Beyond Carbon: How Emerging Fuels and Technologies Can Help
The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) released a report that evaluates hydrogen, ammonia, e‑fuels, renewable diesel, renewable natural gas and carbon‑capture technologies for value beyond carbon reduction. It argues that these pathways can enhance energy security, grid resilience, and public‑health outcomes while preserving existing assets and workforces. By producing fuels locally from power, water or waste, utilities can reduce exposure to geopolitical shocks and supply‑chain volatility. The analysis also flags safety, cost and infrastructure challenges that must be managed for broader adoption.
Germany Invests €5 Billion to Decarbonize Energy Intensive Industries
Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy launched the 2026 round of its contracts‑for‑difference (CCfD) scheme, earmarking up to €5 billion (about $5.45 billion) to subsidize decarbonisation projects in energy‑intensive industries. The auction‑based program offers variable subsidies that bridge the cost...
Meta’s Space Solar Bet Highlights AI Data Center Power Gap
Meta has teamed with Overview Energy and Noon Energy to explore space‑based solar power (SBSP) with demonstration projects slated for 2028. The initiative is positioned as a long‑term capacity solution rather than an immediate fix for the soaring electricity needs...
Rooftop Solar Additions Surge 2x in FY26, Led by Maha, UP, Gujarat
India’s rooftop solar programme under PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana doubled installations in FY26, reaching 21.2 lakh households and pushing the cumulative base above 32 lakh. Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat together accounted for 60% of the new additions, with Maharashtra topping the list at 5.15 lakh homes....
May 2026 Issue: The Future of Solar
Barcelona’s municipal government is accelerating its renewable transition by targeting 381 solar PV installations on public buildings in 2027. The initiative places panels on historic façades, bus shelters and other urban infrastructure, blending modern clean‑energy tech with the city’s centuries‑old...
Montgomery County Completes Transit Depot Microgrid Project
Montgomery County, Maryland, completed a 6.8‑MW transit‑depot microgrid at the David F. Bone Equipment Maintenance and Transit Operation Center. The system includes 9,800 solar panels, 2 MW/6.9 MWh of battery storage and 2.38 MW of charging capacity to serve 200 Ride On buses and...
Nissan's New Solar Tech Adds 11 Miles of Free Range Every Day
Nissan unveiled solar‑enhanced versions of its Ariya crossover and the kei‑car Sakura, showing that integrated photovoltaics can add measurable range each day. In sunny Barcelona the Ariya gains an average of 11 miles, with lower but still notable boosts in...
PV Inverter Manufacturers Reshape Strategies as Policy Shifts Drive Regional Production
PV inverter makers are reshaping their manufacturing footprints as tariffs, the U.S. Foreign Entity of Concern rule and the Inflation Reduction Act’s tax credits push developers toward domestic, non‑Chinese supply chains. In the United States, inverter capacity is projected to...
Funding Agreed for Melbourne Commuter Electrification
The Australian federal and Victorian state governments have each pledged $A152.7 million (about $US 109.6 million) to fund the design and planning phase of electrifying the 37.3 km Melton commuter line in Melbourne. The money will cover detailed engineering, environmental assessments, planning approvals and...
Skyview Ventures Integrates Monitoring Program for Beekeeping on Solar Project Sites
Renewable‑energy investor Skyview Ventures is rolling out an environmental‑monitoring program on eight of its utility‑scale solar sites in New York, West Virginia, Tennessee and Connecticut. The initiative uses the HiveTracks platform, which equips local beekeepers with sensors to track hive health, plant...
Indonesia Tenders 1.2 GW of Solar
Indonesia’s state‑owned utility PLN has opened a 1,225 MW solar tender, dubbed Mentari Nusantara I, spanning six regions including Java and Sumatra. The projects are bundled under the new ‘Giga One’ procurement scheme, which aims to deliver economies of scale and...
Chanani Launches New Venture to Develop EV Charging Hubs Across Southern California
Chanani Group has launched CM EV Services to develop electric‑vehicle charging hubs across Southern California. The venture partners with Motive Energy’s Sustainable Solutions division, which will act as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) provider for the initial sites. The first three...
