logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2024
38m 53s

The greenest reason to drill: clean powe...

bloomberg
About this episode

Before he founded the geothermal startup Fervo in 2017, Tim Latimer was a drilling engineer for the oil and gas industry — a job he loved. “Honestly, if it wasn't for climate change, I probably wouldn’t have ever changed my career,” he says this week on Zero. Now Latimer is applying his drilling know-how to Fervo’s wells, supercharging their energy production in the process. The company opened its first power plant in Nevada late in 2023, and is now in the process of opening another plant in Utah. Latimer and Akshat Rathi chat about opportunities in geothermal, the infernal permitting process, and why Fervo has its sights on expanding into Kenya, Indonesia, Turkey and the Philippines.

Explore further:

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Mythili Rao. Special thanks this week to Kira Bindrim and Monique Mulima. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Today
Renewables promised to be cheap. Why aren’t people feeling it?
The UK used to be a shining example of how to act on climate change. It created one of the world’s first climate laws in 2008, which bound the government to reduce emissions on tight deadlines. That law used to have cross-party support, but that’s no longer the case with politici ... Show More
38m 45s
Oct 6
Big Take: AI data centers use a lot of energy. You may be paying for it
AI needs a lot of energy — and a new Bloomberg investigation has found that those soaring costs are being passed on to consumers who live near data centers. On today’s Big Take podcast, host David Gura talks to Bloomberg reporters Josh Saul and Leonardo Nicoletti about the AI boo ... Show More
16m 39s
Oct 1
A return to coal? AI’s demand for gas turbines risks a new crisis: Bottlenecks Series
Rising power demand from data centers for artificial intelligence has led to a shortage of the gas turbines needed to generate electricity. This shortage might not seem the most obvious climate story, but it's having impacts across the entire energy sector. This week on Zero, Blo ... Show More
35m 54s
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2025
Geothermal, dealmaking, and the future of clean energy finance | live from the ACORE Finance Forum in New York
In the third and final special episode recorded live from the ACORE Finance Forum, host Ed Crooks and regular guest Amy Myers Jaffe talk to industry leaders to explore some key issues in renewable energy technology and finance.Amy starts the episode by speaking with David Ulrey, ... Show More
1h 11m
Apr 2024
Throwback/Encore Presentation: Dan Reicher’s Rationally Optimistic Take on Progress and Potential in the Fight Against Climate Change
One of our most popular episodes of 2023 is back, with this encore presentation, just in time for Earth Day!  Dan Reicher’s interest in and advocacy for environmental protection and clean energy began when he was a child and has continued throughout his life.  In addition to teac ... Show More
53m 39s
Nov 2022
In Kenya It’s Geothermal for the Win
Geothermal energy doesn’t get near the attention that wind and solar do. But to decarbonize our energy systems, we need a team of net zero technologies. And despite geothermal’s low profile, it’s an always-on, zero carbon technology that can complement intermittent renewables lik ... Show More
25m 44s
Nov 2024
Will today’s election set the energy transition on a new course?
Sonia Aggarwal spent the early years of her career moving between nonprofits and the private sector, supporting renewable energy deployment. But after watching early climate policies fail in Washington D.C., she realized her energy modeling skills could better serve the clean ene ... Show More
20m 59s
Sep 3
Most countries fail at clean energy. Here’s how mine succeeded | Sebastián Kind
Energy expert Sebastián Kind helped Argentina go from virtually no renewable energy to generating nearly 40 percent of its electricity from wind and solar in just six years, despite economic crises and skepticism. How did the country's transition off fossil fuels happen so quickl ... Show More
12m 49s
Oct 2024
Why climate tech startups get this one thing wrong
This might be our wonkiest topic yet: Techno-economic analysis, or TEA. Before a startup proves its technology is commercially viable, it models how a technology would work. These TEAs include things like assumptions about inputs, prices, and market landscape. They help investors ... Show More
49m 38s
Aug 2024
146. NREL: “Our Renewable Energy Future” - Aug24
A special interview with one of the great minds of the Energy Transition. Dr. Doug Arent is the Executive Director of Strategic Public– Private Partnerships at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado, U.S and Distinguished Fellow, World Economic Forum.   He j ... Show More
31m 19s
Jan 2025
Public to Private: The Shift in Clean Energy Ownership
Over the past five years, clean energy company valuations have reached new heights. As the ESG hype cycle ends, inflated public market valuations have given way to industry fundamentals. Increasing energy demand aided by the hype around AI and data centers mean that the world nee ... Show More
22m 45s
Apr 2025
How To Earn Money With Solar, India Vs China & Business Ideas | Goldi Solar | FO342 Raj Shamani
Guest Suggestion Form: https://forms.gle/bnaeY3FpoFU9ZjA47 Disclaimer: This video is intended solely for educational purposes and opinions shared by the guest are his personal views. We do not intent to defame or harm any person/ brand/ product/ country/ profession mentioned in t ... Show More
1h 5m