Philip Hirschhorn’s Post

Have you been wondering about #whitehydrogen or #goldhydrogen. Led by Brijs, Tom, a number of colleagues and I, had a look beneath the surface (so to speak). Here's what we found ----------- As we navigate towards a sustainable future, naturally occurring #geologicalhydrogen, or “white hydrogen”, is stirring a buzz in the energy sector. Proponents claim it has great potential to disrupt the #hydrogenmarket and contribute to closing the low-carbon hydrogen supply gap. The production process for geological hydrogen shares similarities with that of natural gas, which could lead to cost efficiencies vs. other forms of low-carbon hydrogen. Additionally, byproducts like helium could enhance the economic viability of geological hydrogen extraction. However, there is still a lot of uncertainty on whether it will be able to contribute in a meaningful way, especially related to challenges in terms of volume potential, cost competitiveness to extract this potential, and speed at which the industry could develop. Take a look at the materials below and learn more about this exciting topic.

I had the pleasure of presenting at last week's #EN2024 conference hosted by Energy Networks Australia on why we think we need "All Systems Go" for the #EnergyTransition. My presentation was the curtain-raiser to an excellent panel hosted by Dominique van den Berg on taking the whole-of-system perspective. The panel featured my formidable colleague Oxana Dankova, PhD, alongside Andrew Bills from SA Power Networks, Sarah McNamara from Australian Energy Council and Jason Franklin from PowerNet in NZ. We need to consider how we manage the transition taking into account investments required at all parts of the energy chain: CER, DER, distribution, transmission and generation and across all fuels - electricity, gas and liquid fuels.

Just back in the office today following the #EN2024 conference hosted by Energy Networks Australia last week. As always, an extremely enjoyable conference. A new addition to the conference, was a fantastic tour of innovation sites from the host networks on the day preceding the conference. Thanks to Brendon Hampton and James Brown at SA Power Networks, for showing off their innovation centre and telling us how they are managing dynamic operating envelopes for rooftop solar. Thanks to Owen Sharpe and the team from Australian Gas Infrastructure Group (AGIG) for showing us their hydrogen demonstration project HyP SA, and following it up with a hydrogen fuelled BBQ. And thanks to the team at SA Water for touring us around their desal facility and BESS and talking about how they optimise both into the SA electricity market. It was great to see how all are making use of flexible demand side resources to take advantage of and help manage the volatile electricity market #EN2024 #EnergyTransition

Back in the office from COP this week. It was fascinating to be there and heartening to see the large number of folk heavily engaged in making the energy transition happen. The critical energy transition announcement in the first week was the commitment to "triple up and double down" - that is to triple the capacity of installed renewables and double our energy efficiency gains by 2030. That shouldn’t be underestimated in either its level of ambition, or the challenge in its delivery. https://lnkd.in/gMbKcEfQ I enjoyed moderating a panel that discussed the role of markets in incentivizing the necessary investment, in managing price volatility through the transition and in managing our electricity systems in a future world. A huge thanks to the panelists, Jens Madrian, Katherina Reiche, Alex Schoch and David Wright FREng for sharing their insights. A few key points that I took away: -     We’re going to need to extend and augment markets to encourage the investment to happen in time – whether it be through contracts for difference, certificate markets, capacity markets or other mechanisms. -     We should expect volatility in our electricity markets to increase as we introduce more renewables – and be aware of exposure to gas prices -     This volatility brings (i) significant challenges – cost of living challenges for consumers; profitability challenges for business – but (ii) critical signals for consumers/supplier to adapt their patterns of electricity consumption and production. The art for electricity markets through the transition will be to control the former while preserving the latter. -     Electricity markets in the future could look very different to what we know today – especially if you start with a blank sheet. There were different perspectives here, but agreement that: (i) More customer involvement in electricity markets will be crucial (ii) We need to access and utilize ubiquitous data on our systems to enable that and (iii) We should be confident that the future energy system can provide the range of services (including for example, inertia, frequency, black start) we expect. You can read more on the future of energy markets here at my BCG Henderson Institute page. https://lnkd.in/gC3VeprX   #COP28UAE #COP28 #BCGHendersonInstitute #BCGonENERGY #BCGatCOP #ElectricityMarkets

Looking forward to facilitating a panel of sector leaders addressing the role of markets in the energy transition at COP28 today. I am very grateful to be joined by Katherina Reiche, CEO of Westenergie; Jens Madrian, Managing Director of Energy at ENOWA, David Wright FREng, Chief Engineer at NationalGrid, and Alex Schoch, Global Head of Flexibility at Octopus Energy to provide a 360 degree perspective. As we move to more electric, more renewable energy system, we'll need to answer questions about: - the role of markets in motivating and directing investment in renewable generation, storage, firming and networks - how we manage increasing volatility and exposure to gas prices in our electricity markets - whether our markets are fit for purpose in a world of intermittent, zero marginal cost, and energy-constrained generation. If you are at COP, please join us at the Presidency Stage in the Knowledge Hub for what I hope will be an excellent conversation. #cop28uae #BCGonEnergy #BCGatCOP

Fascinating piece of analysis from my colleagues that looks at real trip behaviour to draw conclusions on what charging infrastructure could help make EVs even more attractive from a driver perspective by minimising the time and effort of charging. Priority is to get charger availability close to home and work sites. #BCGOnEnergy #EnergyTransition #ElectricVehicles

There is a roughly $18 trillion gap between what energy players are planning to spend between now and 2030 and what is needed to keep us on track for #netzero by 2050. Learn more about the climate investment gap and opportunities for governments, energy companies, energy users, and investors.

My colleagues at the BCG Henderson Institute have released their (Northern Hemisphere Summer reading list. A diverse set, covering everything from managing megaprojects to managing micro-stress. Many of the books are also covered in interviews with the authors on our Thinkers & Ideas #podcast if you want the short version. Happy reading/listening!

Direct air capture (DAC) could play a critical role in delivering #netzero. This nascent technology can produce some of the highest-quality CO2 removals in terms of scalability, permanence, and verifiability. However, DAC is in danger of failing to fulfill its potential because of its current high cost and comparatively low support from governments and other players with moving down the cost curve.  This article explains what is needed to turn DAC into a viable solution for tackling the climate crisis. Four near-term levers can reduce costs so that the technology is attractive, but players will need to pull hard on each one. #BCGonEnergy #energytransition #decarbonization #directaircapture #carbonremoval #climateaction