In Pictures—A Vision for a Hydrogen Future
Green hydrogen produced by GeoPura from wind‑powered electrolysis is now fueling construction equipment at the Port of Tilbury. JCB’s backhoe runs on a hydrogen internal‑combustion engine, while Toyota deploys the same fuel for its Mirai fuel‑cell cars. The portable hydrogen hubs, paired with compressors and refuelling stations, can power a small site for up to five days without a grid connection. Partnerships with Plantforce, Flannery Plant Hire, Ulemco, T&M Bowser Solutions and Sunbelt Rentals are building a full‑stack supply chain for on‑site hydrogen delivery.
The Hydrogen Stream: AfDB Backs Projects, Europe Logs 265 Offers
The African Development Bank’s Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa has opened a Green Hydrogen Programme, offering up to $20 million in pre‑investment grants to private developers across the continent. Meanwhile, the European Commission’s Hydrogen Mechanism recorded 265 supply‑side opportunities, with 87 %...
All Buildings Will Have Behind-the-Meter Power Eventually: Trane CEO
Trane Technologies reported $5 billion in first‑quarter revenue, a 6% year‑over‑year increase, driven by strong growth in its Americas commercial HVAC segment. CEO David Regnery said the company expects behind‑the‑meter power to become standard in all buildings, reducing the typical 30%...
What A Hyperscaler Wants From UK Data Centres
Google’s UK lead highlighted that power‑connection delays and high electricity costs are the biggest obstacles to attracting hyperscale data‑centre operators. The company recently opened a £800 million (~$1 billion) facility in Waltham Cross, backed by a 100‑megawatt offshore wind PPA, but noted grid‑connection...
Walmart Rolls Out ABB A400 EV Fast Chargers at Seven Sites in Metro Phoenix
Walmart is installing ABB e‑mobility A400 All‑in‑One DC fast chargers at seven Phoenix‑area stores, part of a broader rollout that will bring 38 chargers to nine locations. Each unit can deliver up to 400 kW, either 200 kW to two cars simultaneously...
Coal: China's Data Center Boom to Double Power Demand
China is set to nearly double its data‑center capacity by 2030, adding 28 GW of new projects to the 32 GW already online. The expansion will push data‑center electricity use to about 289 TWh, roughly 2.3 % of the nation’s total demand. Annual growth...
A Blueprint for Successful Solar Canopy Projects
Solar canopies are emerging as a fast‑growing solution for deploying distributed renewable energy on underutilized parking lots. The article outlines five primary structural configurations, from low‑cost T‑structures to long‑span and inverted designs, and stresses the importance of early geotechnical studies,...
Peterson Co. Plots Three-Building Data Center Campus in Leesburg, Virginia
Peterson Companies, through its affiliate Leesburg Gateway, LLC, has filed a permit to build a three‑building, 600,000‑sq‑ft data‑center campus on more than 100 acres in Leesburg, Virginia. The plan includes four additional industrial structures and a 22‑acre public park, but...
Southern Co. Electricity Sales Soar on 42% Data Center Growth
Southern Company posted a 2.3% year‑over‑year rise in retail electricity sales for Q1 2026, driven largely by a 42% surge in data‑center power consumption. The utility now has 11 GW of large‑load contracts, up from 10 GW at the end of 2025,...
The Power Problem Behind AI—And a Path to Fix It
AI‑training data centers generate sudden, multi‑hundred‑megawatt load swings that can destabilize both onsite generation and the wider grid. Regulators such as Texas’ SB 6 now require buffering to curb these spikes, while many utilities are refusing direct interconnection. Operators are turning...
Train Braking, A Source of Energy
Salicru is unveiling its CS‑MV bidirectional converter, which captures energy generated during train braking and redirects it to railway substations, electric‑vehicle chargers, or storage systems. The unit operates on both 3 kV DC and 25 kV AC lines, making it suitable for...
Solar-Powered Data Center Campus Proposed in Lincolnshire, UK
Rivington Energy, backed by Federated Hermes, has launched a pre‑application for the Conesby Data Centre Campus in Lincolnshire, UK. The 20‑acre site will host 12,500 sqm of data‑centre space and be powered largely by an on‑site 80‑acre solar farm. Construction could...
