Here is today’s sustainable IT services and climate tech news, research and analysis -- written for technology partners, green IT service providers, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and climate accounting professionals.
A. Sustainable IT, Talent, Partnerships and Green Tech Alliances
1. Cloud Services: Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability has gained new AI services, the company said.
2. Partnership - AI Data Centers: Schneider Electric has collaborated with Nvidia for a new AI data center cooling and infrastructure design, the two companies said. The effort focuses heavily on sustainable IT services.
3. E-Waste Reduction and ITAD (IT Asset Disposition): ERI, which positions itself as the nation's largest ITAD provider, now maintains eight e-waste recycling facilities, including a key facility in Sumner, Washington, the company said.
4. Recycling and E-Waste Reduction: Micro Center, the computer and electronics retailer, has announced a recycling program. The second is a partnership with non-profit organization Compudopt for donating used desktops and laptops, further reducing waste and providing digital access to underserved communities.
5. Partnership - Data Centers: Upsite Technologies, a provider of data center airflow management and cooling optimization solutions, has joined the Green Building Initiative (GBI) -- a nonprofit organization dedicated to "improving the built environment's impact on climate and society, and the attainment of net-zero goals for carbon emissions."
6. CEO - Carbon Accounting Software: Sebastien Blanc has succeeded Normative Founder Kristian Rönn as CEO.
7. CEO - Solar Technology: SolarEdge Technologies promoted Chief Marketing Officer Shuki Nir to CEO. He succeeds interim CEO Ronen Faier. The company has had three rounds of layoffs in 2024, and recently disclosed plans to close its energy storage division. Faier led SolarEdge after Zvi Lando stepped down as CEO in August of 2024.
8. Business Honor: Alchemy earned a ‘Growing New Technology’ Award at this year’s Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Awards Ireland, in association with Google. Alchemy specializes in recover, refresh and remarket services for IT and consumer devices.
9. AWS and AI Chips: AWS showed new data center servers packed with its own AI chips that will challenge Nvidia, with Apple coming aboard as a customer to use them, Reuters reported. The new servers leverage 64 AWS Trainium2 chips.
10. Partnership - EV Charging: EVgo and General Motors (GM) have surpassed 2,000 public fast charging stalls, the two companies said.
11. AI Lawsuits: OpenAI CEO Sam Altman says he thinks the "The New York Times is on the wrong side of history in many ways” with its lawsuit against OpenAI, AdWeek reported.
B. Sustainability M&A, Climate Tech Investments, Funding and Green IT Business Launches
1. M&A - Waste Management: Blue Planet Environmental Solutions has acquired Smart Environmental Group Limited, a major provider of waste management solutions in New Zealand.
2. M&A - Solar Infrastructure: Apollo has acquired a 50% stake in a Texas solar and battery energy storage system (BESS) portfolio from TotalEnergies, which will retain the 50% of the business.
3. M&A - Renewable Energy: French oil major TotalEnergies has agreed to buy German renewable developer VSB Group for 1.57 billion euros ($1.65 billion) from Swiss asset manager Partners Group, Reuters reported.
4. Complete M&A List: Here's our database of all M&A deals involving green IT and renewable energy buyers, sellers and investors.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. United States - Solar Panel Tariffs: The bill may soon come due for millions of Southeast Asian solar panels imported duty-free into the US that haven’t been installed by a Dec. 3 deadline, Bloomberg reported.
2. United States - Climate Lawsuit: The town of Carrboro, North Carolina, has filed a lawsuit against Duke Energy, claiming the utility has deceived its customers and the broader public about the environmental dangers caused by fossil fuels, The New York Times and SeekingAlpha reported.
3. European Union: The European Commission has launched €4.6 billion in funding under the Innovation Fund to accelerate decarbonization and enhance Europe’s green technologies, ESG News reported.
4. European Union - Regulations Simplified?: The European Union (EU) is preparing to streamline its sustainability regulations through an Omnibus Simplification Package, expected to be published in February 2025, Seneca ESG reported. This initiative, announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, aims to ease the regulatory burden on businesses while retaining the essence of climate-focused legislation, the report said.
D. Sustainable IT and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- International Conference on Sustainable Energy and Green Technology - SEGT 2024 (December 15-18, Thailand)
- Complete Calendar of Sustainability Conferences
E. Previous Updates & Future News
