Nick Frass
nickfrass.bsky.social
Nick Frass
@nickfrass.bsky.social
I write The Forward Curve, a newsletter where I explore energy and economics.
https://open.substack.com/pub/nickfrass?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=5e9bwc

Energy Systems Engineering - Grad Student
This is a good way to beat the grid death spiral!
September 8, 2025 at 10:11 PM
And if they are successful and the costs get passed onto consumers, they'll blame the higher energy bills on woke renewables.
September 6, 2025 at 12:32 AM
The flip side is that if lenders expect inflation and expect expect rates to rise again to fight inflation, they may decide not to lower long-term interest rates.
August 29, 2025 at 1:33 PM
How can we trick the MAHA crowd into fighting against this and not vaccine research?
August 27, 2025 at 12:25 PM
It is more of a thought experiment here in the US where the government tries its hardest to double the cost of imported solar panels. 😔
August 27, 2025 at 12:14 PM
I think if you listen to it, this specific podcast is pro climate action. It just argues that divestment is ineffective for accomplishing this goal.

Freakonomics likes the idea of geo-engineering, but I haven't gotten the impression that they are against other actions. I could be wrong, though.
August 26, 2025 at 4:22 PM
Great for the climate, but also great for the people. Stable electricity decentralized away from corrupt governments.
August 26, 2025 at 12:24 PM
I'm working on a blog post about the negative effects of solar tariffs. I'll have to add an addendum- things can always get worse.
August 21, 2025 at 6:54 PM
I think you're right. Trash and litter are extremely visible. CO2 emissions are literally invisible. The 80 pounds of gasoline I used to burn in my weekly commute was not visible to me at all. It went straight from the pump into my car and straight from my car into the atmosphere.
August 21, 2025 at 2:02 AM
Most people don't try to learn things as adults. They were taught "Reduce Reuse Recycle" in grade school, and that's all they have now. If we start teaching school children to drive an EV and buy a heat pump, those might be on the list in another 35 years.
August 21, 2025 at 1:40 AM
I mean, this was 6 years ago, and Open AI has a much clearer path to making money now. Perhaps he was onto something...
August 20, 2025 at 4:32 PM
They put a fox in charge of the hen house.
August 20, 2025 at 4:22 PM
The definition of motivated reasoning.
August 20, 2025 at 1:40 PM
I was thinking about this recently. I'm happy to see it!
August 20, 2025 at 1:46 AM
And they have finally circumvented the risk of rolling blackouts... Renewables don't seem very unreliable to me
August 20, 2025 at 1:46 AM
More like great morning with great news!
August 19, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Great. I hope we get some more projects before the tax credits are cut off.
August 19, 2025 at 6:00 PM
I agree. I think if we end up with a mostly solar grid, we will probably use a big chunk of the summer oversupply to produce hydrogen for the winter. But regardless of whether this is right or wrong, I think building a ton of solar and batteries is obviously the right policy.
August 18, 2025 at 5:07 PM