🌆 Infra Futures #15

Happy Monday 👋

Australia’s Powerlink, a 5,000 km undersea energy project, will connect the continent to Asia, aiming to transport solar energy across the ocean. Vietnam plans a $4.86B infrastructure investment for a 175 km expressway to link with Cambodia by 2026. The University of Maine initiated construction on the Green Engineering and Materials (GEM) building to support sustainable manufacturing research and immersive learning. In the UK, a $1.2B increase in capital budgets targets school and housing improvements. Additionally, HMC Capital will acquire data center operator Global Switch Australia for $1.3B, following Blackstone’s acquisition of data center group AirTrunk, expanding its digital infrastructure portfolio.

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.

🏗️ Energy Infrastructure

⚡ World's Largest Undersea Energy Project Links Australia and Asia. A massive undersea energy project called the Powerlink, spanning 5,000 Km and linking Australia and Asia across two continents, is being undertaken as an innovative idea to send solar energy across seas.

🌬️ OW receives approvals for a 1.3 GW offshore wind project in Massachusetts. The renewable developer Ocean Winds (OW), a joint venture of EDP Renewables and ENGIE, received approvals from the US State of Massachusetts to develop its 1.3 GW SouthCoast Wind 1 offshore wind project.

🏭 Norway and UNDP strengthen partnership to accelerate Ukraine's energy recovery. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Norway are strengthening their cooperation to rebuild Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

🚘 Transport Infrastructure

🚧 Vietnam Plans Massive Infrastructure Investment. The Vietnamese government announced plans for infrastructure works worth $4.86B covering 175km of expressway linking Vietnam and Cambodia will start in 2026.

🚆 Federal Government Allocates $2.4B for Railroad Projects Nationwide. The federal government is providing $2.4B in grants to fund 122 railroad projects across the country, with a majority of the funding going to smaller railroads.

🚢 Biden Announces $3B Investment for US Ports. US announced a $3B investment from his Inflation Reduction Act to improve the country's port infrastructure, including $147M for the Maryland Port Administration.

🏛️ Buildings

🏦 University of Maine Breaks Ground on Cutting-Edge Sustainable Manufacturing Research Facility. The University of Maine broke ground on the Green Engineering and Materials (GEM) building, a facility designed to house the Factory of the Future, incorporating digital manufacturing technologies and immersive learning spaces.

🏢 Massive Residential Development Proposed in Vaughan by Toromont Industries. Toromont Industries has proposed a massive 17-building residential development in Vaughan that could significantly transform the city's skyline.

🏫 Social Infrastructure

💰 $1.2B boost for schools and housing by UK government. The UK government announced an investment of $1.2B to increase capital budgets for schools and housing in the next fiscal year.

🏠 Irish Government Aims to Exceed Housing Target. Irish Prime Minister stated that the government would exceed its overall housing target, with the total figure expected to be well above 40,000 units.

🛠️ Skills and Workforce

HolonIQ is now tracking reskilling and upskilling initiatives that are 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.

🌱 UK must address green skills shortfall. The City & Guilds Impact Report 2024 revealed a significant increase in demand for green skills, with the organization providing 13,545 certifications in 2023-24. The report showed particularly strong support among business owners (76%) for investment in ecological, environmental, sustainability, and other ‘green skills’ essential to boosting short- and long-term productivity. More than a quarter of business owners (27%) identified green skills gaps in existing roles. 

📖 Cornwall College Empowers Students with Green Skills. Cornwall College is providing a Pre-16 Green Skills Construction Pathway to GCSE students across Cornwall to equip them with skills for a sustainable future. Partnering with local schools, Cornwall College has rolled out a series of workshops, assemblies, and after-school clubs, offering students a practical introduction to sustainable practices. The program has already generated a range of student-led projects, highlighting the efforts young people are making toward a greener future.

🎓 CHIETA Highlights Skills Development, Green Hydrogen Milestones. The Chemical Industries Education & Training Authority successfully trained and upskilled over 75,000 people in the chemical sector, of which 74% are youth. These people have acquired new skills that will significantly improve their employability and quality of life, contributing to employment creation and entrepreneurial opportunities across the country. 

🏫 Milton Keynes College Group Opens New Green Skills Centre. Milton Keynes College Group has opened a new Green Skills Centre, specializing in skills required to install energy storage systems, electric car charge points, and solar panels. The courses have been designed with significant input from employers including SJD Electrical Contractors & Engineers and solar and electric vehicle specialist Eden.

HolonIQ has launched the Green Skills Map, an open-source framework initiated for the purpose of cataloging, evaluating, and contextualizing the different 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.

💰 Infra Deals

💻 HMC Capital to Acquire Global Switch Australia for $1.3B. HMC Capital, an investment firm, is set to acquire Global Switch Australia, a data center operator, in a $1.3B deal. This comes after a Blackstone-led consortium recently acquired the larger data center group AirTrunk.

🚧 Construction Partners Acquires Asphalt Inc. for Expansion. Construction Partners, Inc. plans to acquire Asphalt Inc., LLC (Lone Star Paving) for $654.2M in cash and shares to expand its infrastructure capabilities and market position.

🚗 Blacklane Raises €60M in Series G Funding. Blacklane, a chauffeur services provider based in Berlin, Germany, raised $63.6M in Series G funding.

💰 Aecon Acquires United Engineers & Constructors for $33M. Aecon Group Inc. agreed to acquire United Engineers & Constructors Inc., a nuclear and conventional power contractor, from affiliates of CriticalPoint Capital, LLC for $33M.

💰 OCU Group Acquires Drilling Firm Peter McCormack & Sons. OCU Group, a private equity-backed utilities specialist, acquired Peter McCormack & Sons, a drilling firm.

💰 Artivo Surfaces acquires wholesale flooring distributor Tom Duffy. Artivo Surfaces, a multi-regional flooring company backed by Transom Capital, acquired wholesale flooring product distributor Tom Duffy.

🔩 Venturi Supply Acquires Cohn & Gregory. Venturi Supply, a Phoenix-based distributor of industrial products backed by Trive Capital, has acquired Cohn & Gregory, a provider of industrial products.

⚡ Resa Power Acquires Canadian Electrical Engineering Firm. Resa Power, backed by Investcorp, has acquired Prime Engineering, a Canadian full-service electrical design, engineering, supply, and services business.

Thank you for reading. Have a great week ahead!
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