Climate Money

Susan Su
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  • BUSINESS NEWS
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Climate Money covers the financing side of climate change -- where the money is flowing, where it isn't, and why it matters. Join us as we cover climate headlines and founders and investors involved in the business of fighting climate change. Season 2 explores a central observation: climate tech financing has reached ~$1.8 trillion annually, but the debt-to-equity ratio is roughly 15:1. This massive tilt toward debt signals sector maturation (bankable assets, proven revenue models, institutional comfort) while simultaneously exposing dangerous gaps that we'll dive into on the show.

Episodes

  1. 6D AGO

    Climate Money S2 E2: $6 trillion in Gulf capital is looking for the exit

    The Iran war is dominating oil headlines, but the sleeper story is what happens to the $6 trillion in Gulf sovereign wealth fund capital that underpins the AI boom and the energy transition. We break down the unprecedented force majeure reviews now underway across Gulf economies, what they mean for climate project finance and fund formation, and why the real disruption isn't barrels — it's balance sheets.

    19 min
  2. Climate Money S2 E1: Climate debt is the new climate money

    FEB 26

    Climate Money S2 E1: Climate debt is the new climate money

    Climate Money is back! In the Season 2 premiere, host Susan Su breaks down BloombergNEF's bombshell report: global energy transition investment hit $2.3 trillion in 2025 — a new all-time record and the fourth consecutive record year. But the real story isn't the headline number. It's what's inside it. Over half of that $2.3T — a massive $1.2 trillion — was debt. That's a 15:1 ratio of debt to equity issuance, and it tells us two things: climate tech is maturing fast enough to attract risk-averse lenders at scale, and the original cleantech 1.0 equity investors were right. Susan unpacks what $2.3 trillion actually buys (77 Manhattan Projects, 13 Marshall Plans, 85% of global military spending), why debt is the signal every VC should be watching, and the one number that keeps her up at night — a dangerous mismatch between accelerating debt markets and a shrinking equity pipeline that could bottleneck the next generation of climate innovation. This season on Climate Money, we're tracking all things debt: where the capital is flowing, where the gaps are, and what founders and lenders on both sides of the table are seeing on the ground. Topics covered: BloombergNEF Energy Transition Investment Trends 2026The 15:1 debt-to-equity pipeline ratioWhy cleantech 1.0 was rightDeutsche Bank, TotalEnergies/Google, and SkyNRG's non-recourse milestoneThe equity bottleneck and compounding mismatchPrivate capital replacing government-labeled debtRead the full analysis on Substack: climatemoney.substack.com

    16 min
  3. Climate change and the cost of food

    03/28/2024

    Climate change and the cost of food

    On today’s episode, we talk about climate change and the cost of food.  New work from researchers at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the European Central Bank is projecting that climate change will drive up food prices around the world by up to 3.2% per year by 2035.  Food will grow to take up a greater proportion of total household income because these price increases will outstrip overall climate-driven inflation. The impact will be disproportionately borne by people in sub-Saharan Africa, where many communities are already living with moderate to severe food insecurity. Today’s episode looks at exactly what these numbers mean for communities around the world, how it relates to markets, and how the actions of some larger players to mitigate food waste could contribute to a solution. Related links:  https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-023-01173-x https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-03-14/google-is-trying-to-reduce-its-food-waste-without-irritating-employees https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2021/03/global-food-waste-solutions/ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-29/rising-cocoa-prices-drive-mars-hersey-to-use-less-chocolate  https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/ag-and-food-statistics-charting-the-essentials/food-prices-and-spending/?topicId=1afac93a-444e-4e05-99f3-53217721a8be#:~:text=Average%20annual%20food%2Dat%2Dhome,is%202.5%20percent%20per%20year

    27 min
  4. Climate Money Ep. 9: The True Cost of Direct Air Capture

    03/12/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 9: The True Cost of Direct Air Capture

    Welcome to the Episode 9 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: New research that shoes Direct Air Capture won’t be able to hit the magical $100/ton cost benchmark, and why this flies in the face of everything we’ve been told  How a billion-dollar CO2 pipeline project is a secret force opposing EV adoption  The blossoming frenemy-ship between Big Oil and Big Ag And how all this underscores the wicked, systems problem of climate change As always I welcome your feedback and reflections.

    25 min
  5. Climate Money Ep. 8: The EU vs Fast Fashion

    02/28/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 8: The EU vs Fast Fashion

    Welcome to the Episode 8 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: The EU’s newly revised Extended Producer Responsibility proposal, and how it’s taking on food waste and fast fashion.  Why linear capitalism’s days could be numbered The real numbers behind the climate wealth gap and what it means for builders and investors As always I welcome your feedback and reflections.

