Europe's most attractive battery storage market on paper: deep power price volatility, a fast-growing renewables build-out, and nearly three gigawatts of batteries already live. In reality, developers are navigating uncertain grid connection queues, gruelling commissioning phases, and a tolling market still working out how much risk is fair to price in.Christina Hepp, Director Strategy, and Leandra Boes, Director Asset Management, both at Green Flexibility, join Ed Porter to unpack what building and operating batteries in Germany actually looks like once the PowerPoint slide meets the grid.They cover:- What a Flexible Connection Agreement actually is and why this kind of trade-off is fast becoming the norm in Germany.- Why grid operators and battery companies have historically struggled to "speak the same language", and how a shared framework like REGIOlink helps translate one side's needs into the other's terms.- What actually happens in the final weeks before a large-scale battery switches on for real: the software integration, testing and last-minute troubleshooting that never makes it into a press release.- Why choosing to sell power on the open market versus locking in a steadier, pre-agreed deal is a much bigger and riskier decision than it sounds - and why Green Flexibility is betting on the option most peers shy away from.- Just how enormous Germany's battery storage pipeline has become: enough grid connection requests queued up that regulators have had to start filtering out the projects that aren't actually going to happen.Want the data behind this conversation? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst:https://modoenergy.com/sign-up?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast_apps&utm_campaign=green-flexibility&utm_content=ko_signupChapters:00:00 Introduction01:20 Common Misconceptions About Building Batteries in Germany02:24 FID Prep and Commissioning: What Doesn't Make the Press Release03:25 Flexible Connection Agreements (FCAs): The Ski Cannon Example07:54 Germany's FCA Market Standardization10:36 Battery Commissioning in Germany: Lessons From the Toughest Phase14:29 Merchant vs Tolling: Germany's Battery Revenue Models19:30 REGIOlink: Integrating Batteries Into Distribution Grids23:11 Battery Data Sharing With Grid Operators26:27 Germany's Project Development Shakeout29:32 Co-Located Battery Projects: Pros and Cons31:47 Germany's Zonal Pricing Debate for Batteries34:32 Contrarian Views: Merchant Strategy and the German Power Market as "Barbie"
Transcribe →Why Would A German Battery Agree To Switch Off? - Green Flexbility
3w ago00:37:43Summary readyGermany looks like Europe's most attractive battery storage market on paper: deep power price volatility, a fast-growing renewables build-out, and nearly three gigawatts of batteries already live. In reality, developers are navigating uncertain grid connection queues, gruelling commissioning phases, and a tolling market still working out how much risk is fair to price in.Christina Hepp, Director Strategy, and Leandra Boes, Director Asset Management, both at Green Flexibility, join Ed Porter to unpack what building and operating batteries in Germany actually looks like once the PowerPoint slide meets the grid.They cover:- What a Flexible Connection Agreement actually is and why this kind of trade-off is fast becoming the norm in Germany.- Why grid operators and battery companies have historically struggled to "speak the same language", and how a shared framework like REGIOlink helps translate one side's needs into the other's terms.- What actually happens in the final weeks before a large-scale battery switches on for real: the software integration, testing and last-minute troubleshooting that never makes it into a press release.- Why choosing to sell power on the open market versus locking in a steadier, pre-agreed deal is a much bigger and riskier decision than it sounds - and why Green Flexibility is betting on the option most peers shy away from.- Just how enormous Germany's battery storage pipeline has become: enough grid connection requests queued up that regulators have had to start filtering out the projects that aren't actually going to happen.Want the data behind this conversation? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst:https://modoenergy.com/sign-up?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast_apps&utm_campaign=green-flexibility&utm_content=ko_signupTranscript available here:https://modoenergy.com/transmission-podcast/0b5744a4-36e3-471d-bb95-16adefb96a93?utm_source=podcast&utm_medium=podcast_apps&utm_campaign=green-flexibility&utm_content=article_pageChapters:00:00 Introduction01:20 Common Misconceptions About Building Batteries in Germany02:24 FID Prep and Commissioning: What Doesn't Make the Press Release03:25 Flexible Connection Agreements (FCAs): The Ski Cannon Example07:54 Germany's FCA Market Standardization10:36 Battery Commissioning in Germany: Lessons From the Toughest Phase14:29 Merchant vs Tolling: Germany's Battery Revenue Models19:30 REGIOlink: Integrating Batteries Into Distribution Grids23:11 Battery Data Sharing With Grid Operators26:27 Germany's Project Development Shakeout29:32 Co-Located Battery Projects: Pros and Cons31:47 Germany's Zonal Pricing Debate for Batteries34:32 Contrarian Views: Merchant Strategy and the German Power Market as "Barbie"
SummaryWhy Renewables Are Changing How Power Gets Priced - Renewable Exchange
Jul 1400:44:08Summary readyMany people picture a power purchase agreement as a 15-year mega-deal between a tech giant and a solar farm. In reality, 99% of UK PPAs look nothing like that. Power purchase agreements now sit behind a growing chunk of how the UK's electricity supply is sourced, and getting the price wrong could mean getting locked in well above the market rate for years.Ed sits down with Rob Ogden, Founder and CEO of Renewable Exchange - one of the UK's largest PPA marketplaces - to unpack how PPAs are actually priced, why REGO certificate prices have swung from over £20 to just a few pence, and what happens to Europe's ageing wind fleet as 20-year subsidies run out and thousands of turbines are pushed onto the merchant market.They cover:Why the "blue-chip" corporate PPA is the exception in a UK market dominated by short-term utility contracts, and how subsidy schemes from NFFO to CfD shaped that split.How negative and volatile power prices are forcing generators and off-takers to rethink how PPAs are priced and structured.The lessons from Covid and the Ukraine energy crisis on why locking into a 15-year PPA carries real pricing risk.Why matching thousands of small renewable generators with energy suppliers is such a hard problem to solve, and what it takes to build pricing infrastructure that can handle PPA demand spiking overnight.Why REGO prices have swung from over £20 to just a few pence, and the case for moving to 24/7 REGO matching.Want to see what future power prices look like right now? Head to Modo Energy and ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst — sign-up's free and takes seconds.Transcript available here.Chapters00:00 Introduction: Is Your "100% Green" Tariff Really Green?01:15 What People Get Wrong About Power Purchase Agreements03:45 UK Power Purchase Agreement Market Structure04:57 UK Renewable Subsidy History: NFFO, RO, FiT and CfD07:16 PPA Regret: Negative Pricing and Value Erosion09:49 Long-Term PPA Risk Through Covid and the Ukraine Crisis14:32 Hybrid PPA and Flexibility Contract Structures17:46 Renewable Exchange Origin Story: The Aberdeenshire Wind Farmers19:53 Platform Scaling Pains: Rebuilding Three Times22:41 Renewable Exchange's Impact on Consumer Energy Costs24:30 Co-Located Solar and Battery Revenue Streams26:58 REGO Explained: Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin32:16 The Case for 24/7 REGO Matching36:27 Expanding to Germany: Legacy Wind Assets and Repowering41:13 Contrarian Take: Ending Renewable Energy Subsidies
Summary