Here is today’s sustainability news, research and analysis for technology partners; renewable energy and green IT service providers; management consultants; CIOs; chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and c-suite members.
A. Sustainable Technology, Talent, Partnerships and Green IT Alliances
1. Sustainable IT Services: Nebula Global Services has announced a blueprint to transform the global technology services market through the sustainable unification of people and tech.
2. Research - Climate Risk and CEOs: Fewer than 50% of CEOs have incorporated climate risk into their financial planning. Meanwhile, 55% of GDP (gross domestic product) is moderately or highly dependent on nature, PwC estimates. And nearly one-third expect climate change to alter the way they create, deliver and capture value over the next three years, PwC said.
3. Research - AI and Sustainability: Better use of robotics and AI could reduce U.S. CO2 emissions by roughly 18%, according to Gecko Robotics and Rho Impact research.
4. Tesla AI and Elon Musk: Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he would be uncomfortable growing the electric vehicle maker into a robotics and AI leader unless he owned at least 25% of its voting shares, nearly double Musk's current stake, SeekingAlpha reported.
5. Partnership - Google Cloud and Sustainability: Satelligence has achieved the Google Cloud Ready – Sustainability designation in the Google Cloud Partner Advantage Program. Satelligence leverages sensing technology to manage environmental risks such as deforestation, measure land-based carbon emissions and removals, and simplify reporting of sustainability performance, the company said.
6. Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Stations: LG Electronics has opened its first factory in the U.S. for assembling EV charging stations, Reuters noted. The factory is based in Fort Worth, Texas.
7. Partner Program: Exeger, a Swedish deep tech company focused on solar cell technology known as Powerfoyle, has joined the Arm Partner Program. Through the partnership, Exeger wants to help IoT companies as they develop next-generation solar powered solution.
8. Shipping: FedEx has unveiled fdx -- an end-to-end e-commerce solution for businesses of all sizes. The platform allows customers to view detailed carbon emissions data through FedEx Sustainability Insights software.
9. Wind Power Setbacks: Norwegian energy firm Equinor will tow the five Siemens Gamesa turbines at the world’s first floating offshore wind farm to shore for “heavy maintenance” this summer, WindPower Monthly reported. Separately, a wind turbine collapsed and caught fire in northern Colorado , startling neighbors who heard banging noises prior to the collapse, CBS Colorado reported.
10. Talent - Financial Services: Flexstone Partners has named Samira Boussem as managing director & head of Sustainability. Boussem is based in France.
11. Talent - Consulting: Bain & Co. has named Christophe De Vusser to succeed Manny Maceda as worldwide managing director and CEO, effective July 1, 2024. Under Maceda's leadership since 2018, Bain has made 25 acquisitions or minority investments to address such opportunities as AI, sustainability and supply chain management, the company noted.
12. Al Gore's Latest Warning: Al Gore alleges that some countries are trying to wiggle out of a COP28 agreement to transition away from fossil fuels, Bloomberg reported.
13. Apple Board - Al Gore Exits: Former U.S. vice president and climate activist Al Gore is exiting Apple's board because he has reached the board's mandatory retirement age of 75.
14. COP29 - Getting Organized: Ilham Aliyev, president of the Republic of Azerbaijan, has signed a decree to establish COP29's organizational committee.
B. Sustainability M&A, Investments, Funding and Green IT Business Launches
1. Investment - Battery Technology: Stellantis Ventures has invested in Tiamat, a France-based company that is developing and commercializing sodium-ion battery technology. Sodium-ion technology holds the promise of a more cost-effective energy storage compared with today’s widely used lithium-ion battery technology, Stellantis said.
2. Funding - Recycling: Resynergi has raised $6.4 million in series B funding. The startup develops plastic recycling technology.
3. Funding - Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Infrastructure: EQT Infrastructure has invested more money into InstaVolt -- which positions itself as the UK's largest EV rapid charging network. Financial terms of this funding round were not disclosed. EQT has owned InstaVolt since February 2022. InstaVolt plans to install 11,000 chargers in the UK and Ireland, 5,000 across Spain and Portugal, and over 300 in Iceland, the company said.
4. Funding - Battery Manufacturing and Recycling: Northvolt has raised $5 billion to expand its battery manufacturing and recycling efforts in northern Sweden.
5. Funding - Data Centers: Octopus Energy has invested £200 million into Deep Green -- a startup company that distributes data center heat for free to public swimming pools and heat networks. In return, Deep Heat gains free cooling.
6. M&A - Infrastructure Investing: General Atlantic has acquired sustainable infrastructure investor Actis. The combined businesses will have $96 billion in assets under management (AUM). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
7. M&A - Market Research and Data Management: Market research firm Ipsos has acquired data analytics firm Jarmany of the the UK. The deal opens up new opportunities in such fields as ESG, the companies said. Ipsos has nearly 20,000 employees. Jarmany has roughly 70 employees. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
8. M&A - Smart Grid Software: Electric Power Engineers has acquired ENER-i.AI, a SaaS software provider that helps customers to plan, operate and design modern power grids. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
9. M&A - Environmental Consulting: Celnor has acquired a majority stake in Assurity Consulting, an independent workplace health, safety, and environmental compliance consultancy. This is Celnor's second acquisition the past two months or so. The company acquired Brownfield Solutions in November 2023.
10. M&A: Suma Capital has acquired CH4T of Verona, Italy. CH4T specializes in the management of biomethane plants for energy use. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal is part of the SC Climate Impact Fund III, a €300 million fund. Additional investments involving the fund include Adec Global (slag valorization and aggregates treatment), Zamora Eco Energías (renewable heat networks) or Biometano Montes de Toledo (biomethane and compost production).
11. M&A - Modeling Software: Synopsys has finalized terms to acquire Ansys for about $35 billion in cash and stock, Reuters reported. Rumors about the deal have swirled since December 2023.
12. Complete M&A List: Here's our database of all M&A deals involving sustainability, green IT and renewable energy buyers, sellers and investors.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. United States - California Climate Law Delays?: Governor Gavin Newsom's proposed state budget -- which prioritizes closing the deficit -- could pause the enactment of newly signed California climate laws such as SB 253 and 261, GreenBiz reported.
2. Africa - Infrastructure Funding: The Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund (EAIF) has raised $294 million in debt capital to invest in projects on the continent as well as diversifying into Asia, Bloomberg reported.
D. Sustainability and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- World Economic Forum 2024 Annual Meetings (January 15-19, Davos, Switzerland)
- Intersolar North America and Energy Storage North America 2024 (January 17-19, San Diego, California)
- CleanTech Forum 2024 North America (January 22-24, San Diego, California)
- Recycling, Circular Design & Sustainable Sourcing for EV Batteries and Carbon Neutral Vehicles USA Conference 2024 (January 23-25, Detroit, Michigan)
- Sustainable Foods Summit 2024 (January 24-25, San Francisco, California)
- Complete Calendar of Sustainability Conferences
E. Previous Updates & Future News
- Did You Miss Yesterday's Daily Update?: Here is our previous sustainability, green IT and renewable energy news for technology partners.
- Future Updates: If you have news to share then please email me the details.