Diary Dates: What’s on in May
The Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB) has unveiled a packed May calendar that blends sustainability, heritage, networking, talent development, and technology. Highlights include a May 7 site visit to Suffolk’s net‑zero Lakenheath school, a May 14 tour of the heritage‑focused Causeway Barns...
Qualcomm Developing Custom Silicon with Unnamed Hyperscaler as Company Continues to Plot Data Center Comeback
Qualcomm announced a partnership with an unnamed hyperscaler to develop custom silicon for data‑center servers, with first shipments slated for December 2026. The move follows the company’s FY26 Q2 earnings, where revenue rose to $10.6 billion and profit surged to $7.37 billion....
SRP and NextEra Energy Resources Partner on Massive Solar and Storage Expansion
Salt River Project (SRP) and NextEra Energy Resources have signed a power purchase agreement to build 3 GW of solar capacity and 1 GW of battery storage in Arizona by 2027. The projects will supply enough electricity to power roughly 675,000 homes...
Data Centres’ Speed-to-Power Need Driving US LDES Commercialisation
Energy Dome, an Italy‑based CO₂‑based long‑duration energy storage (LDES) firm, highlighted its Battery Plus technology at Wood Mackenzie’s summit, linking the solution to the fast‑track power needs of U.S. data centres. The company recently signed an MOU with New Era Energy...
Cu-Ion Crosslinked Membranes Boost High-Temp Fuel Cells
Researchers have unveiled a copper‑ion crosslinked polymer electrolyte membrane that dramatically improves high‑temperature proton‑exchange fuel cells. The new membrane delivers up to 45% higher proton conductivity at 200 °C and sustains 5,000 hours of thermal‑cycling durability. Bench tests show a 30% boost...
SAS Warns of Structural E-SAF Gap Threatening Europe’s Aviation Market
SAS Aviation Insights warns that Europe faces a structural shortage of electro‑sustainable aviation fuel (e‑SAF) as the EU’s ReFuelEU Aviation regulation ramps up demand. The report shows Scandinavian airlines will need 36,000 t of e‑SAF by 2030, rising to 330,000 t by...
1,000th Electric Bus Set For Part Of Belgium
Belgium’s Flanders region transport agency De Lijn celebrated the arrival of its 1,000th electric bus, marking a major milestone in the region’s electrification push. The Flemish government has allocated €400 million (about $436 million) to fund the purchase of electric buses, aiming for...
Project Nexus Solar Canal Demo Completes Construction in California
Project Nexus, a pilot solar‑canal system in California’s Central Valley, has finished construction. The public‑private‑academic effort tests photovoltaic arrays mounted over irrigation canals to generate renewable electricity while shading water to cut evaporation and weed growth. Early field data show...
Data Centers and the Grid: How Hyperscale Computing Is Reshaping Power Infrastructure
The surge in hyperscale data centers, driven by AI and digital services, is turning power availability into a decisive factor for site selection and project timelines. Global data‑center electricity use could exceed 1,000 TWh annually by the early 2030s, more than...
NextEra Seeks $100 M Exemption for Maine’s Wyman Station Amid Clean‑air Fight
NextEra Energy has asked the Maine Department of Environmental Protection to grant Wyman Station a clean‑air exemption, arguing that installing modern NOx controls would cost over $100 million. Regulators are weighing the request against state climate goals and community health concerns.
Boeing Secures 20,000 Tonnes of High‑Quality Carbon‑Removal Credits to Tackle Aviation Emissions
Boeing has bought 20,000 tonnes of permanent carbon‑removal credits from six vetted suppliers in Brazil, Bolivia, Namibia and India, using Supercritical’s science‑based procurement platform. The deal, the largest of its kind for the aerospace giant, targets hard‑to‑abate Scope 3 emissions from...
DERCHI Leverages Compliance and Partner Support to Accelerate South American B2B Growth
DERCHI, the Chinese aluminum window and door maker, rolled out an updated compliance framework, published overseas project references and a partner‑centric service model to deepen its B2B footprint across Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Peru and Chile. The move aligns with rising...
