Energy Technology: Industry Insights

GlobalData Energy

Energy Technology delivers strategic, actionable insights for energy industry professionals across the value chain. Each week, we dive into the forces shaping power, oil and gas and mining – from market forecasts and policy updates to technology breakthroughs and supply chain intelligence – bringing together expert voices and data-driven analysis, powered by GlobalData’s business intelligence platform. This podcast builds on reporting from GlobalData’s energy titles: Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology.

  1. 23h ago

    Underground LDES: turning mines and caverns into energy storage 

    As intermittent renewables expand, so does the demand for long duration energy storage (LDES). However, different geologies and applications require tailored solutions, and increasingly developers are looking to the subterranean. Underground storage bypasses some limitations of traditional electrochemical batteries, including degradation, thermal runway and supply chain constraints. However, compressed air energy storage (CAES) and underground gravity energy storage (UGES) bring their own techno-economic challenges. In this episode, we speak to two underground energy storage providers to understand how the sector is taking shape on (and under) the ground. CEO of Storelectric Tallat Azad addresses CAES, while founder and CEO of Green Gravity Mark Swinnerton unpacks the technicalities of UGES. We also hear from Edward Barbour, associate professor of energy systems and storage at the University of Birmingham, about the broader landscape. Eve Thomas, associate editor of GlobalData’s energy titles, is the host and producer of this episode.  Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.   (00:00) Intro (01:46) How CAES and UGES work (02:22) Comparing underground technologies (03:36) How Storelectric uses CAES (04:34) Geology for CAES (05:24) How Green Gravity uses UGES (06:19) Abandoned mines for UGES (07:13) CAES bottlenecks (08:24) UGES bottlenecks (09:17) Relative advantages of CAES (09:49) Relative advantages of UGES (10:48) CAES energy storage capacity (12:00) UGES energy storage capacity (13:29) Grid impact (14:37) Underground innovation (15:19) Outro

    Underground LDES: turning mines and caverns into energy storage 

  2. Aug 4

    Lessons from the Iran War: China’s oil buffer and energy resilience, tested

    The 2026 Iran war and subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz was yet another harsh wake-up call to the entire world – after the pandemic, the Russian invasion of Ukraine and trade wars – about the dangers of foreign reliance for energy supplies. Yet, throughout the height of the crisis, China, the world's largest crude oil importer appeared relatively immune to the blow. Has the Asian powerhouse truly reached a level of energy resilience unmatched, or were the cracks inevitably about to show like the rest of the world? In this episode, we’re breaking down China’s management of recent oil flow disruptions and its march toward energy independence. Joining us to share their insights are Rory Green, head of emerging markets research at TS Lombard (TSL) and author of TSL’s recent report ‘Is China immune to energy shocks?’, and Dr Erica Downs, senior research scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, specialising in Chinese energy markets and geopolitics.  ⁠Jackie Park⁠⁠⁠⁠, editor-in-chief of GlobalData's energy titles, is the host and producer of this episode. Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on ⁠⁠⁠⁠Offshore Technology⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠Power Technology⁠⁠⁠⁠ and Mining Technology⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters. (00:00) Intro (01:15) China's resilience to energy shock (05:34) Remaining risks to resilience (06:36) China’s stockpiles: how effective? (07:57) Absorbing shock to causing shock (09:10) China’s response to a prolonged closure of the strait (11:03) Russia: a buffer or another vulnerability? (14:18) Lessons from the war Resources from this episode: Find Rory Green’s report ‘Is China immune to energy shocks?’ and more economic analysis on Chinese markets by subscribing to the GlobalData TS Lombard Portal.  You can also find Rory’s report and more oil and gas industry insights on GlobalData’s Intelligence platform.

    Lessons from the Iran War: China’s oil buffer and energy resilience, tested

  3. Jul 28

    Cyber espionage in mining: how big is the threat?

