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Energy Gang

How are businesses rethinking energy and sustainability? COP30 starts in Belem as climate action falters

Energy Gang

Wood Mackenzie

Tech News, Environment, Sustainability, Innovation, Renewable Energy, Technology, Alternative Energy, Energy, News, Cleantech, Wind Energy, Business, Climate Change, Solar Energy

4.61.3K Ratings

🗓️ 11 November 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

COP30, now getting under way in Belem, Brazil, has been billed as “the implementation COP”, which means a focus on governments taking real steps to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement. We will be examining all the key issues for government negotiators in the talks very soon. But for this show, we are looking at the role of business. At New York Climate Week in September, the discussion was all about how businesses are facing up to the challenges of meeting growing demand for energy while also curbing emissions. With the rise of AI and broader electrification trends driving up power demand in some places at rates not seen for decades, sustainability goals are under pressure. Will companies abandon them? Or are they just finding new ways to decarbonise while keeping things going? 

Two companies in very different industries but both focused on similar goals, are Prologis and Trane. First up, host Ed Crooks speaks to Susan Uthayakumar, Chief Energy and Sustainability Officer at Prologis. She explains how the world’s largest logistics real estate company is turning its vast rooftop space into a decentralized power network. It is building on-site solar, storage, and microgrids to keep global supply chains resilient, while generating new revenue streams.

Then, Holly Paeper, President of Commercial HVAC for the Americas at Trane, describes how cooling systems are becoming a cornerstone of sustainable infrastructure. From AI-driven optimisation to data centres that can heat Olympic swimming pools, Holly talks about ways to reinvent thermal systems to reduce energy waste, enable grid flexibility, and turn buildings into active contributors to their communities.

For all the breaking news and insight from COP30, follow Energy Gang wherever you get your podcasts. Expect our top team of energy experts, plus leaders from the worlds of business, finance and policy, as we break down what you need to know from the opening week of the talks.

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Transcript

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0:00.0

Demand acceleration, I don't think, was anticipated.

0:05.2

So you have so many different parties working on how do you solve for that?

0:10.5

You've got utilities saying, you know what, I really can't anticipate the demand and the curve that I need to produce.

0:16.3

You've got businesses saying, well, how should we solve for the challenge of getting power in the future?

0:22.3

And then you've got customers saying, you know what, I want my operation to be not interrupted.

0:26.7

So all these perspectives are colliding and getting to equations that perhaps we didn't think about before.

0:33.4

We've got data centers in the basement of residential high rises and the heating is used for the people in the building.

0:39.2

Even the Paris Olympics, like the aquatic pools, were heated by heat from a data center.

0:48.5

This episode is brought to you by the American Council on Renewable Energy.

0:52.5

Based in Washington, D.C. ACOR is a non-partisan

0:55.2

non-profit organization that promotes investment in American clean energy infrastructure, development,

1:00.2

and innovation. In partnership with a broad membership that spans the energy value chain,

1:04.5

ACOR advances the public policies, market research and industry convenings to position the United

1:09.5

States as a global leader in clean

1:12.0

energy deployment.

1:13.8

Whether it's the latest policy and market developments, the legislative and regulatory

1:17.2

tracking, industry data and analysis, or marquee events like the Finance Forum in New York

1:22.0

or the Grid Forum in DC, ACOR unites clean energy investors, developers, energy buyers, power generators, manufacturers

1:29.1

and energy providers, and more.

1:31.3

To learn more about joining ACOR, go to acour.com slash membership.

1:35.3

Hello and welcome to the Energy Gang, a discussion show from Wood McKenzie about the fast-changing world of energy.

1:49.2

I'm Ed Crooks.

...

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