Hyperscaler Capex Snowballs Toward $700B as Firms Stage AI Builds
Moody’s forecasts that the six largest U.S. hyperscalers will spend about $700 billion on capital expenditures in 2026, roughly six times the 2022 level. The spending surge is driven by exploding demand for AI compute capacity to train models and support inferencing. To mitigate risk, firms such as Microsoft, AWS, Meta, Alphabet, Oracle and CoreWeave are staging data‑center builds and linking them to contracted demand. Analysts warn that the heavy outlays are straining free cash flow and increasing debt, with capex expected to climb to $820 billion in 2027 and potentially exceed $1 trillion by 2030.
How Ann Arbor, Michigan, Is Creating Its Own Clean Energy Utility
Ann Arbor is piloting a city‑run Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU) in the Bryant neighborhood, offering residents solar panels, battery storage and other clean‑energy assets while remaining connected to the existing grid. The program, approved by 80% of voters, will be...
Spain Warns EU Against Suspending Carbon Market to Try to Lower Energy Prices
Spain’s government warned the European Union that suspending the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) to curb soaring energy prices would be counter‑productive. Madrid argues the carbon market is a cornerstone of the bloc’s climate agenda and that a pause could...
Remote Communities Are More Vulnerable to Fuel Price Shocks – Could Microgrids Help?
Australia’s remote communities, home to about 500,000 people, rely on diesel generators for electricity, making them highly vulnerable to global fuel price shocks. Recent federal actions—temporarily relaxing fuel standards and releasing domestic reserves—aim to ease supply pressures for regional farms,...
Triple-Junction Solar Cells with Improved Carrier and Photon Management
Researchers have demonstrated a perovskite‑perovskite‑silicon triple‑junction solar cell that reaches a certified 30.02 % power conversion efficiency on a 1 cm² substrate. The breakthrough combines a non‑volatile additive, 4‑hydroxybenzylamine, which aligns crystal growth and suppresses non‑radiative recombination in the wide‑bandgap top cell,...
One Big Beautiful Bill (“OB3”) And FEOC: Current Considerations for Debt Financings
The One Big Beautiful Bill (OB3), enacted in July 2024, reshapes renewable energy tax credit eligibility by adding prohibited foreign entity (PFE) and foreign entity of concern (FEOC) restrictions. Treasury’s interim guidance (Notice 2026‑15) introduces a material‑assistance cost ratio (MACR) for...
Who’s Who in Tech: Equatic Is ‘Sinking’ in the Ocean
Equatic, a Santa Monica carbon‑removal startup, secured $11.6 million Series A funding to build a 100‑kiloton ocean‑based CO₂ capture plant that also produces green hydrogen. The technology electrolyzes seawater with renewable power, generating base that pulls carbon from the air while the...
Clēnera Raises US$304 Million for 120MW Solar-Plus-Storage Project in Idaho
Clēnera, the U.S. arm of Enlight Renewable Energy, secured US$304 million to fund the 120 MW Crimson Orchard solar‑plus‑storage project in Idaho. The development pairs 120 MW of photovoltaic capacity with 400 MWh of battery storage and is under construction in Elmore County. Clēnera...
Who’s Who in Tech: Critical Loop Is Powering Solutions
Critical Loop, founded in 2023 by Bala Ramamurthy, Andrew Grinalds and Lydia Maher, creates mobile microgrids that can deliver megawatts of power within weeks. The company targets energy‑desert locations such as islands, remote military bases, and high‑demand industrial sites. Falling...
Who’s Who in Tech: Arbor Energy Is Cooling the Market
Arbor Energy, founded in 2021 by Brad Hartwig and Andres Garcia Clark, secured a $55 million Series A round to accelerate its modular, turbine‑centered power stations. The company’s 25‑megawatt, fuel‑flexible units aim to supply clean baseload power for AI‑driven data centers that...
€1.6bn Irish Data Center Proposed in 2019 Finally Gets Go-Ahead
Art Data Centres secured final approval for a €1.6 billion, 200 MW data‑centre campus in County Clare after a six‑year legal battle involving environmental challenges and judicial review. The project, approved in 2022 and upheld through appeals, will feature six halls, off‑grid...
Hive Expanding Buzz Cloud Footprint in Canada
Hive Digital Technologies announced a four‑fold expansion of its Buzz HPC liquid‑cooled data‑center campus, raising total Canadian capacity from 4 MW to 16.6 MW. The rollout adds a new 5 MW colocation facility in British Columbia with an optional 7.6 MW boost, enabling support for...
