Energy Insiders - a RenewEconomy Podcast

Recent Episodes

1. The "impossible" wind project that broke the investment drought

   Sep 18, 2026

   John Martin, CEO of Windlab, discusses the financial close of the Gawara Buyer wind project in Queensland—the largest wind farm FID in Australia in two years and the first major project to start construction in the state this year. Martin details the eight-year development journey, the numerous regulatory and financing hurdles overcome, and the innovative hybrid wind-solar-battery design. He also previews Windlab's larger Bungaban project with Rio Tinto and explores opportunities along the proposed Copperstring transmission corridor in North Queensland.

2. Should ageing coal generators be fed carrots or sticks?

   Sep 11, 2026

   David McElrea, newly appointed CEO of the Smart Energy Council, discusses Queensland's obstruction of renewable energy projects and advocates for policy mechanisms to accelerate coal generator closures. He outlines the Smart Energy Council's priorities—distributed energy, commercial and industrial solar, EV charging, and freight electrification—and addresses barriers to residential solar, apartment EV charging, and plug-in battery adoption.

3. Zero carbon heat, Australia's next big challenge

   Sep 4, 2026

   Tom Geiser from Good Heat discusses zero-carbon industrial process heat technologies at the Australasian Renewable Heat Conference in Melbourne. The episode covers thermal energy storage systems, heat pump and electric boiler deployment, and policy barriers to scaling process heat decarbonization—which represents approximately 24% of Australia's stationary energy emissions. Geiser explains Good Heat's thermal battery technology and advocates for tariff reform and expanded support mechanisms to help small and medium enterprises transition from gas to electric heating.

4. Why we need regional leaders for renewable transition

   Aug 28, 2026

   Sabiene Heindl, CEO of The Energy Charter, discusses the critical need for strong regional leadership in Australia's renewable energy transition. She emphasizes that energy developers and industry must engage authentically with regional communities as partners rather than imposing projects, and outlines The Energy Charter's work supporting regional leaders through collaborative frameworks like the Regional Energy Accord to address cumulative development impacts and build genuine community benefit.

5. El Niño is coming

   Aug 21, 2026

   Karl Braganza, General Manager of Research at Australia's Bureau of Meteorology, discusses El Niño weather patterns and their implications for Australia's climate. The episode covers numerical weather forecasting methodology, seasonal climate drivers including El Niño, La Niña, the Indian Ocean Dipole, and the Southern Annular Mode, and how machine learning is beginning to augment traditional physical weather models. Braganza explains long-range climate predictability challenges in a warming world and the limits of forecasting accuracy.

6. Special Episode: The missing molecules - SAF, energy security and Australia’s next industrial opportunity

   Aug 18, 2026

   In this special Energy Insiders episode, Mac Irvine (CFO of Jet Zero Australia) joins partners Jamie Guthrie and Ilona Millar from Gilbert + Tobin, Céline Parle (Sustainable Aviation Fuel Investments, Airbus), and host Giles Parkinson to explore sustainable aviation fuel's role in Australia's energy transition. The discussion covers SAF's potential to decarbonize aviation, strengthen fuel security, and create a domestic industry, examining the investment, policy support, and demand certainty needed to make projects commercially viable. Key topics include the technical feasibility of SAF as a drop-in fuel, Jet Zero's Project Ulysses and Project Mandala, policy mechanisms (grants, production credits, mandates), feedstock security, and greenwashing risks.

7. Will the green bank save the Tomago deal?

   Aug 14, 2026

   Ian Learmonth, outgoing CEO of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), discusses the landmark Tomago aluminium smelter deal and the CEFC's role in financing renewable energy projects. The episode covers major financing achievements totalling $100 billion in committed investments, challenges in securing wind farm economics, the difficulty of attracting superannuation funds to renewable infrastructure, and opportunities in transport electrification and agricultural renewable energy.

8. Will data centres make or break wind?

   Aug 7, 2026

   Kane Thornton, formerly head of the Clean Energy Council, discusses his transition to the data centre industry and the intersection of data centres with renewable energy policy. The conversation covers Chris Bowen's data centre regulation announcement, grid connection challenges, community acceptance issues, and the potential for data centres to drive renewable energy investment in Australia, alongside broader energy policy updates including expanded solar rebates and EV charging infrastructure.

9. A battery with every wind turbine

   Jul 31, 2026

   John Tichen, CEO of Goldwind Australia, discusses the company's innovation in pairing battery storage with wind turbines to improve competitiveness and grid strength. He covers trials at the Murrabel facility, upcoming projects at Coppabella and Borden with integrated DC-coupled batteries, and addresses infrastructure challenges for larger turbine deliveries across eastern Australia.

10. Why we make renewable projects so hard

    Jul 24, 2026

    Shane Quinnell, former head of development at West Wind and founder of Essence Consulting, discusses the systemic barriers preventing renewable energy projects from reaching construction in Australia. He examines planning inconsistencies across states, grid connection complexities, and emerging cost pressures including system strength charges, explaining why despite clear policy targets, few projects are actually being built and how volatility in market mechanisms erodes investment returns.