    25 min
  6. Climate Money Ep. 7: Big Wind Faces a Big Setback. The Reasons Might Surprise You.

    02/21/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 7: Big Wind Faces a Big Setback. The Reasons Might Surprise You.

    Welcome to the Episode 7 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: Enel Energy’s $500M+ wind farm loss, and what it teaches us about energy history, tribal sovereignty, and knowing your audience  Why culture, not money, is the tide that floats all boats — or sinks them, as we’ll see This is a particularly thorny issue so we’ve dedicated the entire episode to this topic. As always I welcome your feedback and reflections.    Links and resources related to this week’s episode: Large Wind Turbine Facility in Oklahoma Ordered to be Dismantled https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/large-wind-turbine-facility-in-oklahoma-ordered-to-be-dismantled/  Enel faces huge bill to dismantle 84-turbine wind farm as US judge backs tribal nation https://www.rechargenews.com/wind/enel-faces-huge-bill-to-dismantle-84-turbine-wind-farm-as-us-judge-backs-tribal-nation/2-1-1577066  Federal Judge Sides With Osage Nation, Orders Removal Of 84 Wind Turbines https://robertbryce.substack.com/p/federal-judge-sides-with-osage-tribe (Warning: Robert Bryce’s work is controversial for its anti clean energy bias and funding from conservative think tanks, but this post presents details not available elsewhere.) Osage Nation back in court in latest bid to rid mineral estate of wind farm https://www.kosu.org/energy-environment/2023-09-20/osage-nation-back-in-court-in-latest-bid-to-rid-mineral-estate-of-wind-farm  The Real History Behind ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-real-history-behind-killers-of-the-flower-moon-180983086/  OSAGE ARE RICHEST PEOPLE.; Greatest Per Capita Wealth in World Results From Oil Deal https://www.nytimes.com/1921/06/25/archives/osage-are-richest-people-greatest-per-capita-wealth-in-world.html  OSAGE LANDS & MINERALS - 1872 to TODAY https://osagenation.s3.amazonaws.com/B/B.5.a.Lands&Minerals1872-TodayFactSheet.pdf  There's a big climate cost to failing to recognize Indigenous sovereignty https://www.corporateknights.com/leadership/big-climate-cost-of-failing-to-recognize-indigenous-rights/  Norway to pay Sámi reindeer herders millions for violating their human rights https://grist.org/global-indigenous-affairs-desk/norway-to-pay-sami-reindeer-herders-millions-for-violating-their-human-rights/  Osage Wind Farm, US — Power Technology market data https://www.power-technology.com/marketdata/osage-wind-farm-us/

    25 min
  7. Climate Money Ep. 6: The EU’s Big Hairy Climate Goal

    02/13/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 6: The EU’s Big Hairy Climate Goal

    Welcome to the Episode 6 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: The European Commission’s new recommendation to cut emissions by 90% by 2040, and what Chinese labor has to do with it The EU’s upcoming Parliamentary elections and how they could effect European Climate Money  A revised look at Kenya’s carbon credits fee and how regulation can help markets, even if they impose costs  Links and resources related to this week’s episode: European Commission calls for 90% cut in EU emissions by 2040 https://www.carbonbrief.org/qa-european-commission-calls-for-90-cut-in-eu-emissions-by-2040/  EU rebuffs European solar industry’s plea for emergency help to fight cheap China imports https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3251047/eu-rebuffs-european-solar-industrys-plea-emergency-help-fight-cheap-china-imports  A sharp right turn: A forecast for the 2024 European Parliament elections https://ecfr.eu/publication/a-sharp-right-turn-a-forecast-for-the-2024-european-parliament-elections/  European Union Greenhouse Gas Emissions 1990 - 2024 https://www.macrotrends.net/countries/EUU/european-union/ghg-greenhouse-gas-emissions  A Dark Spot for the Solar Energy Industry: Forced Labor in Xinjiang https://www.csis.org/analysis/dark-spot-solar-energy-industry-forced-labor-xinjiang  The Powering Past Coal Alliance https://poweringpastcoal.org/  ‘They’re drowning us in regulations’: how Europe’s furious farmers took on Brussels and won https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/10/theyre-drowning-us-in-regulations-how-europes-furious-farmers-took-on-brussels-and-won  China’s Carbon Emissions Are Set to Decline Years Earlier Than Expected https://kanebridgenews.com/chinas-carbon-emissions-are-set-to-decline-years-earlier-than-expected/

    24 min
  8. Climate Money Ep. 5: On Climate Deniers & Climate Money

    02/06/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 5: On Climate Deniers & Climate Money

