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2GreenEnergy on “Go Green Radio”

craigshieldsPosted on Posted in Renewables - Business

I just got off the phone from a really engaging hour-long radio show.  “Go Green Radio’s” hostess Jill Buck (pictured here) interviewed me about my recent book: “Renewable Energy – Following the Money.”

As I told her during a commercial break, of the 50-or-so shows I’ve done like this over the past few years, I believe Jill was the most single knowledgeable interviewer I’ve ever encountered.  I thought I’d just provide here the description she wrote to introduce her listeners to the show, as well as the remarkably astute questions she asked. 

I hope to have a link to the show available soon.

She describes the episode as follows:

It comes as news to no one that the energy industry is the most profitable on Earth.  Based on their rise to prominence in the 20th Century, the annual earnings of the top five oil companies alone (ExxonMobil, BP, Shell, Conoco Philips, and Chevron) are now measured in the hundreds of billions of dollars.  In his new book, Renewable Energy — Following the Money, Craig Shields presents a set of interviews with subject matter experts who discuss the effects that economics and financial power have on the course of the world’s energy policy. If it is true that we need a radical change in our approach to transportation and energy so that we can forge a sustainable path to the consumption of resources here on Earth, it will only happen with action by a large, informed electorate of people who understand and honestly care what’s going on around them. Tune in, and become part of the informed electorate!

FIRST SEGMENT IS 13 MINUTES

Questions:

  1. Welcome to Go Green Radio, Craig! Congratulations on your new book! Please give our listeners a brief overview of what the book covers, and the people you interviewed.
  2. In the first few pages of the book, you have a line that I’d like for you to explain to our listeners. You wrote, “If you really love this country, the continued dependence on fossil fuels has only downside, especially militarily.” What do you mean by that?
  3. For the benefit of our listeners who may not know, explain the role that government subsidies play in keeping nonrenewable energy financially viable in the U.S.
  4. And when we “follow the money”, what keeps those subsidies in place?
  5. Is there an economically-sound way to level the playing field for renewable energy? Or is that even necessary? (Some CEO’s in the renewable space say they don’t need government subsidies to compete)
  6. As a former marketing professional, what does it say to you when oil and gas companies see the need to buy commercial time on cable news channels and prime time network TV?

COMMERICAL BREAK

NEXT SEGMENT IS 13 MINUTES LONG

  1. Given the fact that oil, gas and coal are finite, it irks me that our country is not actively planning for the future by aggressively transitioning to infinite energy sources. However, I don’t have a lot of hope that it will happen any time soon at the federal level. Do you see a role for state and local government to fill the policy void?
  2. When you look at government incentives for renewable energy, often you see technology-specific programs, e.g. rebates for solar on homes, plug-in cars get HOV lane access, etc. But to use one of your interviewee’s phrases, “there is no silver bullet, so we need to fire silver buckshot.” Do you foresee a time when there will be a menu of incentives for all types of renewable energy vs. programs that favor a few?
  3. Some people say, “If renewable energy is such a great idea, then let the market bring it online, not public dollars. Let the VC’s and angel investors of the world take the risk.” What’s wrong with that line of thinking?
  4. I found it interesting, and a little disheartening, that in your interview with physicist, Dr. Jim Boyden, he said that he doubted that renewable energy will ever deliver more than 10-20% of our energy. What is your take on that, Craig? If he’s right, what does the future hold for us?

COMMERCIAL BREAK

NEXT SEGMENT IS 12 MINUTES LONG

  1. In your book, you write that because of the way utilities are regulated, they really have no incentive to transition toward a clean energy future. Can you explain that in more detail?
  2. One of the men you interviewed said something that piqued my interest, and I’d like to invite you to explain his statement more fully to our listeners. Dr. Tom Konrad says, “I think that the net gain of green jobs from solar actually is questionable, but I don’t think it’s at all questionable when it comes to jobs from efficiency.”
  3. Renewable energy advocates often point to green job creation, and certainly, there is some value in that. But the flip side of the coin is that renewable energy is so less energy dense than coal, oil and gas that it takes more work to extract the same amount of energy we’ve been living on with nonrenewables for years. In other words, will the value (and hence, the wages) of green jobs in renewable energy be very high if they fail to produce surplus energy?
  4. Energy density is certainly something we have to take into account when we envision our energy future, but I think water intensity is also going to become increasingly important. If we’re following the money, how might drought conditions across the U.S. impact the economic feasibility of renewable energy?
  5. Initially, when I considered the premise of your book in “following the money,” I was primarily considering the impact that conventional energy companies have on federal legislation. However, financial institutions also play a critical role, as they make decisions about investing in renewable energy projects and the cost of capital. Do you see any indication that renewable energy projects will gain a financing advantage over nonrenewable projects, based on environmental or social liabilities inherent in the use of oil, gas and coal?

COMMERCIAL BREAK

LAST SEGMENT IS 9 MINUTES LONG

  1. In terms of bringing more renewables on line, how large an issue is inadequate energy infrastructure? Is that a significant stumbling block?
  2. There is this perception that liberals are the champions of renewable energy and environmental protection, but if investing in drastic changes to our energy system meant a reduction in social spending, I’m not sure you’d get much buy in. In the conversations you had while writing this book, what is your sense of public willingness to sacrifice in order to make the necessary investments in a clean energy future?

 

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