April ENSO Shift Lifts Northern Coastal Irradiance While Suppressing Brazil and Northern Argentina
April 2026 delivered a split solar irradiance picture across South America, with the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Colombia posting 10‑20% above‑average global horizontal irradiance (GHI) while the Buenos Aires‑to‑Bolivia corridor saw 5‑15% below‑average levels. The divergent pattern aligns with...
How a Cruise Line Cut Emissions by 90% on a 12-Day Voyage
Havila Voyages completed a 12‑day cruise along Norway’s Bergen‑to‑Kirkenes route using biogas, slashing CO₂ emissions by roughly 90% versus conventional marine fuel. The vessel consumed about 0.3 terawatt‑hours of biogas, roughly a third of Norway’s total 2025 production. While the trial...
Pushed by Trump Policies, Top U.S. Battery Scientist Is Moving to Singapore
Shirley Meng, a leading UChicago materials scientist and director of the $62 million DOE Energy Storage Research Alliance, will become vice‑president for innovation and global affairs at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University on July 1. She cites the Trump administration’s immigration rules and...
Data Centers and Communities: Why the Conversation Demands More Nuance
Maine’s House approved LD 307, imposing a moratorium on AI data centers larger than 20 MW until November 2027 and creating a Data Center Coordination Council to assess grid, ratepayer and community impacts. The move reflects growing statewide anxiety, echoing similar legislative efforts...
AI Rush Ignoring Climate, Risks Environmental Fallout
"Leaders in the sector say the sheer pace of the AI race leaves little room for climate considerations right now" Yep, couldn't have said it better myself. They'll burn everything down if it means satisfying their anxiety-driven panic-build https://www.axios.com/2026/04/30/data-center-deal-carbon-removal-ai
Solar Without Sacrificing Farmland: Why Parking Lots May Become the Next Layer of Energy Infrastructure
The United States faces a potential 2‑4× surge in electricity demand from electric vehicles, heat pumps, and AI‑driven data centers, prompting a search for new generation sites. Parking lots—about two billion spaces covering 3,600 square miles—are emerging as a prime underutilized asset...
TransAlta Seeks $19.9M for Centralia Plant’s First DOE ‘Emergency’ Order
TransAlta is asking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to recover $19.9 million from ratepayers for keeping its 730‑MW Centralia coal plant on standby under a U.S. Department of Energy emergency order. The plant generated no power during the first 90‑day order...
Policy Problems Aside, Solar Continues to Shine
Solar power is the fastest‑growing electricity source in the U.S., with the EIA forecasting utility‑scale capacity to rise from 290 TWh to 424 TWh by 2027 and nearly 70 GW of projects slated for 2024‑25. Residential installations are accelerating, reaching a new system...
Fewer People, Older Assets, Higher Stakes: How the Power Sector Is Rethinking Preventive Maintenance
The U.S. power sector is accelerating plant construction while grappling with a shrinking, aging workforce and assets that exceed design life. Operators are turning to standardized designs and tighter O&M handovers to simplify maintenance, while AI is being deployed to...
Europe Embraces Energy Storage to Enhance Power Flexibility
Europe is emerging as the world’s leading market for utility‑scale energy storage, with a pipeline exceeding 130 GW across 37 countries and 19 GW already operating. The UK’s battery capacity surged 45% in 2024, reaching 12.9 GWh, while Germany and the UK drive...
ZettaJoule Pursues a Second Act for Japan’s High-Temperature Nuclear Reactor
Houston‑based ZettaJoule is adapting Japan’s High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor design into a 950 °C high‑temperature gas‑cooled reactor (HTGR) called ZJ0. The startup signed an MOU with Texas A&M’s Engineering Experiment Station to explore building the prototype on campus, with TEES...
Belgium Is Nationalizing Its Nuclear Industry
Belgium announced it will halt the decommissioning of its remaining nuclear reactors and move to fully nationalize the sector, ending a policy that began with a 2003 phase‑out law. The government reached an agreement with French utility Engie, which currently...
We Can’t Ignore Hydrogen’s Potential in Construction
The UK construction sector burns over 1 billion litres of diesel each year, with heavy non‑road machinery responsible for a disproportionate share of emissions. Full electrification of large excavators and dump trucks is hampered by battery weight, charging downtime, and limited...
