A Weekly Podcast

Power Plays

The tech, finance, and politics
powering the energy transition.

Unpacking the energy transition—what happened, why it matters, and what you need to know.

Each week, Dr. Charlotte Kirk and Lucy Shaw bring deep industry insights and unique insider knowledge to the biggest stories shaping energy markets, climate technology, and transition policy.

From geopolitics and grid modernisation to critical minerals and clean firm power—no topic is off limits.

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20

From heatwaves to hidden capacity: How extreme heat Is reshaping the electricity grid

Recorded 12th July. This week we explore how extreme heat is reshaping electricity systems around the world, and why one of the biggest opportunities is improving how we use the infrastructure we…

Jul 14, 2026 · 49 min
19

Can AI heat your home instead of overloading the grid?

Recorded 30 June – We explore how engineering, software and market design are reshaping AI infrastructure and electricity systems. Charlotte examines three stories linked by a common theme: making…

Jul 3, 2026 · 46 min
18

Will Burnham be good for UK energy policy? And how a US rule change could unlock distributed energy

Recorded 21st June. Lucy joins from a sweltering London, while Charlotte records from Lake Tahoe after racing the Broken Arrow Skyrace with The North Face team. We cover three stories spanning UK…

Jun 22, 2026 · 47 min
17

Part 2: Should the state intervene more in energy?

Recorded 14th June - Part 2: This episode was so packed that we’re releasing it in two parts, so we don’t have to cut any of the good bits. Here in Part 2, Lucy picks up the theme of state…

Jun 18, 2026 · 37 min
16

Part 1: The Supply Chains Behind Nuclear Growth - From Critical Minerals Recovery to Uranium Enrichment, plus Energy Storage updates

Recorded 14th June: Charlotte and Lucy are both in the US this week - Charlotte in San Francisco and Lucy in Boston. This episode was so packed that we’re releasing it in two parts, so we don’t have…

Jun 18, 2026 · 32 min
15

Nyobolt's ultra-fast charging batteries, Antora's giant thermal battery, and Trump's attempted coal revival

Recorded 7th June. In this episode, we catch up after Charlotte’s set the record for the Fastest Known Time running the Camino de Santiago, and Lucy being elected as a local councillor. We then dive…

Jun 10, 2026 · 49 min
14

Trump's trip to China on rare earths, electricity market reforms in the US, and the evolving Chinese EV market

This week on Power Plays (recorded May 13th, 2026), we are joined by a guest co-host, Henry Sanderson, while Charlotte completes an epic run in Spain. Henry is the author of Volt Rush, former…

May 14, 2026 · 43 min
13

The Renewable Grid (DERs, VPPs, and the Grid Edge), plus the UK’s Cost Reduction Policies

Recorded 2nd May 2026: This week we explore the forces reshaping distribution level power systems, the UK's new energy policy announcements, and the progress of fossil fuel phase-out after a historic…

May 3, 2026 · 43 min
12

Heavy Industry and the Energy Transition: From Mining inputs and Coal, to Green Iron and Steel projects

Recorded 18th April 2026: This week we explore the forces reshaping heavy industry in the energy transition — from the role of of coal in global power systems to the rapidly evolving race to build…

Apr 26, 2026 · 37 min
11

Batteries: Peak Energy’s Sodium-Ion Commercialisation, Zenobē’s Electric Trucking Play, and Ascend Elements’ Recycling Bankruptcy

Recorded Sunday 12th April. we look at three forces reshaping the battery industry: Sodium-ion as a new chemistry moving toward commercialization, a new infrastructure model enabling heavy transport…

Apr 15, 2026 · 42 min
10

Decarbonising Iron & Steel alongside Low-Carbon Cement, US Offshore Wind Cancellations, and UK turbine manufacturing rejections

Recorded Sunday 29th March. Two very different stories highlight the complexity of the energy transition - from industrial decarbonisation in steel and cement to the increasingly political battle…

