This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Ben Wilson, President of National Grid Ventures. He joins Dan Monzani, our Managing Director for UK & Ireland, to explore how infrastructure, interconnectors and electrification are shaping the future of the UK and global energy systems.

Ben sits on the Executive Committee of National Grid and was appointed President of NGV in August 2024. NGV is the group’s competitive arm, operating a diverse portfolio of low-carbon and renewable energy businesses across the UK, Europe and the US, including interconnectors, battery storage, LNG and clean power generation.

Main topics include the following:

• The future of interconnectors and hybrid offshore grids in building a more integrated European energy system
• The impact of electrification, AI, and economic growth on rising electricity demand
• The role of hydrogen in decarbonising emissions-intensive industries and enhancing system flexibility

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Robert Brook, SVP and Managing Director of the Americas at Neara. He joins our Managing Director for North America, Oliver Kerr, to discuss the evolving state of grid infrastructure in the US and the technologies poised to transform it.

Robert brings over 30 years of experience across the energy and information technology sectors. A recognised expert in infrastructure, asset management and risk mitigation, he has held leadership roles at PG&E, Esri, and Hecatic Labs. At Neara, he now works at the forefront of digital grid modelling and utility planning.

Main topics include the following:

• The growing challenges posed by aging grid infrastructure and increasing electricity demand
• The role of grid-enhancing technologies, such as dynamic line ratings, in maximizing existing system capacity
• Climate resilience, wildfire mitigation, and the shift toward localised generation and smarter grid operations

In this episode, we explore how the explosive growth of AI is driving a rapid expansion of data centres, and how this surge is reshaping power systems and energy infrastructure around the world. Richard Howard, Aurora’s Global Research Director, is joined by Malavika Gode, Senior Associate in our UK Advisory team, to unpack the energy implications of this accelerating global trend and what it means for the future of electricity systems.

Main topics include:

• The projected surge in power demand from data centres globally, and what’s driving it
• Key factors influencing where data centres are being built and how location decisions intersect with grid challenges
• How data centres are sourcing power today and what needs to happen for their growth to be sustainable

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Harrison Moore, Head of Energy and Renewables at Azure Capital. He joins our Head of Australia, Weije Mak and Laura Perez del Olmo, Advisory Associate in our Sydney office to discuss the investment landscape in Australia for power and renewable assets.

Harrison has over 15 years of experience in corporate advisory, working across a wide variety of engagements, including M&A and capital raisings, in particular within the energy, infrastructure and natural resources sectors. He has extensive utility-scale Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) experience, involving assets across all stages of development.

Main topics include the following:

• The current investment landscape in Australia and the technologies attracting the most investor interest
• The impact of government tenders on financing assets in Australia
• Global uncertainty around the Green Energy Transition and what it means for Australia

To delve deeper into the investment landscape in Australia, reach out to our Aurora experts here: Australia | Aurora Energy Research

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Rosheen McGuckian, CEO, NTR. She joins our Head of Research for Western Europe & India, Marc Hedin, and Steph Unsworth, Research Senior Associate in our Oxford office, to discuss the consequences of grid constraints in European countries.

Rosheen serves as the Chief Executive Officer of NTR, a leading investor and asset manager in Europe’s transition to clean energy. With over 25 years of experience and more than 3 GW of clean power investments, NTR’s expert interdisciplinary team now oversees 1.4 GW of clean energy and storage assets across seven European markets, operating on behalf of three investment funds.

Main topics include the following:

• Impact on Internal Rate of Return (IRR), debt sizing, and project viability in project risk management
• Battery deployment as a potential solution in countries with weak grid infrastructure
• Characteristics of a bankable renewables project with unremunerated constraints in 2030 in Europe

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Jürgen Mayerhofer, CEO & Co-Founder of enspired. He joins our Managing Director for Iberia & LATAM, Ana Barillas, to discuss battery optimisation.

Jürgen holds an MBA in energy management and has worked in the energy sector for 20 years, contributing to the expansion of renewables in the grid in various expert positions. Under his leadership, enspired has evolved from a small-scale startup into a trusted institution with dozens of in-house specialists for AI trading services in Europe’s short-term power markets.

Main topics include the following:

• How are battery optimisation and battery trading different?
• What does it take to unlock dependable revenues and finance for storage at scale?
• What challenges does co-location bring to the optimisation of a battery and what strategies can be pursued to overcome them?

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Matt Grover, Director of Energy Markets at Fluence in Australia. He joins our Managing Director for APAC, Hugo Batten, and our Head of Research in APAC, James Ha, to discuss battery dispatch and economics.

At Fluence in Australia, Matt leads the team responsible for the company’s Mosaic software product, which supports dozens of renewable generators and Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) assets in trading on the Australian National Electricity Market (NEM). Prior to joining Fluence, Matt held roles at AMS, EnelX, and EnerNOC. He brings over a decade of experience in Australia's NEM market operations.

Main topics include the following:

• Key features of NEM’s market design and generation mix, and future changes at a system level
• The role of battery dispatch software in overall business cases
• Battery economics including merchant dispatch, offtake contracts, and virtual tolls

This week on Energy Unplugged, we’re delighted to welcome Mallika Ishwaran, Chief Economist, Shell. She joins our Managing Director for APAC, Hugo Batten, and our Global Research Director, Richard Howard, to discuss Shell’s 2025 Energy Security Scenarios.

As Shell’s Chief Economist, Mallika advises on macroeconomic issues, economic trends, and related policy matters, shaping Shell’s long-term scenario outlooks. Prior to joining Shell, she had a distinguished career in the UK government, holding several senior roles, including Head of Policy Analysis at the Cabinet Office for the 2009 G20 London Summit.

Main topics include the following:

• Impact of AI and rising energy demand in the models and scenarios
• The role of gas in the energy transition, and the biggest levers to bend the emissions curve down
• The best use of long-term energy models in the development of reports