Alex Dewar's guest appearances

Alex Dewar

The POWER Podcast

My Climate Journey

Bret Kugelmass

John Doerr

Pat Brown

Nathaniel Keohane

Tony Fadell

David Heinemeier Hansson

Todd Allen

Tom Baker

Amir Adnani

Scott Stringer

Ted Nordhaus

Bruce Friedrich

Matt Rogers

Alessandra Biaggi

May Boeve

OwlTail

In today’s episode, we cover:Early learnings and thoughts on COVID-19 pandemic and parallels with climate changeAlex’s role at BCG and his work in the energy industryHis work with oil and gas companies in responding to climate changeHow oil and gas companies’ climate change strategies have evolvedOil and gas companies’ attitudinal change to accepting climate change as an existential issueImpact of the IPCC report on the oil and gas industryHow stakeholders are demanding action on climate changeReconciling the fossil fuel industry’s legacy of climate denialWho should be accountable for the fossil fuel industry’s contribution to the climate crisis?The argument that fossil fuel companies have assets needed to address climate changeWhy should the public trust the fossil fuel industry?Carbon pricing as a policy toolApplying targeted regulation to ensure best behavior by the industryShift in lobbying focus from denying the science to focusing on the socio-economic considerationsImpact of divestment vs. ESG investingReasons why oil and gas industry has lagged in “total shareholder return” over the past decadeThe increasing cost of capital for the industry and reasons for itBCG’s ethical policies as it relates to climate change“Deep de-carbonization technologies”Links to topics discussed in this episode:Alex’s work at BCG: https://www.bcg.com/en-us/about/people/experts/alex-dewar.aspx“Social license to operate”: https://learningforsustainability.net/social-license/ESG Investing: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental,_social_and_corporate_governanceLetter from BlackRock CEO, Larry Fink: https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/larry-fink-ceo-letter

In today’s episode, we cover:<ul><li>Early learnings and thoughts on COVID-19 pandemic and parallels with climate change</li><li>Alex’s role at BCG and his work in the energy industry</li><li>His work with oil and gas companies in responding to climate change</li><li>How oil and gas companies’ climate change strategies have evolved</li><li>Oil and gas companies’ attitudinal change to accepting climate change as an existential issue</li><li>Impact of the IPCC report on the oil and gas industry</li><li>How stakeholders are demanding action on climate change</li><li>Reconciling the fossil fuel industry’s legacy of climate denial</li><li>Who should be accountable for the fossil fuel industry’s contribution to the climate crisis?</li><li>The argument that fossil fuel companies have assets needed to address climate change</li><li>Why should the public trust the fossil fuel industry?</li><li>Carbon pricing as a policy tool</li><li>Applying targeted regulation to ensure best behavior by the industry</li><li>Shift in lobbying focus from denying the science to focusing on the socio-economic considerations</li><li>Impact of divestment vs. ESG investing</li><li>Reasons why oil and gas industry has lagged in “total shareholder return” over the past decade</li><li>The increasing cost of capital for the industry and reasons for it</li><li>BCG’s ethical policies as it relates to climate change</li><li>“Deep de-carbonization technologies”</li></ul>Links to topics discussed in this episode:<ul><li>Alex’s work at BCG: <a href="https://www.bcg.com/en-us/about/people/experts/alex-dewar.aspx" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.bcg.com/en-us/about/people/experts/alex-dewar.aspx</a></li><li>“Social license to operate”: <a href="https://learningforsustainability.net/social-license/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://learningforsustainability.net/social-license/</a></li><li>ESG Investing: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental,_social_and_corporate_governance" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental,_social_and_corporate_governance</a></li><li>Letter from BlackRock CEO, Larry Fink: <a href="https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/larry-fink-ceo-letter" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">https://www.blackrock.com/us/individual/larry-fink-ceo-letter</a></li></ul>