    Cyber espionage represents a silent but prolific threat for mining operators. In an era of increasing digitalisation, the mining industry has more attack surfaces than ever before. As the race for transition minerals heats up, the sector also has more security-critical information, including geological surveys and M&A planning.   As a result, cyber espionage is rife – most states are both perpetrators and victims. Yet, the clandestine nature of the threat makes it near-impossible to quantify.   In this episode, we speak to William Akoto, professor of foreign policy and global security at American University, and Nilesh Raghoo, associate analyst at GlobalData, to understand the scale and shape of the threat, the technologies that make operators vulnerable and those being used in cyber defence.  Eve Thomas, associate editor of GlobalData’s energy titles, is the host and producer of this episode.  Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.   (00:00) Intro  (01:56) What is cyber espionage?  (02:26) The Night Dragon campaign example  (03:03) Mining operators hold valuable data  (04:41) Attack surfaces in mining technology  (05:21) How operators are reacting  (06:10) Rio Tinto example  (06:36) Who are the perpetrators?   (07:31) Norge Mining example  (07:55) Is cyber espionage illegal?  (09:42) Recorded Future report  (10:02) The scale of the threat  (11:46) AI and quantum computing: a changing landscape

    Cyber espionage in mining: how big is the threat?

  4. Jul 14

    Automation and AI in biofuel refining: Q&A with Honeywell

    Biofuel demand is growing, driven by decarbonisation strategies across hard-to-abate sectors. However, scaling up production presents challenges; feedstock variations are unavoidable, and conventional refineries aren’t built for the chemical diversity of waste inputs, nor the contaminants. In this episode, we speak to Lewis Sweet, general manager for sustainable fuels and chemicals at Honeywell Process Automation, to understand how automation and AI are preparing the biofuel refinery space for a future of increasing demand. We consider the current capabilities of automation and AI, alongside the likely future trajectory, and ask how technology can tackle the challenges of inconsistency, both in feedstock supply and content. Eve Thomas, editor of Offshore Technology, is the host and producer of this episode. Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.  (00:00) Intro (01:21) Automation use in biofuel refining (02:15) AI conversations in biofuel (03:36) Integrating AI in biofuel automation (04:54) Automation and AI in supporting biofuel production (07:36) Embedding supportive technologies (09:42) What AI insights offer industry (10:51) Feedstock composition as a pain point (11:32) Will technology help to manage feedstock variables? (13:33) Where to begin (14:23) Outro

    Automation and AI in biofuel refining: Q&A with Honeywell

  5. Jul 7

    Energy transition investment trends: where’s the money flowing?

    For years, the narrative has been all about the unstoppable clean energy expansion, but recent policy reversals, geopolitical shifts and supply chain bottlenecks have made the trend not so straightforward anymore. In this episode, we look under the hood of the global energy transition and map out where the money is actually flowing. We review overall investment trends, break down the picture for different technologies, and look over the horizon to see how the investment landscape will shift for the back half of this decade. Joining us to unpack the data is Alex Phillips, GlobalData energy transition analyst and author of GlobalData’s 2026 Energy Transition Investment Trends report. ⁠Jackie Park⁠⁠⁠, editor-in-chief of GlobalData's energy titles, is the host and producer of this episode. Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on ⁠⁠⁠Mining Technology⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Offshore Technology⁠⁠⁠  and ⁠⁠⁠Power Technology⁠⁠⁠ , all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.  (00:00) Intro (00:45) Overview: transition tech investment trends (03:51) Renewables investment (05:55) Nuclear investment (07:16) Biopower and geothermal investment (08:41) Hydrogen investment (10:12) Cost of capital (11:28) Investment trends to 2030 Resources from this episode: Power Technology's grid investment trends analysis: ⁠Renewable investment enters a new phase as grids become the limiting factor⁠GlobalData’s ⁠2026 Energy Transition Investment Trends⁠ report

    Energy transition investment trends: where’s the money flowing?

  6. Jun 30

    Can Brazil become a key rare earth supplier for the West? 

