Transmission

Ed Porter, Modo Energy
  • 5.0 (12)
  • Investing
  • Weekly

Transmission is the podcast for energy professionals navigating the global shift to a low-carbon power system. Hosted by Ed Porter, Transmission goes deep on battery storage markets, power market dynamics, and the commercial forces shaping the energy transition - with the people at the centre of it. Every week, we sit down with the CEOs, heads of trading desks, government advisors, policy architects, and leading practitioners driving change across the industry. These are practitioner conversations - focused on how markets actually work, where the real opportunities and risks lie, and what the data is telling us. We cover clean energy investing, capacity markets, balancing mechanism participation, and the evolving regulatory environment that shapes returns across geographies. Our coverage spans Great Britain, Germany, Spain, and the broader European energy transition, with regular episodes dedicated to the specific dynamics of each market. Transmission tracks the inflection points that matter: when markets shift, where capital is flowing, and what experienced operators are doing next. We also cover power markets more broadly - interconnectors, flexibility markets, grid infrastructure, and the trading strategies that sophisticated players use to extract value in increasingly complex systems. Who listens: Transmission is built for people who work in energy - analysts, investors, developers, traders, asset managers, and policy professionals at every stage of their careers. If you're entering the industry or building your understanding of how battery storage and power markets actually work, Transmission is one of the fastest ways to get up to speed - directly from the people shaping them. About Modo Energy: Transmission is produced by Modo Energy, a B2B SaaS platform that helps renewable energy companies, funds, utilities, and banks manage and value their energy assets. Specializing in batteries and provides data, analytics, and forecasting to help customers understand the financial performance of their energy assets. The Modo Energy Terminal is the one-stop shop for teams trying to understand the commercial case for grid-scale battery energy storage - bringing together trusted indices, customizable benchmarks, independent revenue forecasts, in-depth written analysis, and much more. Guided by the principles of transparency and usability, Modo Energy’s Terminal provides owners, operators, developers and financiers with a complete view of the landscape for storage - past, present, and future - so that users can make informed, bankable decisions about their assets. Hundreds of organizations rely on Modo’s tools and insights to navigate market trends, optimize investment strategies, and stay ahead of industry shifts. As the storage space continues to evolve, Modo is leading the way - helping businesses unlock the full value of their assets and make smarter decisions in a net-zero future. Follow Transmission to get new episodes every Tuesday. If you find the show valuable, leaving a rating takes 30 seconds and makes a real difference in helping other energy professionals find us.

  1. 2d ago

    Germany’s Battery Deadline Comes Before the Grid Rules Do - Kyon Energy

    Germany’s battery storage pipeline looks like a “tsunami” on paper, but grid connection requests say little about how many projects actually get built. The ones that do face a hard deadline: reach final investment decision this year to keep the grid fee exemption, while the rules that replace it are still being finalised. Ed Porter is joined by Marie-Sophie Braun, Head of Markets and Regulatory Affairs at Kyon Energy, a German battery storage developer that now operates its own assets as an independent flexibility provider, to unpack how investment decisions get made when the rules are still moving. They cover: - Why the flood of grid connection requests says little about how much BESS Germany will build, and why the storage industry has no incentive to overbuild. - How Kyon is approaching final investment decisions to keep the grid fee exemption for assets live before August 2029, why seven months is tight for an infrastructure investment, and why Marie still calls the new grid fee regime a fair compromise. - What separates a flexible connection agreement a bank will finance from one that stalls projects, and why uncompensated curtailment needs a clear cap. - Why Kyon splits comparable assets across different route-to-market providers, and what it wants to see from optimisers beyond the pitch deck. - Why Germany pushes co-located storage and renewables while applying different grid rules to each, and what a split into price zones would mean for flexibility. Want to see how German batteries are performing? Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, can answer questions on German BESS revenues, grid fees and the build-out. You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy. ### Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:11 What people get wrong about German battery storage 03:31 Why Kyon went from developer to operator 07:42 Should developers optimise in-house? 08:57 The FID deadline and AgNes grid fee reform 12:17 Dynamic and locational grid fees 14:20 Flexible connection agreements and financing 17:03 Benchmarking route-to-market providers 19:57 TSO vs DSO: who benefits from batteries? 23:52 Should Germany split into price zones? 27:28 Contrarian view: different rules for co-located assets

