🌞 Energy Futures #44

Happy Monday 👋

The US committed $7B to expand the clean hydrogen industry through the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs program. Meanwhile, a $40B grid expansion is underway in the Midwest and Plains states to enhance reliability and support energy transition goals. Deltic Energy made a significant gas discovery in the UK Southern North Sea, with 131 billion cubic feet of recoverable resources. AstroForge secured a historic FCC license to mine asteroids for metals, launching its Odin mission in 2025. Additionally, Statera Energy secured $510M for its Thurrock flexible generation and storage project.

What's new?
HolonIQ’s new Green Skills Map and Workforce section reveal industry-wide sustainability skills and jobs, as well as workforce development initiatives, supporting upskilling for a sustainable economy.

🌅 New Energy

🌱 US Invests $7B in Clean Hydrogen Hubs. The US government announced a $7B investment in the Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs program, marking a significant milestone for the green hydrogen industry.

💡 CIF Helps Mobilize $1B for Turkey's Clean Energy Expansion. The Clean Investment Fund (CIF) raised $1B to expand Turkey’s clean energy capacity, targeting solar, wind, and energy storage projects. This funding supports Turkey's transition to renewable energy while improving energy infrastructure.

☀️ ESA’s SOLARIS Project Aims for Space-Based Solar Power by 2030s. The European Space Agency’s SOLARIS project explores space-based solar farms to wirelessly beam solar energy to Earth, bypassing atmospheric disruptions. The initiative includes studies by Thales Alania Space Italy and ENEL, aiming for efficient, continuous power transmission and contributing to carbon neutrality goals. A final decision on the project’s feasibility is expected by 2025.

🔌 Utilities

⚡ Historic $40B Grid Expansion in Central US. Grid operators in the Midwestern and Plains states are advancing plans for a $40B grid expansion to improve reliability and support the energy transition.

🔋 US-German collaboration gets $7.7M boost for subsea energy storage tech. The US and Germany are jointly funding a $7.7M project to advance low-cost subsea energy storage for grid decarbonization. US company Sperra and German partners will develop a scalable subsea pumped storage solution to meet renewable energy needs without relying on critical battery materials.

🔋 Saudi Arabia Opens 8 GWh Battery Storage Tender. The Saudi Power Procurement Company (SPPC) launched a tender for four 500 MW/2 GWh battery energy storage projects across Saudi Arabia, totaling 2 GW/8 GWh. These projects support the country’s goal of 50% renewable energy by 2030 and net-zero emissions by 2060.

⛽ Oil & Gas

🔥 Major gas discovery by Deltic Energy in UK offshore. Deltic Energy confirmed major gas discovery at the Selene prospect in the UK Southern North Sea, with estimates of 131 billion cubic feet in recoverable resources. The discovery features high-quality dry gas and will likely lead to simpler and cheaper development. 

⛽ UAE Leads Global Energy Sector, Signs Gas Supply Deal with India. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) continues to play a leading role in shaping the global energy sector. India's Minister of Petroleum Hardeep Singh Puri highlighted a recently signed long-term agreement with the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) to supply one million metric tonnes of gas annually to India.

💰 Mineral Resources signs $722M gas exploration deal with Hancock. Mineral Resources announced a significant $722M agreement with Hancock Prospecting for its Perth Basin gas exploration permits.

💎 Mining and Metals

🌍 AstroForge Envisions Mining Space to Address Earth's Resource Constraints. AstroForge, a startup aiming to mine asteroids for precious metals, secured a historic commercial license from the US FCC to operate space missions. Its first mission, Odin, is set for launch in January 2025 to extract metals from asteroids, addressing Earth's resource shortages.

🔥 Rising Global Coal Use Despite Climate Crisis. A recent analysis by the German environmental organization Urgewald found that global reliance on coal for energy production continues to grow despite its enormous damage to the climate, with few concrete plans to phase it out.

