Energy Voices: leading through volatility
Energy Voices: leading through volatility
in the transition. It’s about proving you’re structurally equipped to deliver it. Rangel echoes that sentiment from a challenger-brand perspective. When Prio introduced higher biofuel blends, skepticism was real. “In the beginning, they didn’t trust the new fuels,” he says. “But then they use them repeatedly and see there are no problems, and so they keep using them. It’s a long-term path.” Experience builds credibility, not just slogans. At RES, trust extends beyond customers to communities. “We’re not just in it for the short-term gain,” Shanks says. “We are committed within the communities in which we operate.” Long-term presence, and tangible local benefit, is part of the brand story.
Across the board, trust is no longer built on vision statements alone. It is built on proof and on making energy feel understandable, affordable, and relevant to daily life.
“This integrated approach enables stakeholders to recognize consistency, which is essential in creating confidence in a complex, rapidly changing energy landscape.” As Dias puts it: “If the context is against us, we try to do it in a smarter way, but always sticking to the same message and the same positioning.” In other words, tone may adapt. Strategy does not. At Prio, the tension is commercial as well as political. Competition on price remains intense. “We always have companies that are only focused on selling one product, at the lowest price possible,” Rangel says. “So, we need to keep passing information, being transparent, being coherent in our positioning.”
At the end of the day, the content we really spend time on involves people and gather communities – that’s the most engaging content.
Volatility isn’t a phase. It’s the environment
If 2020–2022 felt like crisis years, 2026 feels different. The turbulence has normalized. Etienne Melo describes it plainly: “It’s not anymore about, ‘Wow, we managed to deal with that crisis.’ It’s just that we are in the middle.” Geopolitics, tariffs, AI disruption, commodity swings – these are no longer shocks, but the backdrop. Haag agrees that consistency under pressure is what defines credibility.
Etienne Melo Strategy, Marketing Director, Sercel
Stability is about refusing to let volatility dictate your identity.
Shanks says, “your ability to make it a success will be severely hampered.” Even in highly technical B2B sectors, the human element matters. “At the end of the day,” Melo says, “the content we really spend time on involves people and gather communities – that’s the most engaging content.” Where energy brands go from here The energy debate is often framed as a tug-of-war: fossil versus renewable, speed versus stability, ambition versus affordability. The leaders navigating this moment are not retreating from ambition. They are shifting from rhetoric to results. From ideology to proof. The transition is in its pragmatic phase. The brands that prove they can deliver in the real world will be the
That authenticity – always being focused on a zero-carbon future – helps build trust. That is our focus. That is our passion. And we’re never going to deviate from that.
Your frontline is your brand In a sector under scrutiny, internal alignment is a strategic necessity. At Prio, education is institutionalized. The company runs what it calls the “Prio School,” ensuring staff understand how to explain alternative fuels clearly and confidently. “One of our major concerns is training,” Rangel says. “Not only on safety, but explaining to customers why these products are different – to increase trust in the products.” At RES, cultural alignment was critical during acquisition. “If the people who need to deliver on that strategy are not all working together and under common values,”
Paul Shanks Head of Brand, Communications & Online, RES
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Brandpie Energy - Issue 05
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