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38 episodes
Volts
by David Roberts · English
Volts is a podcast about leaving fossil fuels behind. I've been reporting on and explaining clean-energy topics for almost 20 years, and I love talking to politicians, analysts, innovators, and activists about the latest progress in the world's most important fight. (Volts is entirely subscriber-supported. Sign up!) www.volts.wtf
Latest episodes
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The federal permitting bill has been updated. What changed?
The podcast explains the updated “manager’s amendment” to the federal permitting bill—what changed from the earlier draft, why it was revised after objections, and what it means for Senate/House…
11 Nov 2026 · 1h 59m · 47 chaptersSo, how about those midterm elections?
Post-midterm “blue nami” analysis focused on state and local power shifts relevant to climate/energy policy, including Democratic trifectas, down-ballot utility regulator races, and ballot measures…
9 Nov 2026 · 1h 26m · 36 chaptersBest of October 2026
Highlights episode “Best of October 2026” (Volt, Nov 6, 2026) compiling one clip from each October conversation.
6 Nov 2026 · 14m · 7 chaptersThe transformative potential of solid-state transformers
The episode explains why conventional grid transformers (iron core + copper coils, optimized for 60 Hz AC) struggle with today’s changing power flows, and how solid-state transformers (SSTs) built…
4 Nov 2026 · 1h 32m · 34 chapters
The (climate) case against (AI) data centers
A climate-focused critique of AI data centers, arguing they worsen emissions by accelerating fossil-fuel power generation and by forcing grids to add carbon-intensive capacity.
30 Oct 2026 · 14m · 5 chapters
The PAC taking out clean energy opponents
The Invest in Tomorrow Coalition (ITC) super PAC’s strategy to defeat clean-energy opponents, using targeted primary and general-election spending to create a reputation that clean-energy backers are…
28 Oct 2026 · 1h 8m · 17 chapters
Building our piece of the electric stack
The “electric stack” (batteries, power electronics, motors/electromagnetics, and embedded compute) and why electrification is accelerating—plus the U.S. vs.
23 Oct 2026 · 1h 6m · 21 chapters
Can distributed energy work around American utilities?
Whether distributed energy (rooftop solar, home batteries, EVs, smart thermostats) can scale in the U.S. to help the grid and delay utility infrastructure, using Octopus Energy’s U.S.
21 Oct 2026 · 1h 3m · 23 chapters
What’s up with Denmark?
Denmark’s energy transition—whether it can hit climate targets, and how Denmark is decarbonizing via wind/solar power, electrification (especially heat pumps and EVs), district heating, and…
16 Oct 2026 · 1h 3m · 25 chapters
Checking back in with Greenlight America
Greenlight America’s model for winning local clean-energy permitting decisions, how it’s grown, why a tax-credit “sprint” is driving more near-term hearings, and how backlash around data centers is…
14 Oct 2026 · 1h 7m · 24 chapters
What’s up with the new federal permitting reform bill?
The episode explains the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (“BAAJA,” nicknamed “Baja”) and why the U.S. is pursuing federal permitting reform now.
9 Oct 2026 · 2h 21m · 52 chapters
The grueling fight to pass the Inflation Reduction Act
Leah C. Stokes and David Roberts discuss Stokes’ book The Carbon Wave, centered on how the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed and what comes next for climate policy.
7 Oct 2026 · 1h 5m · 24 chapters
Best of September 2026
“Best of September 2026” clip show from Volts (host David Roberts) summarizing seven September conversations, including clean-energy messaging and a technical deep dive on machine-learning geothermal…
2 Oct 2026 · 14m · 2 chapters
What’s up with heat-pump water heaters?
Heat-pump water heaters—why they’re efficient, why adoption is low, and how Reservoir’s new integrated system aims to make them practical for homes.
30 Sep 2026 · 1h 5m · 32 chapters
Do small residential batteries make sense?
Small plug-in residential batteries (about 1.6 kWh) as “backup + energy management” and as a distributed control layer for virtual power plants (VPPs) via demand response/load shaping.
23 Sep 2026 · 1h 6m · 26 chapters
How energy politics work inside DC
How energy politics and messaging work in Washington, D.C.—especially how fossil-fuel and clean-energy interests gain access to reporters, shape narratives, and influence policy, including the “data…
18 Sep 2026 · 15m · 5 chapters
How to build a more flexible, quieter, less obnoxious data center
Verus (Alphabet spinoff Sidewalk Infrastructure Partners) proposes a “flexible, quieter, less obnoxious” data center design that can reduce grid draw using large LFP battery energy storage,…
16 Sep 2026 · 1h 15m · 28 chapters
Building a big, abundant, clean grid
The episode argues the U.S. needs a rapid buildout of a “big, abundant, clean grid” to decarbonize while supporting economic growth, and it criticizes climate policy communities for focusing on…
11 Sep 2026 · 2h 1m · 54 chapters
Is there way more conventional geothermal than we thought?
Zanskar argues “conventional” geothermal potential in the Western U.S.
9 Sep 2026 · 1h 5m · 31 chapters
Best of August 2026
“Best of August 2026” is a monthly compilation of Volt episodes covering data centers and electricity markets, grid cybersecurity for solar inverters, public EV charging, Idaho housing policy,…
4 Sep 2026 · 45m · 15 chapters
How to respond to disinformation about clean energy, at scale
How Good Power (CEO Leah Cuspa) helps clean-energy advocates counter large-scale disinformation by deploying “rapid response” and long-running local campaigns that pre-bunk false narratives, use…
2 Sep 2026 · 1h 12m · 30 chapters
Could we use Trump's tricks to make good green policy?
How a future pro-climate administration could use Trump-era “New Deal” executive powers (especially the Defense Production Act) to overcome state permitting and regulatory barriers, while making…
28 Aug 2026 · 1h 9m · 23 chapters
Making data centers flexible so they can serve the grid rather than stress it out
How software can make AI data centers “grid-flexible” by reducing/reshaping power demand during peak or emergency events, avoiding new grid capacity and enabling faster connections.
26 Aug 2026 · 53m · 23 chapters
Why can't utilities innovate?
Why U.S. electric utilities struggle to innovate fast enough to meet rising demand (especially data centers) while keeping residential rates from rising ~40% since 2021; low R&D spend (~0.2% of…
21 Aug 2026 · 1h 12m · 30 chaptersWe use cookies.They keep VO running smoothly and help us improve it. Privacy policy