    Welcome to the Episode 5 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: New research that sheds light on climate deniers, the mental models that do — and don’t — fuel their skepticism, and what it has to do with climate money, especially as more climate companies and jobs are flooding otherwise climate unfriendly red states in the US Two important food labeling updates and what they mean for our transition to a cleaner, lower carbon, and lower cruelty food system.  Links and graphics referenced in this episode: Global Warming's Six Americas — Yale Program on Climate Change Communication A representative survey experiment of motivated climate change denial — Nature Climate Change Fatwa on Cultivated Meat — Islamic Religious Council of Singapore

    23 min
  9. Climate Money Ep. 4: AI’s climate footprint, nuclear's renaissance and the new climate subsidy wars

    01/30/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 4: AI’s climate footprint, nuclear's renaissance and the new climate subsidy wars

    Welcome to the Episode 4 of the Climate Money Podcast.  In this episode, we look at: Five big takeaways from the IEA’s newly released 170-pg Electricity 2024 report, including the structural success of renewables, where the biggest emissions reductions are happening, and nuclear’s big moment AI’s climate footprint and who’s poised to profit. Private equity firm and landlord of the nation Blackstone just shared Q4 earnings, buoyed by the stellar performance of its data center holdings where value has grown 250% in just two years. But what’s the climate cost of all this new compute power, what role do renewables play, and how else might technology help?  The new climate subsidy wars, and what Europe getting in the game means for the global climate technology ‘space race’

    18 min
  10. Climate Money Ep. 3: The narrative miss on $200B in climate losses + deep dive on Tesla’s Hertz problem with mobility expert Olaf Sakkers

    01/23/2024

    Climate Money Ep. 3: The narrative miss on $200B in climate losses + deep dive on Tesla’s Hertz problem with mobility expert Olaf Sakkers

    Welcome to the Episode 3 of the Climate Money Podcast. Follow the climate headlines — and the climate money — with me, Susan Su.  In this episode, we look at: $200B in climate losses and the climate narrative problem. New data out from global reinsurer Munich RE shows that 2023 was the biggest year on record for climate-related losses. So why are we still talking about the “weather?” Tesla’s Hertz problem, Ford’s Lightning layoffs, and why China is exporting millions of combustion vehicles even as it becomes the biggest market in the world for EVs. We’re joined by special guest and mobility expert Olaf Sakkers, of RedBlue Capital, to learn more about what’s really behind all the bad news for EVs, and why there’s still reason to be bullish on an electric future

    25 min
  11. Climate Money Ep.2: Kenya's Carbon Cash Cow, Solyndra 2.0 and Yikes, JBS

    01/16/2024

    Climate Money Ep.2: Kenya's Carbon Cash Cow, Solyndra 2.0 and Yikes, JBS

    Welcome to the Episode 2 of the Climate Money Podcast. Follow the climate headlines — and the climate money — with me, Susan Su. In this episode, we look at: Kenya’s carbon cash cow, a plan to charge a new 15%-25% take rate on all carbon credits minted in the country, and whether this is good, bad or meh for Kenya’s climate ambitions and for global carbon markets Solyndra 2.0, a fraud-hunt that’s animating Republicans and threatening the $400B DOE Loan Program Office that is or will be key to many climate companies’ deployment success Yikes, JBS. The world’s largest meat processor and Amazon deforester extraordinaire might get blocked from the NYSE, on climate grounds; why it matters Italy and France are set to ban cell based agriculture — and why this is a warning for every climate company that regulatory capture might be worse than climate denial

    26 min

  12. 01/09/2024

    Climate Money Ep.1: A new $30B climate fund on the block, India’s solar and wind story and more

    Welcome to the Episode 1 of the Climate Money Podcast. Follow the climate headlines — and the climate money — with me, Susan Su. One of the central ideas behind my work as a climate investor, and that of many others like me, is that solving climate change is the value creation opportunity of a lifetime. In this episode, we look at: - The UAE's new $30B climate fund and what it means for climate investing - A big development for carbon sequestration in... Louisiana? - India's solar and wind story, the good the bad and the tricky - First Solar's $700M revenue bump from tax credits courtesy of the IRA

    21 min
  • 12 Episodes

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About

Climate Money covers the financing side of climate change -- where the money is flowing, where it isn't, and why it matters. Join us as we cover climate headlines and founders and investors involved in the business of fighting climate change. Season 2 explores a central observation: climate tech financing has reached ~$1.8 trillion annually, but the debt-to-equity ratio is roughly 15:1. This massive tilt toward debt signals sector maturation (bankable assets, proven revenue models, institutional comfort) while simultaneously exposing dangerous gaps that we'll dive into on the show.

Information

  • Creator
    Susan Su
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Susan Su
  • Show Website
    Climate Money