  2. 2d ago ·  Video

    Germany’s Battery Deadline Comes Before the Grid Rules Do - Kyon Energy

    Germany’s battery storage pipeline looks like a “tsunami” on paper, but grid connection requests say little about how many projects actually get built. The ones that do face a hard deadline: reach final investment decision this year to keep the grid fee exemption, while the rules that replace it are still being finalised. Ed Porter is joined by Marie-Sophie Braun, Head of Markets and Regulatory Affairs at Kyon Energy, a German battery storage developer that now operates its own assets as an independent flexibility provider, to unpack how investment decisions get made when the rules are still moving. They cover: - Why the flood of grid connection requests says little about how much BESS Germany will build, and why the storage industry has no incentive to overbuild. - How Kyon is approaching final investment decisions to keep the grid fee exemption for assets live before August 2029, why seven months is tight for an infrastructure investment, and why Marie still calls the new grid fee regime a fair compromise. - What separates a flexible connection agreement a bank will finance from one that stalls projects, and why uncompensated curtailment needs a clear cap. - Why Kyon splits comparable assets across different route-to-market providers, and what it wants to see from optimisers beyond the pitch deck. - Why Germany pushes co-located storage and renewables while applying different grid rules to each, and what a split into price zones would mean for flexibility. Want to see how German batteries are performing? Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, can answer questions on German BESS revenues, grid fees and the build-out. You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy. ### Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:11 What people get wrong about German battery storage 03:31 Why Kyon went from developer to operator 07:42 Should developers optimise in-house? 08:57 The FID deadline and AgNes grid fee reform 12:17 Dynamic and locational grid fees 14:20 Flexible connection agreements and financing 17:03 Benchmarking route-to-market providers 19:57 TSO vs DSO: who benefits from batteries? 23:52 Should Germany split into price zones? 27:28 Contrarian view: different rules for co-located assets

    Germany’s Battery Deadline Comes Before the Grid Rules Do - Kyon Energy

  3. Oct 27

    Inside Great Britain’s First Battery Revenue Swap - SSE & Statkraft

    What if a battery storage project could lock in its revenue before it's earned it? SSE and Statkraft have done just that with a battery revenue swap: SSE gave up the ups and downs of battery income for a fixed price, Statkraft took them on, and both energy companies came out with less risk. On this episode of Transmission, Ed Porter is joined by Josh Brown, Origination Team Manager at SSE, and Cian O'Duffy, Energy Markets Quantitative Analyst at Statkraft, two people behind the deal, to explain how energy trading deals like this work and who could do one next. They cover: - How a battery revenue swap is set up, and why it needs far less paperwork than a wind farm PPA. - Whether a swap changes how you run your battery, and what basis risk means for owners. - How wind farms, solar farms and energy suppliers could use battery revenues to manage risk. - Why big businesses might buy a virtual battery instead of building their own. - What's next for battery storage deals, plus two contrarian views on CfDs and battery revenues. Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, about battery revenues, power prices, wind, solar and data centres: Try for free Transcript available here You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy. Chapters: 00:00 What is a battery revenue swap? 01:11 How energy trading deals get set up 03:07 Why SSE sold its battery revenue risk 05:11 Why Statkraft wanted more battery risk 06:27 How big the SSE and Statkraft deal is 07:40 How swap contracts work (ISDA explained) 10:39 Does a swap change how you run your battery? 12:35 UK-wide vs regional battery indices 13:55 Can wind and solar farms hedge with batteries? 17:26 Battery revenues vs other ways to hedge 20:27 Virtual batteries for big energy users 24:30 What comes after swaps? Options and floors 28:46 How CfDs affect negative electricity prices 31:02 Why battery revenues could be a rocky ride 33:26 Wrap-up

