Why Shell Is Pouring Billions Into Batteries, Microgrids, EVs and Electrification

Global energy giants have been on a distributed energy acquisition spree over the last few years. With the formation of its New Energies unit in 2016, Shell is leading the oil & gas majors in investment and vision. Shell New Energies plans to invest $2 billion dollars in renewables, microgrids, batteries, electric vehicle charging, and other emerging tech every year. That number is just a tiny sliver of Shell’s fossil fuel and chemical businesses, but it’s enough money to start re-arranging the competitive landscape for clean electrification.  Most recently, the company acquired sonnen, a leading behind-the-meter battery company, and First Utility, a UK retail supplier and smart home service provider. Shell is developing smart home offerings through both companies. This week, Brian Davis, the VP of energy solutions at Shell, joins us to discuss the company’s strategy. His job: to help reshape the strategy of Shell and build up new businesses around biofuels and electrification. What does the New Energies strategy tell us about where Shell thinks the world is headed? We’ll cover the following topics:Shell’s acquisitions over the past two years: why those companies? How do we fit those puzzle pieces together?To what degree do they optimize for near-term profit vs. land-grabs in key areas?How will shell integrate all these businesses, both strategically and culturally?What are the biggest risks to Shell's strategy? What's the long-term profitability of the new energies business? How does it become more profitable?Will all supermajors eventually follow in Shell's footsteps?The most recent acquisition of First Utility provides snapshot of Shell’s customer strategy:  “We’re offering a suite of smart home solutions, starting from smart thermostats that control your heating remotely. And then clearly over time we can offer an electric vehicle charger…we can come in and offer the benefits of energy storage if you have onsite solar. So we’re offering all of that as packages to meet the needs of our customers under the Shell brand in the UK,” says Davis. Recommended reading/listening:Reuters: Shell Goes Green as It Rebrands UK Household Power SupplierGTM: Shell New Energies Director on Investing in Clean Energy: ‘It’s About Survival’The Interchange: Solar Dwarfs Oil and Gas as World’s Primary Source of Energy in Shell’s Sky Scenario Support for this podcast comes from PG&E. Did you know that 20 percent of EV drivers in the U.S. are in PG&E’s service area in Northern California? PG&E is helping to electrify corporate fleet vehicles. Get in touch with PG&E’s EV specialists to find out how you can take your transportation fleet electric. We're also sponsored by Wunder Capital. Wunder Capital is the leading commercial solar financing company in the United States. Click here to find out how Wunder Capital can help you finance your next commercial solar project. Subscribe to The Interchange podcast via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify or wherever you find your audio content. Or integrate our RSS feed into the app of your choice.

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Clean tech, green finance and energy innovation are the three lanes on the road to a successful global energy transition. At the intersection of these lanes is a place where ideas on finance, technology and policy are shared and debated. That intersection is Interchange Recharged.  Sylvia Leyva Martinez, principal analyst at Wood Mackenzie, invites visionaries, entrepreneurs, policy-makers and energy analysts to explore the newest developments in renewable technology, explain the ideas on global energy policy that could accelerate the energy transition, and identify new funding and financial models that could solve the biggest challenges we face on the way to net zero.  Sylvia and her guests bring you data and forecasts on clean technology, climate science, and offer predictions on the build out of utility-scale projects and the future of green finance. What impacts do the annual UN Conference of the Parties have on decarbonisation goals and climate change? What will COP30 bring? What’s happening in global EV adoption and development? What’s the forecast for solar energy, one of the major success stories of renewable energy in the last ten years? What does the data tell us about the future of hydrogen, of nuclear, or of low-carbon power?  These are examples of the insights and detailed analyses you can expect bi-weekly on Tuesdays at 7am ET.  If you like The Energy Transition Show, Catalyst with Shayle Kann, The Big Switch from Columbia University, Open Circuit with Stephen Lacey or The Green Blueprint, you’ll enjoy Interchange Recharged.  Want to get involved with the show? Reach out to podcasts@woodmac.com to: Bring Sylvia and Interchange Recharged to your event Be a guest on the show  Sponsor an episode Ask a question to Sylvia or one of our guests  Check out another leading clean tech global podcast by Wood Mackenzie, Energy Gang, at woodmac.com/podcasts/the-energy-gang Wood Mackenzie is the leading global data and analytics solutions provider for renewables, energy and natural resources. Learn more about Wood Mackenzie on the official website: https://www.woodmac.com/