The Siemens Energy Podcast

In the inaugural episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast, Christian Bruch, President and CEO of Siemens Energy, hosts a fascinating and wide-ranging chat with Ernest J. Moniz, former US Secretary of Energy and current President and CEO of the Energy Futures Initiative. 

In this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast we chat with Salim Ismail, founder of OpenExO and ExO Works. Salim speaks about the challenges that large organizations face when dealing with innovation (and shares some strategies to deal with those challenges).

Most people don’t associate cybersecurity with the transition to clean and renewable energy, but that’s something that needs to change. Randy Bell, Director of the Global Energy Center at the Atlantic Council addresses the digital threats that already face traditional energy sources and how much more those threats multiply when we move towards smart grids and smart thermostats.

While diversity and inclusion may be hot topics in today’s workspace, Allyson Zimmermann and the team at Catalyst have been advocating for better policies around race, gender, ethnicity, and other categories for decades. We at Siemens Energy have had the opportunity to work with Allyson, and it was a pleasure to have her on the show.

One of the challenges we face in the discussion about renewals is the frequent use of terminology that typically flies over the heads of members of the target audience. Sean McMahon, the creator, producer, and host of the Renewable Energy SmartPod, joined us for a wide-ranging conversation about the current narrative around renewables.

Green hydrogen isn’t just an improvement over the type of hydrogen currently used around the world, but it also offers some exciting applications in challenging fields for de-carbonization. That’s why we are fortunate to welcome Manuel Kuehn, Head of New Energy for the Middle East and Africa at Siemens Energy, onto the latest episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast. Manuel talks about the developments in green hydrogen, particularly the advancements in a particular Siemens Energy initiative in Abu Dhabi.

Climate is so much in the news these days that we might forget that ten years ago, it wasn’t even a beat covered by many publications. That’s why we invited Justin Worland, a Senior Correspondent at TIME, to the latest episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast. Of the eight years that Justin has been at TIME, seven of them have been on the climate beat. He chats with people as varied as oil and gas executives and Extinction Rebellion, giving him a chance to observe the intersection of policy, the private sector, and society.

Hydroelectric power is one of the older and more proven forms of renewable energy, so it doesn’t get the same attention as new and exciting technologies. Even so, there’s plenty of innovation going on in the hydro space, both in new technology and upgrading older facilities. Gia Schneider, CEO of Natel Energy, is the perfect guest to talk about what’s going on in hydro, so we brought her onto the Siemens Energy Podcast.

There’s so much to keep track of across the world of renewables and de-carbonization, that it pays to listen to someone whose entire job is to do just that. That’s why we invited Stephen Lacey onto this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast. Stephen is the Co-Founder and Executive Editor of Post Script Media, which helps organizations make compelling audio. He makes some of that compelling audio himself at The Carbon Copy, a weekly news analysis podcast that explains the changing planet through the lens of current events. 

What we read about climate and energy policy online and in newspapers is developed and discussed at large events like COP and ADIPEC. Those who attend such events have a sense of the most recent policy trends. John Defterios, former Emerging Markets Editor/Anchor at CNN and currently Energy Fellow for the World Economic Forum, is a regular attendee of such events and we’re delighted to have him on this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast. John’s message is ultimately a hopeful one, which is meaningful considering how much change (and how many false starts) he has seen in this field since he started decades ago.

One of the best ways to keep learning about issues in this space is to speak with thought leaders who are helping to spread awareness. One of those thought leaders is Rachel Kyte, Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University. Rachel has extensive experience in sustainability in the private sector and with the World Bank. She joins us to discuss the historic responsibility of industrialized countries to deal with de-carbonization, the corresponding responsibility of fast-growing countries to be thoughtful in how they use and deploy energy, and the voluntary carbon market.

Autonomous and remote technology are making great strides in power and energy generation. Siemens Energy team members Arik Ott, Portfolio Manager Autonomous Operations, and Stefan Schaab, Head of Operations and Maintenance Asset Management, deal every day with the questions of autonomous operations. On this episode they discuss the differences between autonomous and remotely-operated power plants, the role of machine learning in aiding and improving automation, fears of a workforce that fears that automation will cost them their jobs, and how critical systems that formerly needed on-site monitoring can now be monitored remotely.

In order to achieve carbon neutrality, future energy leaders will need to take up the mantle and carry on the work that the prior generation started. Manuel Herraiz, Sales Manager at Siemens Energy, is one such future leader. He joined this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast to discuss some of the challenges facing this generational transition, and how he and his colleagues might overcome them.

The potential for success in reducing carbon emissions lies in the ability of different organizations to work together towards a common goal. Jacob Irving, President of the Energy Council of Canada, and Arne Wohlschlegel, Managing Director at Siemens Energy Canada, are an example of the impact such a partnership can have. The story of Canada’s pursuit of carbon neutrality is a template for how inter-agency cooperation can allow for a more efficient and sustainable transition to renewable energy.

Linette Casey, Director of Power Systems Development at Siemens Energy, joined this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast to talk about her experience as a woman working to transform the energy sector, and how a greater focus on diversity in recent years has opened up a world of possibilities in the quest to transition to more renewable energy sources.

The journey towards slowing climate change requires a reckoning with reality. On this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast, we hear from many voices within Siemens Energy about the uncomfortable nature of the solutions to climate change and what that means for the work that still needs to be done to combat it.

To move the world towards a carbon-neutral energy economy, technological innovation is a necessary asset. On this episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast, Vinod Philip, Chief Technology and Strategy Officer at Siemens Energy, discusses several areas where current technological developments hold promise for a cleaner energy future.

Decarbonization doesn’t only have to be about upgrading to new technologies. It can also involve more carbon-neutral uses of current technology and infrastructure, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. On the latest episode of the Siemens Energy Podcast, we welcome two people who are working on one such journey: Pratyush Nag of Siemens Energy and Kevin Murray of Duke Energy.