  4. Oct 27 ·  Video

    Inside Great Britain’s First Battery Revenue Swap - SSE & Statkraft

    What if a battery storage project could lock in its revenue before it's earned it? SSE and Statkraft have done just that with a battery revenue swap: SSE gave up the ups and downs of battery income for a fixed price, Statkraft took them on, and both energy companies came out with less risk. On this episode of Transmission, Ed Porter is joined by Josh Brown, Origination Team Manager at SSE, and Cian O'Duffy, Energy Markets Quantitative Analyst at Statkraft, two people behind the deal, to explain how energy trading deals like this work and who could do one next. They cover: - How a battery revenue swap is set up, and why it needs far less paperwork than a wind farm PPA. - Whether a swap changes how you run your battery, and what basis risk means for owners. - How wind farms, solar farms and energy suppliers could use battery revenues to manage risk. - Why big businesses might buy a virtual battery instead of building their own. - What's next for battery storage deals, plus two contrarian views on CfDs and battery revenues. Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, about battery revenues, power prices, wind, solar and data centres: Try for free Transcript available here You can watch or listen to new episodes every Tuesday. Transmission is a Modo Energy production. Your host is Ed Porter - Director EMEA & APAC at Modo Energy. Chapters: 00:00 What is a battery revenue swap? 01:11 How energy trading deals get set up 03:07 Why SSE sold its battery revenue risk 05:11 Why Statkraft wanted more battery risk 06:27 How big the SSE and Statkraft deal is 07:40 How swap contracts work (ISDA explained) 10:39 Does a swap change how you run your battery? 12:35 UK-wide vs regional battery indices 13:55 Can wind and solar farms hedge with batteries? 17:26 Battery revenues vs other ways to hedge 20:27 Virtual batteries for big energy users 24:30 What comes after swaps? Options and floors 28:46 How CfDs affect negative electricity prices 31:02 Why battery revenues could be a rocky ride 33:26 Wrap-up

    Inside Great Britain’s First Battery Revenue Swap - SSE & Statkraft

  5. Oct 20 ·  Video

    Battery Storage in Germany: A Grid Operator’s View - 50Hertz

    Battery storage in Germany has a grid connection problem: far more projects want to connect than the grid can take, so Germany has scrapped first come, first served and moved to a maturity-based allocation scheme that rewards projects that are ready to build. But for 50Hertz and Germany's other transmission system operators, connecting BESS is only half the challenge. Merchant batteries could push grid congestion costs and grid fees up, or bring them down. Wilhelm Kiewitt, Head of Energy Economics at 50Hertz, one of Germany's four transmission system operators, joins Ed Porter to explain how a grid operator sees the battery boom from the inside. They cover: Why Germany scrapped first come, first served for grid connections, and how the new maturity-based scheme scores projects on land, permits and finance instead of speed.How 50Hertz went from a handful of transmission connection requests a year to more than 100, and why even the 14GW of batteries already holding grid reservations may not all get built.Should batteries pay more towards wider grid upgrades? Why Wilhelm says no, and why data centres are a different case.Dynamic grid fees or smaller bidding zones? Where Wilhelm and Ed disagree on the cleanest way to send batteries to where the grid needs them.Could merchant batteries cut Germany's roughly 4 billion euros a year in congestion management costs, or push them up?Building in Germany? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, what a battery earns there today, how it compares with wind and solar, and where power prices are heading. Try for free. Transcript available here Themen: Batteriespeicher, Netzanschluss, Reifegradverfahren, Netzentgelte, Engpassmanagement, 50Hertz