🏭 China Increases Coal Power Despite Green Energy Boom. China, the world's largest polluter, increased its coal power output despite global efforts to reduce reliance on coal to combat climate change.

🛠️ Skills and Workforce

HolonIQ is now tracking reskilling and upskilling initiatives critical in bridging workforce gaps. Impact industries are rapidly evolving, fueled by technological advancements, decarbonization, geopolitical dynamics, and socio-economic factors. To that extent, these sectors require considerable workforce/professional development initiatives to enhance workers' capabilities, boost economic growth, and promote social well-being. Read on for this week’s insights.

📖 LinkedIn has released its Green Skills Report 2024. The report reveals an 11.6% increase in the demand for green talent this year, outpacing a 5.6% growth in supply. Jobseekers with green skills are hired 54.6% faster, led by the US and Ireland. Demand is largely driven by the utilities, construction, and manufacturing sectors. However, only 1 in 10 women currently have a green skill compared to 1 in 5 men. LinkedIn urges governments to prioritize green upskilling in climate policies, advocating for COP29 to emphasize workforce investment for climate goals.

🌱 Proposition 4 has passed in California. $10 billion in climate bonds have been approved, to combat wildfires and create green jobs. It allocates $1.5B for wildfire preservation and $3.8B for water protection. Community colleges will expand training in clean energy, green construction, water management, and EV maintenance, preparing students for careers in climate resilience. Prioritizing disadvantaged communities, this measure supports workforce development in climate jobs, enhancing California’s environmental and economic future by enabling partnerships between community colleges and green industry employers.

⚡ Bute Energy has launched its Net Zero Skills Strategy. This program is tackling Wales’ green skills gap by engaging students and fostering upskilling partnerships. This initiative addresses the need for 25,000 green roles by 2050, reaching over 7,000 students with workshops, creating internships, and funding advanced education in green fields. Collaborating with Careers Wales and Cardiff University, Bute Energy supports green workforce readiness. Amidst a UK-wide green skills shortfall, this program underscores the critical need to cultivate a workforce prepared for the net-zero transition.

HolonIQ has launched the Green Skills Map, an open-source framework initiated to catalog, evaluate, and context components of the rapidly expanding field of green jobs. This comprehensive taxonomy will serve as a resource for understanding the full spectrum and complexity of green skills required across various sectors, thereby enabling a cohesive approach toward achieving net zero and decarbonizing the global economy. Green Skills Map spans 11 areas, 54 sub-areas, and 243 green skills clusters. A snippet of the map covering four areas has been included above. Explore the full map on greenskills.org.

💰 Energy Deals

💰 Statera Secures $510M Financing for Energy Project. Statera Energy secured $510M in financing for its Thurrock Flexible Generation project, including a 300 MW battery storage and 450 MW flexible generation plant. 

🔋 Primergy Solar Secures $225M for Valley of Fire Portfolio. Primergy Solar secured $225M in financing for its Valley of Fire (VoF) solar-plus-storage portfolio. This includes a $125 million tax credit sale for the Gemini Solar + Storage project, one of the largest in the US, and a $100 million revolving credit facility for additional VoF projects.

🔋 Jupiter Power Secures $225M Corporate Credit Facility to Accelerate Energy Storage Growth. Jupiter Power LLC, a utility-scale battery energy storage system developer and operator, secured a $225M corporate credit facility to accelerate its growth in the energy storage sector.

🔋 Birch Creek Secures $150M Credit Facility from KKR. Birch Creek Energy, a solar and storage developer, closed a $150M credit facility with global investment firm KKR.

🏭 Mainspring Energy Receives $87M for Pittsburgh Cleantech Manufacturing Facility. Mainspring Energy received $87M from the US Department of Energy to support domestic manufacturing of low-carbon energy technologies at a new cleantech manufacturing facility in Pittsburgh, which will create over 900 jobs.

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Thank you for reading. Have a great week ahead!
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