This week on the podcast, Jackie and Peter discuss the significant volatility in the financial markets due to the escalating global trade war unleashed by President Trump’s “Liberation Day” on April 2nd. Economists and banks are sounding the alarm about the increased risk of a global recession. At the same time, oil prices have fallen by about $US 10/B due to fears of a recession and news that OPEC+ is adding more supply than expected into the market. In Canada, the uncertainty is further compounded by the upcoming federal election scheduled for April 28th, 2025.

Content referenced in this podcast:

• Financial Times, “In charts: winners and losers from Trump’s new tariffs” (April 4, 2025)
• BNN Bloomberg, Trump’s tariffs to send U.S. into recession: JP Morgan (April 6, 2025)
• Polymarket, “ US recession in 2025?”
• Reuters, “OPEC+ unexpectedly speeds up oil output hikes, oil drops” (April 3, 2025)
• 338Canada, Canadian Federal Election Polling

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This week, Brian Appelbe, Research Fellow at the Centre for Inertial Fusion Studies (CIFS) at Imperial College London, who specializes in Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) and High Energy Density Physics, joins the podcast.

Fusion energy aims to create a miniature sun on Earth, utilizing the same process that powers the sun, where tiny atoms fuse together to release a massive amount of clean energy. Recent breakthroughs in fusion include experiments achieving net energy gain and private developers pledging to have grid-connected fusion electricity generation units by the mid-2030s.

Here are some questions Peter and Jackie asked Brian: What are the advantages of fusion energy? How does it differ from nuclear fission? Realistically, how long before fusion is a commercial reality delivering electrons to the grid? How has the entrance of private companies and almost $7 billion in total private investment changed the pace of innovation? Do you think fusion energy will eventually be low-cost, and if so, what are the potential new uses of this abundant and cheap form of electricity?

Content referenced in this podcast:

• Dr. Arthur Turrell’s book: “The Star Builders – Nuclear Fusion and the Race to Power the Planet”
• 2024 report by the Fusion Industry Association

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This week our guest is Duane Reid-Carlson, President of EDC Associates Ltd., an independent electricity-focused consulting firm based in Calgary, Canada. The firm focuses closely on Alberta power markets.

EDC recently published its quarterly report and had some critical words about the government's proposed changes for Alberta’s electricity market – called the Restructured Energy Market (REM) - describing it as a “highly complex, expensive, inefficient experiment.” The same sentiment was reflected by almost all the 36 organizations that participated in the Alberta Electricity System Operator (AESO)’s feedback process in early 2025. Stakeholders were nearly unanimous in their comments that the changes will make Alberta’s electricity markets more expensive and less reliable – the exact attributes the redesign promised to fix. The sharp criticism spans all industry segments – from natural gas generators and renewable energy developers to consumers and transmission companies.

Participants also raised the issue of the AESO skipping the regulatory review from the Alberta Utilities Commission (AUC), which provides an independent review by a regulatory body as a safeguard to prevent any unintended negative consequences from the redesign.

Peter and Jackie examine the concerns and potential long-term negative implications for Alberta’s electricity grid, generators, and consumers with Duane Reid-Carlson.

Content referenced in this podcast:

• Stakeholder submissions to the AESO on the Restructured Energy Market (REM) design, January 2025

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