    Battery Storage in Germany: A Grid Operator’s View - 50Hertz

  6. Oct 20

    Battery Storage in Germany: A Grid Operator’s View - 50Hertz

    Battery storage in Germany has a grid connection problem: far more projects want to connect than the grid can take, so Germany has scrapped first come, first served and moved to a maturity-based allocation scheme that rewards projects that are ready to build. But for 50Hertz and Germany's other transmission system operators, connecting BESS is only half the challenge. Merchant batteries could push grid congestion costs and grid fees up, or bring them down. Wilhelm Kiewitt, Head of Energy Economics at 50Hertz, one of Germany's four transmission system operators, joins Ed Porter to explain how a grid operator sees the battery boom from the inside. They cover: Why Germany scrapped first come, first served for grid connections, and how the new maturity-based scheme scores projects on land, permits and finance instead of speed.How 50Hertz went from a handful of transmission connection requests a year to more than 100, and why even the 14GW of batteries already holding grid reservations may not all get built.Should batteries pay more towards wider grid upgrades? Why Wilhelm says no, and why data centres are a different case.Dynamic grid fees or smaller bidding zones? Where Wilhelm and Ed disagree on the cleanest way to send batteries to where the grid needs them.Could merchant batteries cut Germany's roughly 4 billion euros a year in congestion management costs, or push them up?Building in Germany? Ask Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, what a battery earns there today, how it compares with wind and solar, and where power prices are heading. Try for free. Transcript available here Themen: Batteriespeicher, Netzanschluss, Reifegradverfahren, Netzentgelte, Engpassmanagement, 50Hertz

  7. Oct 13 ·  Video

    Financing Merchant Batteries When Contracts Run Out - Aquila Clean Energy

    Battery storage investment in Europe now depends less on whether the revenue exists and more on how it gets financed. With Italy's first MACSE auction won largely by a single player while Germany's fully merchant market is pushing lenders towards shorter, tighter debt, investors have to work out what makes a battery project bankable without a long-term contract. Grace Kankindi, Deputy Head of Investment Management at Aquila Clean Energy, joins Ed Porter to walk through how she assesses battery investments across multiple European markets. They cover: - Why the first MACSE auction worked as designed, even though prices cleared low and one bidder took most of the contracts, and what new anti-concentration rules could change in round two. - What happens to Italian battery projects that miss out on MACSE, from tolling to the capacity market, and why Italian lenders still won't back fully merchant projects. - How lenders are financing merchant batteries in Germany, with debt terms of around 3 to 7 years instead of 15 to 20, and cash sweeps to pay debt down faster. - The risk investors most often underprice, the optimiser, and why the lowest profit share isn't always the cheapest deal as German two-hour battery revenues fall. - Why timing decides returns in smaller markets like Lithuania and Finland, why Poland is next on Grace's radar, and why she thinks contracted revenue is riskier than it looks. Want to stress-test how a German battery's revenues hold up as saturation sets in? Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, is built for exactly these questions. Transcript available here Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:22 MACSE Auction Results and What People Got Wrong 2:38 Italy Battery Storage Investment Beyond MACSE 5:18 MACSE vs Merchant by Italian Price Zone 6:29 Battery Revenue Strategies Without a MACSE Contract 10:05 Battery Project Finance: MACSE, Tolling and Merchant 12:12 Second MACSE Auction and Anti-Concentration Rules 13:58 Merchant Battery Financing in Germany 16:14 What Lenders Want From a Merchant BESS Project 18:38 German Battery Revenue Saturation 20:27 Battery Optimiser Risk and Profit Share 23:12 Dynamic Grid Fees in Germany 25:25 Diversifying a Battery Portfolio Across 12 Markets 28:13 Lithuania and Finland Battery Storage Markets 30:13 Where to Invest Next: Poland 31:12 Best Performing Battery Assets in 10 Years 33:46 The Hidden Risk in Contracted Battery Revenue

