Welcome to The BTB – your view into what's driving the conversation in the energy industry. This proprietary look at traditional and social media landscapes comprises data from a treasure trove of tools and expert analysis from INK's energy team. We pull from mainstream media, trade media, and social media from the previous month to determine who is talking, what they're talking about, and why. In-depth monitoring, analysis, and going beneath the surface of what's trending is critical to bringing value to our clients. The aptly named BTB is just one of the tools we use to Be There Before™ for our clients.
To no one's surprise, the U.S. election is still the most prevalent topic in energy conversations for the third month. However, candidates have not focused on energy in their talking points or provided new perspectives to react to, leading to a conversational holding pattern. That might change with Hurricane Helene's devasting hit at the end of September. We typically see these stories move from "what happened" to "why it happened" to "what needs to happen next?" Consider if you can contribute to the discussion without being opportunistic. What solutions may be helpful to the needs of people, communities, and energy?
As for other opportunities, Climate Week set up narratives that will lead into COP29 and end-of-year ESG goals. Make sure to frame any energy solutions and POVs through a global lens. Innovation and manufacturing conversations are also picking up steam, particularly in the context of scale, jobs, and economics. And finally, as we head into the year's final quarter, it's an excellent time to organize and share those 2025 trends and predictions.
The term 'president' continues to rank high, but for the third month in a row, Vice President Kamala Harris has still not made the most-used terms in the general energy conversation list. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump joined the list in August but fell off in September. And while the term 'barrels' dropped out of the top 20, the term 'natural gas' moved up, with coverage focused on oil and gas operations and disruptions during Hurricane Helene, geopolitical affairs, and global supply and demand.
Share of voice didn’t shift much from last month, but several energy sources, including nuclear power, gas, and solar, all had brief spikes for a few days in September. This tells us that news cycles are moving more quickly as we head toward the election, and there are a lot of stories grabbing reporters’ attention.
Click to ScrollMost notably, the term 'customers' joined the list as news covered various topics like new PPAs, areas without power, and renewable energy projects coming online. Demand also joined the list this month, which is surprising considering we have passed the hottest months of the year. While Biden Administration coverage remained similar to last month, we still have not seen Vice President Kamala Harris join the most-used terms for trade publications.
September saw a slight increase in global energy conversations MoM. There was a large number of discussions centered around nuclear energy. The U.S. saw gasoline prices drop to the lowest since December 2021. Industry leaders met around the globe to discuss the future of energy at RE+, NY Climate Week, and the first International Solar Festival. Hurricane Helene was a significant conversation point as it hit the Southeast hard.
Conversations related to power, electricity, green, and solar energy increased, centered around concerns with the cost of power and the future of clean power. Conversations about policies and solutions for increasing power supply were top of mind as the U.S. approaches the November election.
The top four hashtags remained the same MoM with #energy continuing to lead the conversation. Increases in volume across #climate, #renewables, and #energy were expected with Hurricane Helene hitting the East Coast in September. Considering the force of Hurricane Helene, it’s surprising to see #climateemergency leave the conversation. More political hashtags like #debate2024 are expected as we get closer to the November U.S. election.
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Energy bills to surge by £150 as Reeves prepares to scrap winter fuel payments
Biden-Harris Department of Energy official calls for 'queering nuclear weapons' as part of radical DEI agenda
Enough renewable-energy projects have been cancelled in Alberta to power almost all its homes
As crews chainsaw Joshua trees, Mojave Desert community protests solar energy project
Energy giant issues warning on Dutton nuclear plan
Miliband’s flagship wind farm paid nearly £2.5m to keep turbines switched off
