Transmission

• Alleviating grid stresses with virtual power plants, with Michael Lynch (Enel X)

  Want the latest news, analysis, and price indices from power markets around the globe - delivered to your inbox, every week?Sign up for the Weekly Dispatch - Modo Energy’s unmissable newsletter.Electricity grids worldwide need both the flexibility to adapt to renewable energy sources, and the resilience to cope with grid-stress events. Demand curtailment and other forms of demand-side response (DSR) play an increasingly fundamental role in supporting both these requirements, yet direct participation in these programmes can be complex, and is typically geared towards high-demand customers with single, centralised sites.However smaller, decentralised organisations can still unlock the benefits of DSR and provide a crucial grid service by working with an aggregator. By bringing multiple demand customers and sites together in a virtual power plant (VPP), aggregators help businesses of all sizes become major contributors to grid stability, without the challenges of managing individual enrolment themselves.In this episode, Michael Lynch, manager of Enel X’s global Network Operations Centre (NOC) in Dublin, joins Ed Porter to discuss the growing role of VPPs in helping stabilise global electricity grids. In conversation they discuss:The nature of VPPs, and the type of generation, storage and load-curtailment resources they aggregate. How VPPs respond to the requirements of grid and asset operators. The use of flexibility and automation in managing VPP performance. The need for resilience in the NOC to ensure a reliable and rapid response in volatile conditions – from shutdowns and outages, to extreme weather and earthquakes. The human dimension and skills set required to balance around 10 GW of flexibility services worldwide.The future of VPPs as they adopt more battery storage assets in EVs, homes and businesses.About our guestMichael joined Enel X Global Retail in 2020 from an airline operations control centre, where hegained hands-on experience planning, scheduling and managing disruptions in a fast-paced,high-pressure environment.Enel X Global Retail is Enel Group’s business line dedicated to customers around the world with the aim of effectively providing products and services based on their energy needs and encouraging them towards a more conscious and sustainable use of energy. Globally, it provides electricity, integrated and innovative energy services to more than 54 million customers worldwide, offering flexibility services aggregating 9.8 GW, managing around 3 million lighting points, and with 30,500 owned public charging points for electric mobility.For more information on what Enel X Global Retail does, head to its website at https://www.enelx.com/uk/en/About Modo EnergyModo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage solutions understand the market - and make the most out of their assets.All of our podcasts are available to watch or listen to on the Modo Energy site. To keep up with all of our latest updates, research, analysis, videos, podcasts, data visualizations, live events, and more, follow us on LinkedIn. Check out The Energy Academy, our bite-sized video series breaking down how power markets work.

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• Financing US Battery Storage: Tariffs, Tax Credits, & the Future of Clean Energy | Chris Taylor

  To get the latest on energy storage, market movements, and revenue indices, straight to your inbox every week, sign up the Weekly Dispatch.Want the latest news, analysis, and price indices from power markets around the globe - delivered to your inbox, every week?Sign up for the Weekly Dispatch - Modo Energy’s unmissable newsletterThe United States is at a pivotal moment in its energy transition. Massive policy shifts like the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) have unlocked unprecedented levels of clean energy investment, from wind and solar to hydrogen and carbon capture. But ambition alone doesn’t build projects the real challenge is how to finance, structure, and deliver gigawatts of new capacity at the speed net zero requires.Tax credits, long-term offtake structures, and regulatory frameworks will determine which projects attract capital and which stall in development. Add in the complexity of interconnection queues, supply chain constraints, and regional market rules, and it’s clear that capital deployment in the US clean energy sector is as complex as it is urgent.In this episode of *Transmission*, Quentin speaks with **Chris Taylor, CEO of GridStor**, to explore how capital is flowing into US energy storage, what investors are looking for, and why regulatory clarity is key to unlocking large-scale deployment. They discuss how storage fits into the wider clean energy build-out, and what it will take to turn climate ambition into bankable, shovel-ready projects.Key topics covered include: - How the Inflation Reduction Act is reshaping storage investment in the US.- Why interconnection queues are one of the biggest barriers to deployment.- What investors need to see to back large-scale storage projects.- The balance between federal incentives and private capital.- The impact of tariffs and domestic production incentives on supply chains.About our guestChris Taylor is the CEO of GridStor, a US-based developer focused on large-scale battery energy storage. With a career spanning energy investment, infrastructure, and project development, Chris brings deep expertise in how capital, policy, and technology intersect to accelerate the clean energy transition. At GridStor, he leads efforts to deliver gigawatt-scale storage projects that help balance the grid, integrate renewables, and provide critical flexibility to the power system. His perspective combines hands-on development experience with an investor’s eye for risk, regulation, and long-term value creation in the rapidly evolving US energy market. For more information on what GridStor do, head to their [website.](https://gridstor.com/)

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• Beyond the EV Hype: Why the Transition Needs Better Stories with Robert Llewellyn (Everything Electric)