Apr 2, 2026 · 40 min
09

Power Plays Live at Octopus HQ: Over-hyped, Under-hyped or Hyped-just right

Live from Octopus Energy HQ: Over-hyped, Under-hyped, or Hyped-Just-Right? Introducing the origin story of Power Plays and celebrating with a live audience event hosted by Octopus Energy in London…

Mar 27, 2026 · 38 min
08

Secondary Energy Commodities: Refined Fuels, Fertilizers, Helium, and Sulphur, and the UK’s Energy Resilience Response

Recorded Sunday 15th March – In this episode we examine how the escalating Middle East conflict is moving beyond oil and gas headlines into the wider industrial systems that underpin the global…

Mar 20, 2026 · 50 min
07

Energy Geopolitics: Global Market & Regional Trade Exposures, Foreign Exchange Pressures, and Crisis-Driven Electrification

Recorded Sunday 8th March – In this episode we examine the energy implications of the escalating Middle East conflict and the dynamics often missing from mainstream coverage. We explore how energy…

Mar 13, 2026 · 40 min
06

Resilience: Google’s interconnection strategies, Form’s LDES commercialization, Iranian energy implications, and distributed battery benefits

Recorded on Monday 2nd March. We discuss the first energy market reactions to the escalating Middle East conflict and what it reveals about global supply chains. We also explore Google’s new…

Mar 6, 2026 · 33 min
05

Modernising the Grid: Solid-State Transformers, How coal is being co-opted for defence, and Space-Based Tech

Recorded 22 February 2026. Episode Discussion Points: Two solid-state transformer startups raised major funding this week Why transformers are a critical bottleneck in grid expansion and amidst…

Feb 26, 2026 · 35 min
04

Critical Minerals: Microgrids, Rare-Earths, Copper recycling, and European Industrial Policy for Iron & Steel

Recorded 15th February. Delivering the energy transition increasingly depends on the inputs required: materials availability, processing capacity, & the industrial policy that determines what…

Feb 20, 2026 · 43 min
03

Deliverable Capacity: Flexibility, Storage, and the dark side of Data Centres Going Off-Grid

Recorded Feb 6th 2026. Access to electricity and speed to power remain defining challenges, but the deeper issue emerging is how to ensure deliverable capacity at the exact moment demand peaks, which…

Feb 20, 2026 · 29 min
02

Clean Firm Power: Geothermal matures, Fusion tests the market, and the UK's Warm Homes Plan

Recorded 30th January 2026. With AI, hyperscalers, and the broader ‘electrification of everything’ accelerating demand for clean, firm, and reliable power, capital markets are beginning to reopen to…

Feb 20, 2026 · 38 min
01

Repricing Electricity: Tech to Deliver AI infrastructure, and the UK's Renewable Auctions

Recorded Jan 16th 2026. Exponential demand growth and AI mean the 2026 conversation is shifting from simply ‘power and data centres' to who can actually build what and when, as clean, reliable…

Feb 19, 2026 · 49 min

Latest Episode

Meet Charlotte & Lucy

Dr. Charlotte Kirk
CK

Dr. Charlotte Kirk

Climate-Tech Investor

Charlotte is a climate-tech investor specialising in industrial decarbonisation and energy transition. She previously served as Head of Technology at Fortescue and led European investments at Clean Energy Ventures. She holds a PhD in Chemistry from Oxford, was the first female in the British Army's infantry, and is a North Face-sponsored endurance athlete.

Lucy Shaw
LS

Lucy Shaw

Energy Investor & Writer

Lucy is an energy investor, writer, and policy researcher currently writing a book examining coal dependency. She previously worked at Blackstone, BCG, the United Nations, and the IFC across six continents. She earned an MBA and MPA from Harvard as a Fulbright Scholar and studied mechanical engineering at the University of Melbourne.

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Contact Us

Want us to answer a question about energy? Want us to speak to your organisation? Something else entirely? Send us an email and we’ll be in touch.

lshaw@gordonmgmt.co.uk