Reliance Industries Signs $3 Billion Green Ammonia Supply Deal with Samsung C&T
Reliance Industries Limited has signed a binding 15‑year supply agreement with South Korea’s Samsung C&T to deliver green ammonia, a deal valued at over $3 billion and slated to begin in the second half of FY2029. The contract ranks among the...
Proposed Maine Moratorium Could Scupper Plan for Data Center in Old Paper Mill
Sentinel Data Centers, via developer JGT2 Redevelopment, plans a 1 million‑square‑foot data center on the former International Paper mill in Jay, Maine. The project, slated to begin construction in July, promises 800‑1,000 construction jobs and 125 permanent positions, with a proposed...
Data Center Cooling Systems and Technologies and How They Work
Data center cooling is becoming a strategic priority as AI‑driven and hyperscale workloads push power densities higher, forcing facilities to manage heat more aggressively. The global cooling market is forecast to grow at roughly 14% annually through 2033, with U.S....
RWE at the Upper End of Its 2025 EBITDA and Profit Guidance - €35 Billion for Wind Power, Solar and...
RWE reported 2025 adjusted EBITDA of €5.1 bn and net income of €1.8 bn, landing at the top of its guidance range despite a dip from 2024. The German utility announced a €35 bn net investment programme through 2031 aimed at adding roughly...
Japan’s Largest Offshore Wind Farm Enters Commercial Operation: 220-MW Kitakyushu Hibikinada Offshore Wind Farm Feeds Electricity Into the Grid
Japan’s largest offshore wind farm, the 220 MW Kitakyushu Hibikinada project, began commercial operation in early March 2026. The facility comprises 25 turbines of 9.6 MW each and is expected to generate about 500 million kWh annually, enough for roughly 170,000 households. Operated by...
Dutch Startup Plans Roll-to-Roll Factory for Perovskite Solar Cells
Dutch research institute TNO has spun off Perovion Technologies to industrialise lightweight, flexible perovskite solar cells. The company aims to construct the first roll‑to‑roll perovskite manufacturing line in the Netherlands by 2030, targeting applications where glass panels are impractical. A...
Arctech Presents Dry Cleaning Robot Weighing Just 38 Kg
Chinese firm Arctech Solar has launched the Star Shine I, a 38 kg autonomous dry‑cleaning robot for utility‑scale photovoltaic plants. The robot can travel 10‑18 m per minute, covering up to 3 km round‑trip (9 km one‑way) and achieves more than 99.5 % cleaning efficiency....
Ciemat Unveils Large-Area Multispectral Solar Simulator for PV Module Testing
CIEMAT has launched a large‑area multispectral solar simulator designed for precise electrical characterization of full‑size photovoltaic modules. The system delivers better than 0.4% spatial irradiance uniformity, 500 ms LED illumination pulses and dynamic I‑V acquisition, enabling single‑pulse testing of high‑capacitance modules....
Schneider Electric Introduces Variable Speed HVAC Drives to Support Energy Savings
Schneider Electric launched two variable‑speed HVAC drives, the ATH200 and ATH600, promising more than 30% energy savings and robust operation in temperatures from –10 °F to 60 °F. The drives are built for OEMs serving commercial and mission‑critical buildings, featuring native Modbus...
Ormat Technologies Begins Commercial Operations at 320MWh California BESS
Ormat Technologies announced that its 80 MW/320 MWh Shirk battery energy storage system in Visalia, California, entered commercial operation on March 12, 2026, meeting the City of Riverside’s 15‑year resource adequacy contract deadline. The project qualifies for a 40% investment tax credit, which Ormat...
Why the EU Commission’s Plan for an AI Data-Centres Boom Is Short-Sighted
European Commission's AI Continent Action Plan proposes tripling data‑centre capacity in five to seven years via the draft CAIDA regulation. The draft fast‑tracks permits for land, water and energy, sidelining local communities and environmental safeguards. Critics cite ongoing conflicts in...
Canada's Bell Announces 300MW Data Center Campus in Saskatchewan, Names CoreWeave & Cerebras as Customers
Bell Canada announced a 300 MW data‑center campus near Regina, Saskatchewan, slated to begin construction this spring. The facility, Bell’s largest investment in the province, will be pre‑leased to AI cloud provider CoreWeave and wafer‑scale chip maker Cerebras. The first data...