Startup's Squeezable Solid Could Upend Cooling and Refrigeration
Barocal, a Cambridge‑spun startup, has secured $10 million to advance its solid‑state refrigerant based on plastic crystals that absorb heat at rest and release it when compressed. The material exploits the barocaloric effect, shifting temperature up to 90 °F (50 °C) under pressure,...
Toyota Stays Course on Fuel Cell Trucks with Hyroad Tie-Up
Toyota announced a partnership with Hyroad Energy to deploy 40 Class 8 fuel‑cell trucks in Southern California, using a bundled lease that includes vehicle, maintenance and hydrogen fueling. The trucks, acquired from Nikola’s 2025 bankruptcy auction, were purchased by Hyroad for...
Manchester City Expand Sustainability Push with AMPYR Distributed Energy Deal
Manchester City has partnered with AMPYR Distributed Energy to install and operate over 5,000 solar panels at its City Football Academy and Joie Stadium. The arrangement is a long‑term power purchase agreement in which AMPYR funds, builds and manages the...
Clean Energy’s Winning Argument Is the One It Refuses to Make
The U.S. government recently paid a French oil company roughly $1 billion to forgo adding offshore wind capacity, a move that surprised many in the renewable sector. The article argues that the climate movement has shifted away from emphasizing moral imperatives...
Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Ltd Opens Power Lab in Chandaka
Odisha Power Transmission Corporation Ltd (OPTCL) inaugurated a state‑of‑the‑art power system simulation laboratory at its Chandaka training centre. The lab, opened by Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo, equips engineers with real‑time modeling, load‑flow analysis and fault‑simulation tools. It aims...
Calcom Vision Forays Into Solar Street Lighting, Targets ₹100 Crore by FY30
Calcom Vision, a Greater Noida LED lighting maker, announced entry into solar‑powered street lighting and aims to generate roughly $12 million (₹100 crore) in revenue by FY30. The new segment is projected to account for up to 20% of the firm’s total...
Toyota and Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Conduct Hydrogen Bus Trial in Saudi Arabia
Toyota and its Saudi distributor Abdul Latif Jameel Motors completed a public hydrogen‑fuel‑cell bus trial in Yanbu from April 19‑23, coinciding with the Yanbu Flower Festival. The trial used CaetanoBus’s H2.City Gold, equipped with Toyota’s second‑generation 60 kW fuel‑cell stack, five...
Topological Quantum Materials in Sustainable Energy Conversion: Catalysis and Thermoelectrics
The review surveys recent advances in topological quantum materials (TQMs) for sustainable energy conversion, emphasizing their symmetry‑protected surface states that boost carrier mobility. It highlights how Weyl and chiral semimetals excel in hydrogen and spin‑selective oxygen evolution catalysis. The paper...
Former Macquarie Bankers Plan One of Australia’s Biggest Six-Hour Batteries with 4,800 MWh of Storage
Former Macquarie bankers, now operating as BLT Energy, have filed a planning application for the Red Gully battery, an 800 MW, six‑hour (4,800 MWh) storage system near Gingin, Western Australia. The project will begin with a $1 billion first stage delivering 400 MW and...
Global Solar Sector Raises $11.1bn in Funding During First Quarter of 2026
The solar industry secured $11.1 billion in corporate funding during the first quarter of 2026, according to Mercom Capital Group. Debt financing reached its strongest level in more than ten years, reflecting abundant capital and low‑cost borrowing. The surge is attributed...
Dutch Regulator Plans Grid Fee for Large Solar Producers
The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) plans to introduce a grid fee for large electricity producers, including solar farms, no earlier than January 2032. The fee is designed to fund grid maintenance and encourage more efficient use of the...
Week in Review: A Net-Zero Factory Takes Shape in India’s Temple City
Epic Group is constructing a net‑zero manufacturing campus in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, blending large‑scale production with aggressive sustainability targets. The facility will rely on solar power, water recycling, and carbon‑capture technologies to achieve zero operational emissions by 2030. Design elements incorporate...
As Costs Drop, Hydrogen Energy Options Are Being Grasped Globally
China is rapidly scaling its hydrogen ecosystem, targeting 100,000 fuel‑cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) by 2030 and driving end‑user hydrogen prices below $3.50 per kilogram. Lhyfe reported delivering 700 hydrogen trucks and buses in December 2025, with 1,400 additional orders, while expanding...