    As governments seek to diversify critical mineral supplychains beyond China, Brazil is emerging as one of the world's most promising new sources of rare earth elements. The country holds the world's second-largest rare earth resource base and is advancing a new generation of projects, which could provide lower-impact production of the magnet rare earths needed for EVs, offshore wind turbines and defence technologies.  But geology alone is not enough. Building a globallycompetitive rare earth industry will require investment, permitting, downstream processing and international partnerships.  We speak with Rafael Moreno, CEO of Viridis Mining & Minerals, Elizabeth Johnson, Managing Director of Brazil Research at TS Lombard, and GlobalData analyst Sai Dheeraj about Brazil's rare earth ambitions, the implications of the recent G7 critical minerals declaration, and whether projects such as Colossus can help reshape global supply chains.  Alejandro Gonzalez, editor of Mining Technology and MINEmagazine, is the host of this episode of Energy Technology: Industry Insights.   Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on Power Technology, Offshore Technology and MiningTechnology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.  (00:01) Intro  (01:30) Why Brazil? Why now?  (04:00) The race against time  (05:35) Where is the bottleneck?  (08:35) Can Brazil build a complete rare earthindustry?  (10:45) The G7 opportunity

    Can Brazil become a key rare earth supplier for the West? 

  7. Jun 23

    Venezuela post-Maduro: will oil majors invest again?

    January brought massive change for Venezuela. After almost 13 years, Nicolás Maduro was removed from power and, within the month, the path was being laid for a revival of the country’s oil sector.  The opportunity is huge. Venezuela is home to the world’s largest proven oil reserves and, throughout the late 1990s and early 2000s, it produced over three million barrels per day. However, financial mismanagement and corruption pushed the country into economic collapse, and regulations around joint venture stakes drove many international operators out.   The amendment to the Organic Hydrocarbon Law in January 2026 could change things for the better, but investors are cautious. So, as Venezuela adjusts to what the future looks like post-Maduro, will oil majors return?  This episode includes insights from Eugenia Perozo, editor of Investment Monitor.   Eve Thomas, editor of Offshore Technology, is the host and producer of this episode of Energy Technology: Industry Insights.    Find more news and strategic insights into all things energy on Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters.     (00:00) Introduction  (00:34) Historical backdrop  (02:28) Venezuela’s oil resources  (04:15) Economic collapse  (05:47) The Organic Hydrocarbon Law  (07:54) Companies’ assessments  (08:27) Current infrastructure  (09:21) Why the change is now  (10:21) General licenses  (11:14) US sanctions  (12:24) Executive Order 14373  (13:05) What would it take for firms to return?  (14:18) Outro

    Venezuela post-Maduro: will oil majors invest again?

  8. Jun 16

    The future of bioleaching in mining

    Bioleaching has been part of the mining industry fordecades, using naturally occurring microorganisms to extract metals from ores and concentrates. Yet as demand for copper, critical minerals and strategic resources grows, the technology is attracting renewed attention. Declining ore grades, rising environmental pressures andvast quantities of historical mine waste are forcing mining companies to rethink how resources are extracted and processed. Advocates argue that bioleaching could help unlock value from lower-grade deposits, tailings andcomplex mineral systems while reducing reliance on more energy-intensive processing routes. We speak with Priit Joers, Chief Scientific Officer at BiotaTec, BacTech CEO Ross Orr and ekolive founder Darina Štyriaková about the state of the bioleaching sector, the challenges of commercial deployment, the opportunities emerging in mine waste recovery, and what the future may hold for microbial mineral processing. Alejandro Gonzalez, editor of Mining Technology and MINEmagazine, is the host of this episode of Energy Technology: Industry Insights. Find more news and strategic insights into all things energyon Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology, all free to access. For quick daily updates, make sure to subscribe to our newsletters. (00:00) Intro (01:35) Bioleaching: how it works (05:05) Industrial adoption (07:10) Downstream and tailings (11:20) What's next?

    The future of bioleaching in mining
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About

Energy Technology delivers strategic, actionable insights for energy industry professionals across the value chain. Each week, we dive into the forces shaping power, oil and gas and mining – from market forecasts and policy updates to technology breakthroughs and supply chain intelligence – bringing together expert voices and data-driven analysis, powered by GlobalData’s business intelligence platform. This podcast builds on reporting from GlobalData’s energy titles: Power Technology, Offshore Technology and Mining Technology.

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