Ep 102: Alex Dewar, Sr. Manager at BCG's Center for Energy Impact

The natural gas industry is doing quite well and the future looks bright to many observers.“We’re at a really great moment for the natural gas industry in the U.S. Production is growing dramatically. Shale continues to provide tremendous improvements technologically, bringing the cost down and growing the production, extending access to U.S. gas. At the same time, the shift from coal to gas-fired power generation is in full swing and the U.S. is in the midst of a significant boom in LNG [liquefied natural gas] exports and is poised to see a number of approvals for the second wave of U.S. LNG projects coming up,” Alex Dewar, senior manager with the Center for Energy Impact in the Washington, D.C., office of Boston Consulting Group (BCG), said as a guest on The POWER Podcast. But the future may not be as rosy as it seems.“There’s potential actually for a very different outcome, I think, than many expect for natural gas here in the U.S.,” Dewar said. “What we’ve noticed by looking at some of the future trends in technology and policy, and also public opinion and consumer preferences, is that there are some risks to that emerging in the not-so-far-off future.”According to a BCG report that Dewar co-authored, titled Preparing for an Abundance of US Natural Gas, the U.S. will likely experience a peak in gas demand, with consumption growth slowing from the late 2020s and plateauing by 2030. “The U.S. gas market is likely to shift from being limited by the pace of growth in supply to being limited by the level of demand,” the report says.“Our modeling estimates that U.S. gas consumption could be about 20% less in 2040 than the typical modeling suggests by the U.S. Energy Information Administration,” Dewar said. “There are some pretty big implications across the power sector—and the entire energy sector in the U.S.—if that in fact is what shapes up over the coming decades.”One reason is a push toward electrification. “I think we’re going to continue to see a push towards electrification because of both the greenhouse gas and safety issue,” Tom Baker, a partner and managing director in BCG’s San Francisco office, said on the podcast. Baker was also a co-author of the report on natural gas. He suggested that gas utilities serving consumers, especially in markets like California and New York, face significant risks to their businesses going forward and should review long-term strategies.

The natural gas industry is doing quite well and the future looks bright to many observers. “We’re at a really great moment for the natural gas industry in the U.S. Production is growing dramatically. Shale continues to provide tremendous improvements technologically, bringing the cost down and growing the production, extending access to U.S. gas. At the same time, the shift from coal to gas-fired power generation is in full swing and the U.S. is in the midst of a significant boom in LNG [liquefied natural gas] exports and is poised to see a number of approvals for the second wave of U.S. LNG projects coming up,” Alex Dewar, senior manager with the Center for Energy Impact in the Washington, D.C., office of Boston Consulting Group (BCG), said as a guest on The POWER Podcast. But the future may not be as rosy as it seems. “There’s potential actually for a very different outcome, I think, than many expect for natural gas here in the U.S.,” Dewar said. “What we’ve noticed by looking at some of the future trends in technology and policy, and also public opinion and consumer preferences, is that there are some risks to that emerging in the not-so-far-off future.” According to a BCG report that Dewar co-authored, titled Preparing for an Abundance of US Natural Gas, the U.S. will likely experience a peak in gas demand, with consumption growth slowing from the late 2020s and plateauing by 2030. “The U.S. gas market is likely to shift from being limited by the pace of growth in supply to being limited by the level of demand,” the report says. “Our modeling estimates that U.S. gas consumption could be about 20% less in 2040 than the typical modeling suggests by the U.S. Energy Information Administration,” Dewar said. “There are some pretty big implications across the power sector—and the entire energy sector in the U.S.—if that in fact is what shapes up over the coming decades.” One reason is a push toward electrification. “I think we’re going to continue to see a push towards electrification because of both the greenhouse gas and safety issue,” Tom Baker, a partner and managing director in BCG’s San Francisco office, said on the podcast. Baker was also a co-author of the report on natural gas. He suggested that gas utilities serving consumers, especially in markets like California and New York, face significant risks to their businesses going forward and should review long-term strategies.

33. Future May Not Be as Rosy as It Seems for Natural Gas-Tom Baker and Alex Dewar