Build Fast, Pay Your Way: Washington’s AI Infrastructure Doctrine
In early 2026 Washington re‑defined data‑center projects as strategic AI infrastructure, pairing fast‑track permitting and federal land access with strict cost‑allocation rules. The Ratepayer Protection Pledge obligates Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI, Oracle and xAI to finance new generation and...
‘Panthalassa Has Opened the Ocean Frontier’: Thiel-Backed Startup Secures $140 Million to Deploy Floating AI Data Centers
Peter Thiel led a $140 million Series B round for Oregon‑based Panthalassa, a startup developing autonomous wave‑powered floating data centers for AI inference. The funding will finish a pilot manufacturing plant near Portland and accelerate deployment of the Ocean‑3 node series in...
Statkraft to Market German Hybrid Portfolio
Statkraft and SUNCATCHER have signed an agreement to market three hybrid solar‑battery projects in Germany—Klötze II, Salzwedel and Seehausen. The portfolio totals 34.5 MWp of solar capacity, 12 MW of battery power and 24 MWh of storage, and will be transferred to Statkraft for...
Victoria Funds Hastings Offshore Wind Terminal
The Victorian government has committed more than $124 million to advance the Victorian Renewable Energy Terminal at the Port of Hastings. The funding will underwrite the Environmental Effects Statement and related community consultations for a heavy‑duty offshore wind port. The terminal...
Taiwan Sugar, U.S. Group Ink MOU on Biofuel Cooperation
Taiwan Sugar Corp. signed a memorandum of understanding with the U.S. Grains & Bioproducts Council to deepen bioethanol cooperation. The agreement tasks Taiwan Sugar with completing a feedstock assessment by the second quarter of 2027, laying groundwork for expanded production. The...
R.Power, Axpo Sign Poland BESS Deal
R.Power and Swiss utility Axpo have signed a multi‑year agreement to optimise a 300 MW/1,200 MWh battery energy storage system in Dzięgielewo, Poland. The contract, the largest of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe, will run from commercial start‑up through 2038...
New Data Center Developments: May 2026
Aligned Data Centers announced Project Caprock, a 540 MW, 313‑acre data‑center campus in Hale County, Texas, slated for first delivery in Q1 2027 and projected to generate about $5 billion in economic impact. The rollout comes amid a wave of regulatory changes in the...
Peter Thiel Leads $140 Million Capital Raise for Panthalassa to Power AI Computing Using Ocean Waves
Panthalassa, an ocean‑technology firm, secured a $140 million Series B round led by Peter Thiel and PayPal to scale its wave‑powered AI computing nodes. The financing will fund a pilot manufacturing plant near Portland and the launch of the Ocean‑3 fleet in the...
California’s Battery Array Is as Powerful as 12 Nuclear Power Plants. Here’s What’s on the Horizon.
In late March, California’s grid discharged just over 12,000 MW from battery arrays—equivalent to the output of 12 large nuclear plants. The batteries covered more than 40% of the state’s peak‑hour demand, marking a rapid shift toward storage‑based capacity. Experts warn...
Solar Funding Hits $11.1bn in Q1
Solar companies secured over $11.1 bn in corporate funding across 53 deals in Q1 2026, a 131% year‑on‑year increase. Debt financing surged to $8.9 bn, the highest level in more than a decade, while venture‑capital funding fell 21% YoY but rose 74% quarter‑on‑quarter....
As PJM Reopens Interconnection Queue, Experts Warn Damage to Maryland’s Clean Energy Plans Is Already Done
PJM Interconnection reopened its generation queue after a four‑year shutdown, attracting 811 new projects that represent 220 GW of capacity. Natural‑gas proposals dominate with 105.8 GW, while storage leads in project count and solar and wind together account for less than 20 GW....
ST Unveils 100W VIPerGaN Converters for Energy-Efficient Appliances
STMicroelectronics announced two new 100 W VIPerGaN high‑voltage converters—VIPerGaN100W and VIPerGaN100WB—targeting energy‑efficient appliances and consumer electronics. The devices handle 3.5 A and 4.2 A drain currents respectively, support a universal 85‑265 V AC input, and can deliver up to 125 W peak power. Built on...
