The costs of green electricity are plummeting and renewable technology is only getting cheaper. For optimists, this means that a world of abundant, clean energy is just around the corner.

And yet the share of global energy coming from non-carbon sources is broadly the same as it was two decades ago. If falling prices were all that mattered, surely that wouldn’t be the case? For the optimists to be right, things would have to look different.

According to this week’s guest, Brett Christophers, there is a straightforward explanation for this seeming paradox - of cheaper green energy but incredibly slow adoption. For Christophers it isn’t just prices that matter, but profits too. And profitability for green energy projects remains well below those of oil and gas. The incentives are simply not there for market actors to take us rapidly beyond oil, gas and coal.

So if capitalism can address the climate crisis, what would that look like? Or does the state need to play a decisive role? How is it possible that China is both a global leader and a laggard in greenhouse gas emissions? And is Europe over?

You can buy Brett’s book, “The Price is Wrong: Why Capitalism Won't Save the Planet”,
here: https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/prod...

00:00 Intro
02:35 Is Net Zero Bullsh*t?
10:15 Why Electrification Matters
16:17 What do the Next Two Decades Look Like?
24:14 What is China Doing?
35:24 What are Europe and the US Doing?
47:40 Why Privatisation Doesn’t Work
1:02:06 What are the Solutions?
1:16:30 Why Publicly Owned Energy Matters
1:22:27 The Obstacles to Renewable Energy
1:31:05 Is Nuclear the Answer?

Novara Live broadcasts every weekday from 6PM on YouTube and Twitch.
Episodes of Downstream are released Sundays at 3PM on YouTube.
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