    Financing Merchant Batteries When Contracts Run Out - Aquila Clean Energy

  8. Oct 13

    Financing Merchant Batteries When Contracts Run Out - Aquila Clean Energy

    Battery storage investment in Europe now depends less on whether the revenue exists and more on how it gets financed. With Italy's first MACSE auction won largely by a single player while Germany's fully merchant market is pushing lenders towards shorter, tighter debt, investors have to work out what makes a battery project bankable without a long-term contract. Grace Kankindi, Deputy Head of Investment Management at Aquila Clean Energy, joins Ed Porter to walk through how she assesses battery investments across multiple European markets. They cover: - Why the first MACSE auction worked as designed, even though prices cleared low and one bidder took most of the contracts, and what new anti-concentration rules could change in round two. - What happens to Italian battery projects that miss out on MACSE, from tolling to the capacity market, and why Italian lenders still won't back fully merchant projects. - How lenders are financing merchant batteries in Germany, with debt terms of around 3 to 7 years instead of 15 to 20, and cash sweeps to pay debt down faster. - The risk investors most often underprice, the optimiser, and why the lowest profit share isn't always the cheapest deal as German two-hour battery revenues fall. - Why timing decides returns in smaller markets like Lithuania and Finland, why Poland is next on Grace's radar, and why she thinks contracted revenue is riskier than it looks. Want to stress-test how a German battery's revenues hold up as saturation sets in? Ko, Modo Energy's AI analyst, is built for exactly these questions. Transcript available here Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:22 MACSE Auction Results and What People Got Wrong 2:38 Italy Battery Storage Investment Beyond MACSE 5:18 MACSE vs Merchant by Italian Price Zone 6:29 Battery Revenue Strategies Without a MACSE Contract 10:05 Battery Project Finance: MACSE, Tolling and Merchant 12:12 Second MACSE Auction and Anti-Concentration Rules 13:58 Merchant Battery Financing in Germany 16:14 What Lenders Want From a Merchant BESS Project 18:38 German Battery Revenue Saturation 20:27 Battery Optimiser Risk and Profit Share 23:12 Dynamic Grid Fees in Germany 25:25 Diversifying a Battery Portfolio Across 12 Markets 28:13 Lithuania and Finland Battery Storage Markets 30:13 Where to Invest Next: Poland 31:12 Best Performing Battery Assets in 10 Years 33:46 The Hidden Risk in Contracted Battery Revenue

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About

Transmission is the podcast for energy professionals navigating the global shift to a low-carbon power system. Hosted by Ed Porter, Transmission goes deep on battery storage markets, power market dynamics, and the commercial forces shaping the energy transition - with the people at the centre of it. Every week, we sit down with the CEOs, heads of trading desks, government advisors, policy architects, and leading practitioners driving change across the industry. These are practitioner conversations - focused on how markets actually work, where the real opportunities and risks lie, and what the data is telling us. We cover clean energy investing, capacity markets, balancing mechanism participation, and the evolving regulatory environment that shapes returns across geographies. Our coverage spans Great Britain, Germany, Spain, and the broader European energy transition, with regular episodes dedicated to the specific dynamics of each market. Transmission tracks the inflection points that matter: when markets shift, where capital is flowing, and what experienced operators are doing next. We also cover power markets more broadly - interconnectors, flexibility markets, grid infrastructure, and the trading strategies that sophisticated players use to extract value in increasingly complex systems. Who listens: Transmission is built for people who work in energy - analysts, investors, developers, traders, asset managers, and policy professionals at every stage of their careers. If you're entering the industry or building your understanding of how battery storage and power markets actually work, Transmission is one of the fastest ways to get up to speed - directly from the people shaping them. About Modo Energy: Transmission is produced by Modo Energy, a B2B SaaS platform that helps renewable energy companies, funds, utilities, and banks manage and value their energy assets. Specializing in batteries and provides data, analytics, and forecasting to help customers understand the financial performance of their energy assets. The Modo Energy Terminal is the one-stop shop for teams trying to understand the commercial case for grid-scale battery energy storage - bringing together trusted indices, customizable benchmarks, independent revenue forecasts, in-depth written analysis, and much more. Guided by the principles of transparency and usability, Modo Energy’s Terminal provides owners, operators, developers and financiers with a complete view of the landscape for storage - past, present, and future - so that users can make informed, bankable decisions about their assets. Hundreds of organizations rely on Modo’s tools and insights to navigate market trends, optimize investment strategies, and stay ahead of industry shifts. As the storage space continues to evolve, Modo is leading the way - helping businesses unlock the full value of their assets and make smarter decisions in a net-zero future. Follow Transmission to get new episodes every Tuesday. If you find the show valuable, leaving a rating takes 30 seconds and makes a real difference in helping other energy professionals find us.

Information

  • Creator
    Ed Porter, Modo Energy
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    464
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Transmission

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