Global Renewables Alliance Unveils Partner Line-Up
The Global Renewables Alliance (GRA) announced its 2026 corporate partner roster, adding ten heavyweight firms such as Fortescue, Iberdrola, Ørsted and Vestas. The coalition spans developers, utilities, technology providers, investors and energy buyers, aiming to triple global renewable capacity by...
South Africa Poised for Record IPP Deployments in 2026
South Africa’s utility‑scale renewable and battery‑storage market is set for a record year, with 34 independent power producer (IPP) deals expected to close in 2026, delivering roughly 5,252 MW of new capacity. By the end of April, eight projects totalling 1,932 MW...
Oman Seeks Consultant for Green Hydrogen Project
Oman’s state‑owned Nama Power and Water Procurement (PWP) has issued a tender for a consultancy to conduct a techno‑economic feasibility study of a green‑hydrogen‑fueled independent power plant sized between 800 MW and 1 GW. The tender documents cost OMR 150 (about $390) and...
New Technique Measures Water Ingress in PV Modules without Disconnecting Them
A German research team has unveiled a nondestructive, on‑site technique that quantifies water ingress in photovoltaic (PV) modules using near‑infrared absorption (NIRA) spectroscopy calibrated against Karl‑Fischer titration (KFT). The method delivers absolute moisture content without opening the sealed modules, enabling...
Recreate Project: Repairable Rotor Blades for Wind Turbines
The EU‑funded Recreate project is developing a modular wind‑turbine rotor blade that can be repaired and recycled, addressing the growing composite waste from decommissioned turbines. The demonstrator features detachable adhesive joints for a replaceable leading edge, a pultruded continuous spar...
Western Australia Backs Grid Buildout Ahead of Coal Exit
Western Australia announced a AUD 1.4 billion ($1 billion) clean‑energy fund to finance transmission and network projects as its state‑owned coal plants close by 2030. The fund will back the Clean Energy Link (CEL) – East and CEL – North projects, which together aim to...
Deeptech Startup Reduciner Secures €3.6M to Convert Emissions Into Value
Espoo‑based deeptech startup Reduciner raised €3.6 million (approximately $3.9 million) from Voima Ventures, Lifeline Ventures and the Mikko Kodisoja Foundation, with VTT contributing the core technology as an in‑kind investment. The capital will accelerate commercialisation of its high‑temperature thermochemical process that converts...
Sponsored: From Backup to Built-In: Designing Power Systems for Continuous AI Performance
AI workloads are turning power from a backup function into a core operating system in data centers. Traditional designs that prioritize standby generation struggle under continuous high‑density loads, leading to efficiency losses and reliability concerns. Operators are adopting adaptive, hybrid...
Toyota and Hyroad Energy Launch Hydrogen Truck Deployment in California
Toyota Motor North America and Hyroad Energy have signed a definitive agreement to deploy 40 hydrogen fuel‑cell Class 8 trucks in Southern California. Hyroad will provide the vehicles, maintenance, data analytics and fleet‑management software, while Toyota will supply hydrogen from a...
EcoCeres to Invest HK$10 Billion in Sustainable Aviation Fuel Plants in Greater Bay Area
EcoCeres, backed by Peter Lee Ka‑kit's family office, announced a HK$10 billion ($1.3 billion) investment to build sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plants in Dongguan, part of a broader Greater Bay Area green‑energy push. The project aims to produce 450,000 tonnes of SAF and...
Eucalyptus Bark a Natural Fit as a Filter
RMIT University researchers have demonstrated that eucalyptus bark can be transformed into a versatile filtration medium capable of cleaning polluted water, scrubbing airborne contaminants, and sequestering carbon dioxide. Using a single-step carbonisation process, the team produced a porous carbon material...
Thinking of Plug-In Solar? Expert Highlights a Key Reason some UK Homes May Not Be Ready for It
Plug‑in solar panels are gaining attention in the UK as a low‑cost entry to household renewable energy, but experts warn that electrical system readiness varies widely. Renewables Electrical Engineer Kian Milroy of Heatable stresses that a simple plug‑in does not...
As Oil Prices Stay High, China Doubles Down on Wind Power
China is accelerating its wind‑power rollout as oil prices surge amid the Iran conflict, installing enough capacity last year to equal three times the rest of the world combined. Chinese turbine makers now dominate the global market, holding all six...