Here is today’s sustainability, Net Zero and circular economy news, research and analysis. This daily update is designed for technology partners, management consultants, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and c-suite members.
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Our updates for Monday, April 10, 2023 include…
A. Sustainability and Net-Zero Partnerships, Research & News
1. Careers - Green Energy Training: The U.S. Department of Energy plans to provide $72 million in funding to help train workers for emerging jobs in a green energy sector, UPI reported.
2. Consulting - City Climate Action Plans: The city of Kent, Ohio has hired sustainability services firm Keramida Inc. to help develop a Climate Action Plan for the municipality, according to The Record-Courier. This is the second Keramida business win that we've spotted in recent weeks. The other one involved a $50,000 agreement with Prairie Village, Kansas, according to the Shawnee Mission Post.
B. Sustainability Funding, Financing, Mergers & Acquisitions
1. Funding - Big Data and Climate Change: Hohonu, a Hawaii-based climate tech startup, has raised $1.8 million in pre-seed funding to "provide actionable data and insights to mitigate coastal flooding both nationally and internationally including Asia and the Pacific." Hohonu’s technology is currently deployed in 95 locations across the U.S., having captured over 900,000 hours of water level data across 12 coastal states. Its existing customers include sub-agencies of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Environmental Consulting Firms, Coastal Managers, and Environmental NGOs.
2. Funding - IT Asset Management: entrio, a developer of IT asset management software for enterprises, has raised raised $7.5 million in funding led by Communitas Capital Partners. Moreover, BNY Mellon, Vintage Investment Partners, Alicorn and former Goldman Sachs CIO Elisha Wiesel joined the round. The software allows customers to track their technology stacks, while seeking to unlock saving from compliance penalty avoidance, vendor consolidation and other hidden costs that can be eliminated.
C. Sustainability and Net-Zero Government Policies & Regional News
1. United States - Texas Electric Grid: A fleet of new natural gas-fired power plants in Texas may cost $18 billion, according to the LCRA. That's much more than an earlier estimate, as lawmakers attempt to improve the state’s electric grid after its deadly failure in 2021, Bloomberg reported.
2. Europe - Financial Services & ESG Regulations: Banks that operate within the European Union are preparing to meet ESG risk disclosure mandates by 2024, Tata Consultancy Services notes. Indeed, banks are "focusing on article 449a of the Capital Requirements Regulation (CRR), which mandates disclosure on environmental, social and governance (ESG) risks. It is expected to help capital markets reduce information asymmetry, mitigate environmental risks, and leverage new business opportunities while adapting to climate change," Tata notes. The overall Tata article describes how EU banks can ensure efficient ESG risk disclosure by 2024.
3. Japan: Mitsubishi said that it and other shareholders of the Monsoon wind power project in Laos have raised $692 million in financing for the wind farm, Reuters reported.
4. Japan: A coalition of climate groups are stepping up pressure on Japan's top three banks to cut financing linked to fossil fuels, filing shareholder resolutions to be voted on at the companies' annual general meetings in June 2023, Reuters reported.
5. Pakistan: Saudi Arabia will provide a $240 million loan to co-finance Pakistan's multi-purpose Mohmand dam project, EnergyWorld reported.
D. Send Us Your News Tips
Got news tips, research or data to share? Please email me the details.
