What Net Zero means for the World

  • Thought Leadership

FWB Park Brown were delighted to host an event centred around the energy transition with Dr Valentina Kretzschmar, Capricorn Energy, as speaker.

Dr Valentina, who has responsibility for the development of Capricorn’s sustainability strategy aimed at delivering the company’s net-zero target, shared captivating insight from working within the sector, and touched on everything from energy illiteracy to greenwashing, highlighting attitudes and pressures, demand and supply and technology as key topics. The event was attended by a wide range of senior leaders representing both the extracting and renewable energy industries as well as the investment banking space. We were also delighted to be joined by MBA students from Robert Gordon University.

In recent years the rise of renewable energy sources has called into question the future of the oil and gas industry. The energy transition, driven by a growing focus on sustainability and the fight against climate change, has led to a decline in demand for fossil fuels and a rise in investment in clean energy alternatives. However, and as Dr Valentina mentioned in her talk, this is not an easy switch. Fossil fuels make up many well-known products which we use on a daily basis, and whilst Valentina describes herself as an ‘Energy transition activist’, her talk stressed that there is a lack of perspective around the topic- the renewables space is not currently moving fast enough to substitute for oil and gas in terms of meeting global energy needs at the pace many say they would wish to see.

She further explained, when speaking on Net Zero, that Net Zero targets are different for every country, and developing countries such as India and Africa would have different strategies. Hence a certain amount of perspective is required to understand what Net Zero means for the world, as to simply our country and our sphere of understanding.

Dr Valentina’s talk presented the significant challenges for the oil and gas industry, but also the opportunities for growth and innovation, if we only change our perspective on the immediacy of this transition and take realistic steps towards our goal.

This event, hosted by FWB Park Brown’s Lucy Pickering, was not only an opportunity to reflect on current energy transition views and trends, but also an opportunity to think on how this may affect those currently building their careers in this space, as they navigate through a changing energy scene hoping to make a positive long-term impact.

For further information on this or our other events, or if you would like to attend future events, please contact Sophie on sophiemoteau@fwbparkbrown.com

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