1GWh+ of BESS Progressed Across EU by Re:cap, Flower, Goldbeck, Tavion, LONGi, Teos and SPP
Across the EU, more than 1 GWh of battery‑energy‑storage‑system (BESS) capacity moved into construction, financing or operation this week. re:cap is launching a 95 MW/220 MWh project in Finland, while Goldbeck Solar received notice to proceed on two 100 MW/300 MWh German sites. Sweden’s Flower...
Vessel Sector Deep Dive: WTIVs
Intelatus Global Partners’ new analysis shows the offshore wind turbine and foundation installation market grappling with shifting demand as Europe, the EAPAC region and emerging markets push capacity growth while political and economic headwinds tighten vessel utilization. By 2035 global...
Jan De Nul Installs Export Cables for Taiwan’s Fengmiao 1 Offshore Wind Farm
Jan De Nul has finished laying two high‑voltage export cables—45 km and 44 km long—for the Fengmiao 1 offshore wind farm located 35 km off Taichung, Taiwan. The cables are now wet‑stored offshore while the offshore substation jacket is prepared. The next phase will...
Google Teams with OG&E to Power Three New Oklahoma Data Centers
Google has secured a deal with Oklahoma Gas & Electric to power three upcoming data centers in Muskogee and Stillwater. The agreement includes Google covering all connection costs and purchasing power from new solar fields, marking a significant expansion of...
Tata Power Arm to Invest ₹6,500 Cr to Set up 10 GW Ingot, Wafer Facility
Tata Power Renewable Energy, a subsidiary of Tata Power, announced a capital outlay of roughly $795 million (₹6,500 crore) to build a photovoltaic ingot and wafer manufacturing complex with up to 10 GW capacity. The plant will be rolled out in two 5 GW...
Data Centers Now Rely on Massive New Fossil Power
Truly though, just a few years ago numbers like for new fossil fuel plants for data centres were unfathomable and absurd, and now every day there's a new announcement that looks like this https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/electrigen-to-build-and-operate-18gw-behind-the-meter-gas-platform-for-data-center-development-in-texas/
China Wafer Prices Stabilize Amid Easing Demand Regulations
China wafer declines narrow as demand-side regulation lifts market sentiment #energysky -- via pv magazine global: https://t.co/2ZeN1YWDIY
Michigan Townships Battle Microsoft and Others Over Hyperscale Data Centers and Grid Strain
Michigan townships are confronting proposals from Microsoft and other tech giants to build hyperscale data centers, sparking fierce community opposition over electricity demand, water use and zoning authority. About 600 residents attended a Gaines Township meeting to debate a rezoning...
Experts Predict Modest New Nuclear Growth in US
Here’s a transcript of a discussion I had at SMU last month with Jim Burke, CEO of Vistra, and Ray Rothrock, a board member at Centrus Energy. Both are very sober about the growth of new nuclear in the US...
Nagpur Metro Installs India’s First Solar Panels Between Tracks at Hingna Depot
Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (MahaMetro) has installed a 50‑kW solar photovoltaic system between the tracks at Nagpur Metro’s Hingna depot, marking India’s first such deployment on a metro rail corridor. The 200‑metre pilot is expected to generate roughly 70,000 kWh of...
Biomass Beat: Key Takeaways From the Argus Biomass Conference
The Argus Biomass Conference highlighted a surprisingly upbeat mood across the biomass supply chain, driven by record‑high European industrial pellet prices and strong demand ahead of the heating season. Participants discussed price spreads between Europe, Asia, and premium pellets, the...
First Solar's Quarterly Sales Rise on Higher Solar Panel Demand
First Solar posted record first‑quarter revenue of $1.04 billion, up 23% from a year earlier, and net income of $346.6 million, a 65% increase. The growth was driven by stronger demand from third‑party developers and a record sales surge in India. CEO...
Bangladesh’s PV Capacity to Reach 8.5 GW by 2035, Says GlobalData
GlobalData forecasts Bangladesh’s photovoltaic capacity to climb from about 1.3 GW in 2025 to roughly 8.5 GW by 2035. The expansion will be driven by a transition from off‑grid rural solar home systems to grid‑connected rooftop and utility‑scale projects, backed by net‑metering...