Green Leap Forward: Meredith Angwin

The Grid with Nick Cater

In this episode of "The Grid", host Nick Cater interviews Meredith Angwin about her new book, "Shorting the Grid". They discuss the hidden fragility of the electric grid and important principles of electrical engineering and physics. Cater and Angwin also talk about the carbon intensity of their respective areas and the sources of their energy, including gas, hydro, nuclear, and imports. Overall, the episode provides valuable insights into the challenges and complexities of the energy industry.

[00:02:34] Carbon emissions in New South Wales. [00:03:39] Wind energy stability concerns. [00:08:03] Choosing Chemistry Over Physics. [00:11:50] Fragility of the grid. [00:16:27] Low carbon electricity and nuclear. [00:19:59] Renewables and their backup. [00:24:02] Electricity grid and stress. [00:30:01] Adding renewables increases capital costs. [00:31:46] Renewable energy subsidies. [00:35:41] Renewable energy cost analysis. [00:40:08] Renewable energy transmission lines. [00:43:28] Renewable energy trade-offs. [00:50:40] Baseload power in Australia. [00:51:18] Base Load Power. [00:55:12] Balancing electricity usage and green hydrogen. [01:00:38] Nuclear power and fragility. [01:04:21] Small modular reactors solution. [01:08:09] The fragility of electricity grids.