Google Pledges $1bn Investment in North Carolina Data Centers
Google announced a $1 billion investment to expand its Lenoir, North Carolina data center, which already supports core services such as Maps, Photos, Search, Workspace, and YouTube. The expansion will add roughly 60 acres to the 337,000‑square‑foot campus, though detailed timelines...
Is Switzerland Going Back Contact?
Back‑contact (BC) solar modules from Aiko Solar and Longi captured over 50% of Switzerland's rooftop PV market in 2025, driven by a premium on module efficiency rather than price. The report notes a gradual decline in the AC/DC ratio to...
Pii Energy Unveils Plug-In 1.2 kW Solar, 2 kWh Home System
Pii Energy has introduced the Edge 2000, a plug‑in solar‑plus‑storage kit aimed at renters and apartment dwellers. The system pairs 1.2 kW of photovoltaic panels with a 2 kWh battery, ten smart outlets, and a Raspberry Pi‑driven controller. Priced at roughly $2,400, it...
VIDEO: Europe’s First 100GW of Energy Storage and What’s Next, with Energy Storage Europe
Europe achieved its first cumulative 100 GW of energy storage by the end of 2025, split evenly between lithium‑ion battery systems and pumped hydro facilities. Jacopo Tosoni, deputy secretary‑general of Energy Storage Europe, highlighted upcoming EU policy shifts to increase domestic...
Finlight, Atrato Merge, Target 2GW of Operational Distributed Solar PV Capacity in Europe by 2030
Finlight and Atrato Onsite Energy have merged under the Finlight brand, creating one of Europe’s largest distributed‑generation operators. The combined entity now manages 700 MW of commercial‑industrial solar and 23,000 residential projects across the UK, Spain and Portugal. Finlight will invest...
India May Soften New Grid-Supply Rules for Renewable Power Producers
India’s power regulator, the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, drafted stricter grid‑supply rules for wind and solar producers, including hefty penalties for missing commitments. After developers warned the measures could erode revenues and deter clean‑energy investment, the government asked CERC to...
The Pipeline: Data Centres to ‘Lower Electricity Prices’, ECP VI Reaches $3.7bn, EQT Wades Into UK Water
Infrastructure Investor’s weekly briefing highlights three major developments: data centre operators are positioning themselves to drive down electricity costs, the European Climate Platform’s sixth fund (ECP VI) has closed at $3.7 billion, and private‑equity firm EQT has entered the UK water market....
The Frog Is Dead: North America’s Power Grid Faces Its Biggest Reckoning in a Generation
North America’s power grid is confronting a rapid demand surge, driven by a data‑center boom, reshoring of manufacturing, and broader electrification, pushing load growth to 2‑3% annually. Utilities are scrambling to replace retiring baseload plants while adding intermittent renewables, creating...
Cambodia Welcomes ‘Significant and Historic Achievement’ of 1GWh Grid-Forming Battery Storage Project
Cambodia has commissioned a 500 MW/1 GWh grid‑forming battery energy storage system in Pursat province, the country’s first and largest of its kind. Developed by local firm SchneiTec, the BESS uses grid‑forming inverters to provide inertia and voltage support, bolstering grid reliability...
Ukraine Prioritizes Solar-Plus-Storage in Renewables Auctions
Ukraine enacted Law No. 4777-IX, overhauling 15 energy‑market statutes and creating a dedicated solar‑plus‑storage auction track. The new framework extends renewable support to 2034, mandates a minimum 10% quota for solar‑plus‑storage, and sets a €0.12/kWh price ceiling. It also eases...
SBTi Approves Adform’s Near-Term Science-Based Emissions Reduction Target
Adform’s near‑term science‑based emissions‑reduction targets have been validated by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). The company pledges a 42% absolute cut in Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse‑gas emissions by 2030, using 2024 as a baseline, and a 51.6% intensity reduction in...
Landsec Brings in Partner to Roll Out Retail Portfolio EV Charging Network
Landsec has struck a 20‑year partnership with RAW Charging to install a £24.5 million electric‑vehicle charging network across its flagship retail destinations. The rollout will deliver 1,000 charging bays – 554 AC fast and 446 DC rapid – at 28 sites,...
Third GE Turbine Blade Breaks Off at Troubled Wind Farm
A third turbine blade has broken off a GE Vernova 5.3 MW Cypress turbine at Sweden’s Björkvattnet wind farm, which supplies most of its power to Google under a long‑term PPA. The farm, operated by OX2 for investor Infravia, has already...
