Columbia Energy Exchange

Recent Episodes

1. Tom Moerenhout and Tomasz Nadrowski on Fixing the Mineral Supply Chain

   Jul 21, 2026

   Tom Moerenhout, a professor at Columbia University and lead of the Critical Minerals Initiative at the Center on Global Energy Policy, and Tomasz Nadrowski, co-founder and portfolio manager at Amvest Teraden with 25 years of mining investment experience and author of "Mineral War," discuss China's dominance in critical mineral supply chains and strategies to build resilient Western alternatives. The conversation explores why private capital has underinvested in critical minerals despite their strategic importance, examines financial models that could accelerate domestic supply chain development, and analyzes how China weaponized its mineral monopoly as a geopolitical tool. The speakers argue that governments must address demand-side certainty, understand specific capital constraints across supply chain stages and jurisdictions, and implement comprehensive industrial policy rather than applying blunt investment instruments.

2. Suzanne Maloney on Whether Perpetual Conflict is New Normal for the Gulf

   Jul 14, 2026

   Suzanne Maloney, Vice President and Director of the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, discusses the collapse of the US-Iran ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The conversation covers the current state of the Strait following the breakdown of the memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran, Iran's nuclear capabilities, energy market implications, and the broader geopolitical consequences for the Gulf region, including impacts on Israel, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia.

3. Iran Conflict Brief: How Renewed Strikes Impact Global Energy

   Jul 10, 2026

   Daniel Sternoff hosts experts Anne Sophie Corbeau and Karen Young from the Center on Global Energy Policy to analyze the escalating Iran-US conflict and its implications for global energy markets. The discussion covers Iran's strategic motivations for attacking shipping in the Strait of Hormuz despite the recently signed MOU, the fracturing responses within the GCC states, and the precarious situation facing Qatar's LNG exports. The conversation examines how oil markets have absorbed recent shocks through inventory drawdowns and alternative routing, while gas markets face acute vulnerability due to lack of storage and mandatory Strait transit, with long-term consequences for energy demand expectations.

4. Alice Yake on Planning for a Reliable, Cleaner Grid

   Jul 7, 2026

   Alice Yake, Vice President of Grids at Breakthrough Energy, discusses the challenges of planning reliable and clean electrical grids in an era of rising demand, renewable energy integration, and aging infrastructure. Drawing on 14 years at Xcel Energy as Chief Planning Officer and earlier roles at Occidental Petroleum and Enron, Yake explains why grid planning requires coordination across generation, transmission, and distribution—and why open source modeling tools are essential to accelerating infrastructure decisions and reducing regulatory delays.

5. Doug Arent and Robin Millican on What's Really Driving Electricity Prices

   Jun 30, 2026

   Doug Arent (Global Fellow, Center on Global Energy Policy; Emeritus Executive Director, Foundation for National Laboratory of the Rockies) and Robin Millican (Director of Research Programs, Center on Global Energy Policy; formerly Head of Strategic Initiatives at Breakthrough Energy) discuss new research on the structural drivers of rising U.S. electricity prices. While AI and data centers dominate headlines, the research identifies multiple regional factors—including fuel price volatility, aged infrastructure requiring upgrades, extreme weather costs, and equipment inflation—as primary price drivers. The conversation examines how load growth can either lower or raise electricity costs depending on grid capacity, explores data center integration challenges, and outlines near-, medium-, and long-term policy solutions including grid optimization, utility incentive reform, cost allocation mechanisms, and transmission expansion.

6. Michael Cembalest Does the Math on the Energy Transition

   Jun 23, 2026

   Michael Cembalest, Chairman of Market and Investment Strategy at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, discusses his 2025 annual energy report, which takes a forensic look at the state of the global energy transition. The conversation examines contested claims in energy policy—from the primary energy fallacy and the true cost of solar-plus-storage to data center power demand, small modular reactors, and the impact of geopolitical shocks like the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Cembalest argues that despite widespread optimism, renewables are growing at only ~1% annually as a share of final energy consumption in leading transition economies, indicating a linear rather than exponential transition that will take decades to complete.

7. Jake Sullivan and Jon Finer on the US-Iran Deal, Hormuz Realities, and Iran's Nuclear Future

   Jun 18, 2026

   Jake Sullivan (former National Security Advisor) and Jon Finer (former Deputy National Security Advisor) discuss the US-Iran ceasefire memorandum of understanding, which reopens the Strait of Hormuz and pauses hostilities for 60 days. They analyze the geopolitical implications, energy market resilience during the crisis, and the strategic miscalculations that led to the conflict. The conversation covers Iran's negotiating leverage, Israel's role as a spoiler, and the broader competition with China over clean energy technology and supply chains.

8. Iran Conflict Brief: The US-Iran Deal and a New Phase of Accommodation

   Jun 16, 2026

   Daniel Sternoff hosts three experts from Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy to analyze a rapidly developing memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the US and Iran to end a 109-day conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz. The discussion covers the fragility of the ceasefire, Iran's newfound control and monetization of the critical shipping chokepoint, implications for global energy markets (oil, LNG, gas), regional security architecture shifts, and whether Iran has been genuinely degraded or has emerged strategically strengthened despite military setbacks.

9. Jessica Uhl on the Fractured Energy Transition: Why Speed Matters Now

   Jun 9, 2026

   Jessica Yule, a senior advisor at the 3 Cans Group and former CFO of Shell and president of GE Vernova, discusses the major obstacles slowing the global energy transition. She examines how policy volatility, cost barriers, technical challenges, and competing priorities—including surging electricity demand from AI and data centers—are fracturing momentum toward clean energy. Yule argues that achieving an abundant, affordable, and sustainable energy system requires coordinated action across producers, utilities, and policymakers, and emphasizes that emissions reductions must remain the ultimate measure of success.

10. Ashley Finan and Amy Roma on Speed, Safety, and Reforming Nuclear Energy

    Jun 2, 2026

    Ashley Finan (Jay and Jill Bernstein Fellow at Columbia's Center on Global Energy Policy, former Idaho National Lab senior leader) and Amy Roma (partner at law firm Oric, non-resident senior fellow at Atlantic Council) discuss the resurgence of nuclear energy in U.S. energy policy driven by AI-driven electricity demand, geopolitical security concerns, and climate goals. They examine NRC regulatory reforms under the Trump administration aimed at accelerating licensing timelines to 18 months, explain how advanced reactor designs and existing plant uprates offer near-term deployment paths, and address concerns about balancing speed with safety and regulatory credibility.