  Want the latest news, analysis, and price indices from power markets around the globe - delivered to your inbox, every week?Sign up for the Weekly Dispatch - Modo Energy’s unmissable newsletter.Electric vehicles are no longer a niche technology. Costs are falling, ranges are increasing, and adoption is growing across the UK and beyond. But despite this progress, the EV transition is still battling misinformation, cultural resistance, and outdated narratives that slow down change.The problem isn’t just about technology, it’s about how the story is told. From charging infrastructure myths to debates over grid capacity, the way we talk about EVs has a direct impact on how fast people adopt them. To accelerate the shift, the industry needs clear communication, positive examples, and a willingness to challenge entrenched scepticism.In this episode of Transmission, Ed is joined by Robert Llewellyn - actor, writer, and founder of Everything Electric - to explore how storytelling, education, and culture are shaping the clean transport revolution. Together, they dig into why better narratives matter just as much as better batteries in driving the shift to zero-carbon mobility. Over the course of the conversation they discuss:⚡ Why EV myths still dominate the conversation and how to challenge them.⚡ The role of media and storytelling in accelerating adoption.⚡ How charging infrastructure is developing faster than public perception.⚡ Why the grid can cope with electrification and what still needs work.⚡ What’s next for EV culture as the transition goes mainstream.About our guestRobert Llewellyn is an actor, writer, presenter, and the creator of Everything Electric, one of the world’s leading channels dedicated to electric vehicles and clean energy. Best known to many as Kryten from Red Dwarf and host of Scrapheap Challenge, Robert has become a driving force in the public conversation around electrification and sustainability. Through Everything Electric (and Fully Charged before it), he has built a global platform that champions EV adoption, renewable power, and smarter energy systems making complex topics accessible and inspiring millions to engage with the transition to net zero. Find Robert on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-llewellyn-0a43992b/?originalSubdomain=ukAbout Modo EnergyModo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage solutions understand the market - and make the most out of their assets.All of our podcasts are available to watch or listen to on the Modo Energy site. To keep up with all of our latest updates, research, analysis, videos, podcasts, data visualizations, live events, and more, follow us on LinkedIn. Check out The Energy Academy, our bite-sized video series breaking down how power markets work.

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• Rethinking Grid Connections for the AI Era with Paul Manning (NovoGrid)

  The energy grid is facing a new kind of challenge: enormous, fast-arriving demand from hyperscale data centres, driven by AI and digitalisation. These “giga-campuses” are no longer talking about tens of megawatts they’re applying for a gigawatt of capacity in a single location.That’s the same scale of demand Portugal expects to add across the entire country over a decade - now requested in one UK town. For National Grid, developers, and policymakers, the question is urgent: how do you connect this demand without waiting 15 years for traditional reinforcements? It is increasingly clear that the future of large-scale demand isn’t just about building faster, it’s about building smarter. Flexible connections, real-time load management, and accurate grid modelling will be essential to connect AI-era demand without crippling the network or wasting resources.In this episode of Transmission, Ed sits down with Paul Manning, Commercial Director at Novogrid, about how real-time data and control can transform grid operations. From improving renewable integration to reducing connection delays, they explore the technology, market design, and operational shifts needed to build a more dynamic and efficient electricity system. ⚡ Why hyperscale data centres break the old rules for grid planning and capacity allocation.⚡The bottleneck: why firm connections could delay projects for over a decade.⚡ Flexible (non-firm) connections as a faster route and what this means for data centre operations.⚡ How to align computational load with grid availability to avoid stranded assets and wasted capacity.⚡ The role of grid analytics in de-risking curtailment and speeding up the transitionAbout the GuestPaul Manning is Co-Founder and Commercial Director at Novogrid, a grid analytics company acquired by Danish energy services firm Opora. Novagrid specialises in modelling the energy grid and helping clients plan projects from “time zero” before a single cable is laid, to secure the best possible connection strategy. For more information, check out their website. About Modo EnergyModo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage solutions understand the market - and make the most out of their assets.All of our podcasts are available to watch or listen to on the Modo Energy site. To keep up with all of our latest updates, research, analysis, videos, podcasts, data visualizations, live events, and more, follow us on LinkedIn. Check out The Energy Academy, our bite-sized video series breaking down how power markets work. Sign up to the Modo Energy Weekly Dispatch for expert insights on energy storage, market shifts, and policy updates - delivered straight to your inbox every week.

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• Are UK Clean Energy Schemes Fit for 2030 with Sulaiman Ilyas-Jarrett

  The UK’s clean energy ambitions depend on more than just building wind farms and solar arrays they rely on the systems and schemes that decide how those projects connect to the grid and how they sell their power.From the long-established Contracts for Difference (CfD) auctions to the upcoming Clean Power 30 reforms, the rules and incentives that have shaped renewable deployment are now under pressure. With the volume of projects in the pipeline and 2030 targets approaching fast, the question is whether these mechanisms are fit for today’s pace of change.Without changes to connection processes and offtake frameworks, gigawatts of clean energy could stay stuck in the queue, missing climate deadlines and adding costs. Reforming these systems is critical to delivering the UK’s 2030 decarbonisation goals.In this special Transmission × Energy Revolution Podcast crossover, Sulaiman Ilyas-Jarrett, who has worked at the heart of government energy policy joins Modo Energy’s Ed Porter to explore: How today’s grid connection schemes work and where delays are building up. The role CfDs have played in accelerating renewables, and the limitations they now face.What Clean Power 30 could mean for developers, investors, and the wider market. The balance between speed, fairness, and system stability in connecting new generation. Lessons from inside government on designing schemes that actually deliver.About our guestSulaiman Ilyas-Jarrett is a recognised leader in energy and climate policy. Formerly Head of Policy and Strategy for Renewable Delivery at the UK Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, and a Policy Fellow at the University of Cambridge, he brings deep expertise in renewable energy systems, market design, and policy innovation. With a career spanning government, academia, and climate advocacy, Sulaiman has shaped strategies to accelerate the energy transition and unlock renewable deployment at scale.Connect with Sulaiman on LinkedInAbout Modo EnergyModo Energy helps the owners, operators, builders, and financiers of battery energy storage solutions understand the market - and make the most out of their assets.All of our podcasts are available to watch or listen to on the Modo Energy site. To keep up with all of our latest updates, research, analysis, videos, podcasts, data visualizations, live events, and more, follow us on LinkedIn. Check out The Energy Academy, our bite-sized video series breaking down how power markets work. Sign up to the Modo Energy Weekly Dispatch for expert insights on energy storage, market shifts, and policy updates - delivered straight to your inbox every week.

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