Here is today’s sustainability news, research and analysis for technology partners, management consultants, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and c-suite members.
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A. Sustainable Technology, Talent, Partnerships and Alliances
1. Corporate Sustainability Reports Database: Our database tracking corporate sustainability reports and associated net-zero goals GHG emissions goals now spans 228 companies and organizations. Today's additions include GenCell Energy; IT consulting firm and custom software developer SoftServe; and Vista Energy of Mexico.
2. Sustainability Partner Programs Database: Our database tracking sustainability partner programs from technology and energy companies has grown to 110 technology and energy companies. The latest additional is GenCell Energy. Search the database for green IT, renewable energy and circular economy solutions.
3. Energy Partnership - Data Centers: Constellation Energy has inked an agreement with Microsoft to "significantly reduce the carbon footprint of one of Microsoft’s data centers in Boydton, Virginia." Under the agreement, the facility will receive up to 35% in environmental attributes from nuclear power, complementing Microsoft's new wind and solar purchases, the companies said. The agreement puts Microsoft "very close to its goal of operating the data center on 100 percent carbon-free electricity around the clock," the companies said.
4. Electric Vehicle Fleet: Amazon will leverage more than 300 Rivian electric delivery vans in Germany within the next few weeks.
5. Talent: Systra, a mobility and mass transit consultancy that serves the UK and Ireland, has hired Romain Pison as head of ESG. Third-party reports positioned Pison as director of decarbonization.
6. Research - End of Life Data: Nearly 40% of global businesses have yet to act on sustainability issues caused by end-of-life (EOL) data, Blancco research found. Among the areas of concern: Hoarded data harms businesses’ environmental, social, and governance (ESG) ambitions, the report said.
7. Clean Energy - Metals Shortage: Management consulting firm McKinsey & Co. joined the growing chorus warning that metals considered key to the clean-energy transition face shortages in coming years, potentially suppressing the adoption of electric cars, wind turbines and solar panels, Bloomberg reported.
B. Sustainability M&A, Investments and Funding
1. M&A: Schneider Electric is negotiating to acquire Atos Group's EcoAct SAS business -- which offers climate consulting and net-zero solutions. The business unit, featuring roughly 400 employees, generated revenue of roughly €70 million (US$76.17 million) in 2022. The proposed deal does not include Atos’ digital Net Zero Transformation practice (part of Eviden business).
2. M&A: Energy transition firm Technip Energies has acquired Processium, an expert company in process development, equipped with laboratory and piloting facilities located in Lyon, France. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
3. M&A: Private equity firm ArcLight Capital Partners is acquiring Duke Energy's commercial distributed generation business for $364 million. The deal includes REC Solar operating assets, development pipeline and O&M portfolio, as well as distributed fuel cell projects managed by Bloom Energy, the companies said.
4. All M&A Activity: Our M&A database has now tracked 89 mergers and acquisitions involving sustainability so far in 2023. See all M&A deals involving sustainability listed here.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. United States - New York Solar Power: Altus Power has completed the development and construction of a 4.8 megawatt (MW) ground-mounted solar array in Cayuga County, New York. The array is part of 15 megawatts Altus Power expects to complete across New York during 2023.Â
2. Europe - Solar Energy Surplus: European power prices fell below zero again as production from solar farms overwhelmed the grid on July 4, Bloomberg reported.
3. Singapore: The Monetary Authority of Singapore has set aside about 2% of its equities portfolio or just over S$8 billion ($6 billion) to a climate transition program, Bloomberg reported.
4. UAE: The United Arab Emirates plans to invest as much as $54 billion on renewables over the next seven years as part of efforts to reach net zero emissions by 2050, Bloomberg reported.
D. Previous Updates & Future News
1. What You Missed: Did you miss our daily updates from Monday, July 3, 2023? Here they are.
2. Future Updates: Send Us Your News Tips. Please email me the details.