Why Polestar’s Industry-Leading Approach To Sustainability Is A Breath Of Fresh Air
Polestar has cemented its reputation as a sustainability pioneer by publishing full Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) reports for every model since 2020, a practice still rare in the automotive sector. The latest LCA for the Polestar 5 grand tourer shows a...
China Signals ETS Expansion as Compliance Rules Prepare Steel, Cement Sectors
China’s 2024 work report confirmed plans to broaden its national emissions trading system beyond power to heavy‑industry sectors such as steel, cement and aluminium. New compliance rules now require these firms to report and verify emissions, laying the groundwork for...
New York Cooks Up a Plan to Boost Energy Efficiency in Public Housing
New York State has pledged $32 million to replace gas stoves with induction models in public‑housing units, beginning with a full‑building pilot on the Bronx’s Seneca Avenue. The program targets indoor air‑quality improvements and compliance with Local Law 97’s emissions goals, especially...
JST’s OD3Mag™ Outdoor Breaker Offers Robust Upgrade at Utility Substation in Pacific Northwest
Salem Electric selected JST Power Equipment’s OD3Mag outdoor substation breaker to replace an aging unit at its Oregon facility, prioritizing a rugged enclosure that can endure the Pacific Northwest’s wet climate. The breaker’s magnetic actuation reduces maintenance effort, while its...
5 Things You Need to Know About Advanced Conductors
Advanced conductors, especially Aluminum‑Encapsulated Carbon Core (AECC), are now mainstream, offering higher ampacity without the thermal sag of traditional ACSS. Reconductoring with AECC lets utilities boost transmission capacity quickly, avoiding new right‑of‑way permits and costly structural upgrades. Projects report 30‑40%...
Sweden Grants Permit to Just Three Wind Farms in 2025
Sweden approved permits for only three wind farms in 2025, totaling 12 turbines and roughly 0.25 TWh of annual generation. The Swedish Energy Agency’s 2035 scenario calls for about 5.4 TWh of new on‑shore wind each year, a gap the current approvals...
European Energy Inaugurates Lancaster Solar Farm
European Energy commissioned the 108 MW Lancaster Solar Farm in Victoria, delivering power to Apple under a long‑term power purchase agreement. The facility comprises roughly 170,000 solar panels and was inaugurated during the Danish Royal Couple’s state visit, with Yorta Yorta community...
Scientists Unlock a Powerful New Way to Turn Sunlight Into Fuel
Researchers at Helmholtz‑Zentrum Dresden‑Rossendorf introduced a reproducible theoretical framework for designing polyheptazine imide photocatalysts. Using many‑body perturbation theory, they modeled the effect of 53 different metal ions on charge separation and visible‑light absorption. Experimental synthesis of eight ion‑doped materials confirmed...
Did Fake Comments Sink SoCal Clean Heat Rules? Advocates Want Answers.
Southern California regulators rejected a landmark clean‑heat rule that would have pushed electric heat pumps and phased down new gas heaters, after receiving more than 20,000 public comments opposing the proposal. An investigation by the Los Angeles Times found that...
Ni‐Atom Induced Interface Water Reorientation Around Ru Clusters for Alkaline Hydrogen Evolution Reaction
Researchers introduced single Ni atoms into Ru clusters supported on nitrogen‑boron doped carbon to manipulate interfacial water structure for alkaline hydrogen evolution. The Ni atoms shift the charge distribution of Ru, causing K⁺·H₂O hydrate molecules to reorient and bind more...
How Frankfurt Airport Is Making the Energy Transition Real
Frankfurt Airport’s operator Fraport is executing a multi‑pronged renewable energy plan that combines long‑term offshore wind power purchase agreements with on‑site vertical photovoltaic installations. Starting mid‑2026, an 85 MW PPA with the He Dreiht wind farm will supply roughly 372 GWh of...
Wastewater Will Cool This Memphis Data Center
Elon Musk's xAI has equipped its Memphis Colossus supercomputer with a dedicated wastewater‑to‑cooling system, diverting roughly 3 million gallons per day from the city’s treatment plant. The on‑site treatment facility, slated for completion in late 2026, purifies non‑potable water for the...
Semiconducting Covalent Organic Frameworks as Functional Dopants for Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells
Researchers introduced pyrene‑based covalent organic frameworks (PyCOFs) as bulk dopants for formamidinium lead iodide (FAPbI3) perovskite solar cells. The COFs feature π‑conjugated linkages and Lewis‑basic groups (–C≡N, –C═N–, –SH) that coordinate with undercoordinated Pb2+ sites, passivating deep traps without altering...