The £300 million funding round was led by the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) and multinational energy leviathan Centrica, supported by investors including Rio Tinto, Goldman Sachs, KIRKBI and Mosaic Capital.

The investment will enable the construction of one of the world’s largest long duration energy storage (LDES) facilities in Carrington, Manchester, using Highview’s proprietary LAES technology.

Once complete, Carrington – otherwise known as the location for Manchester United’s training complex – will have a capacity of 300MWh and an output power of 50MW per hour for six hours.

Construction begins on the site now.  Full operation is scheduled for early 2026. Over 700 jobs will be supported during construction and in the plant’s supply chain.

UKIB’s investment reflects its ambition to direct private finance to help new technologies reach commercial scale, as they aid Britain’s transition to Net Zero.

With its £70 million investment, Centrica comes on board as Highview Power’s strategic partner, supporting both Carrington & an accelerated roll-out of the firm’s technology elsewhere in the UK.

Highview believes its programme sets the bar for storage energy systems around the world, raising Britain to global leadership in energy storage and managing grid flexibility.

Highview Power is now at work planning four even bigger LAES plants elsewhere in Britain. The 2.5 GWh facilities, funded with an anticipated future £3 billion, will ensure a fast roll-out of the technology to align with the nation’s LDES (long duration energy storage) goals enabling the ESO’s Future Energy Scenario plans.

Highview Power has developed its LAES technology over 17 years. The technology can store renewable electricity for as much as several weeks, longer than electro-chemical batteries. The company says it is ready to be rolled out at scale, at key grid chokepoints.

Stability services to the National Grid including system balancing, feature among Highview’s business offers, speeding the redundancy of despatchable fossil fuelled power to manage demand volatility.

More manageable storage curbs curtailment costs, too. Last year British bill payers were caught on a £800 million hook, as stilled wind farms claimed compensation simply because the NG was too full to accept their low carbon output.

Highview Power seeks completion by 2035 of its larger UK installations, timed to meet one National Grid scenario of 2GW needed from LAES. That figure would represent nearly 20% of Britain’s energy storage for longer than two hours.

“There is no energy transition without storage” declared Richard Butland, pictured, Highview’s co-founder & CEO.

 “The UK’s investment in world-leading offshore wind & renewables requires a national long-duration storage programme to capture excess wind and support the grid’s transformation.

“UKIB, Centrica and our other partners are backing Highview’s ambitions to bring renewable energy storage into Britain’s economy at scale, liberating the potential of what is both the greenest and by far our cheapest energy source.

Centrica group chief executive Chris O’Shea enthused: “The energy transition is an opportunity that could transform lives. But with the UK’s changing energy mix, and more intermittency from renewables, we have to explore new, innovative ways to store energy so our customers have electricity available when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine”.

Greater Manchester’s mayor Andy Burnham weighed in too. “My vision is for Greater Manchester to be a leader in the green transition. Highview Power’s decision to build one of the world’s largest long duration energy storage facilities at Carrington is a huge boost for the region.

“This new plant will deliver renewable energy to homes and business across our region and bring world-leading technology, jobs, skills and investment to Greater Manchester. I’m delighted to welcome Highview Power”, Burnham declared.

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The cash was raised thanks to the Clean Growth Fund, Eurazeo’s Smart City fund, and Aviva Ventures. The trio join existing investor Copley Point Capital in the 12 year old company.

Cheltenham-based Rendesco works with property developers including Cala Homes & Telford Homes to install low-carbon, networks based on ground sourced heat.  It also operates networks which supply clean heat and hot water to over 8,000 homes nationwide.

As Britain’s third largest source of CO₂ emissions, ridding carbon from heating buildings is a critical challenge.  Rendesco says it is at its forefront.

Today’s new investment comes Whitehall’s closing earlier this year of final consultations on the Future Homes Standard. Its final measures will underpin the incoming government’s plans to decarbonise home heat, including banning from next January the installation of gas boilers in new homes. Similar legislative measures are also driving decarbonisation across Europe.

The cash will accelerate Rendesco’s growth plans, aimed at providing a low-carbon alternative to gas grids and cutting consumers’ bills.  Part of the money will be directed at higher tech, yielding cleverer, more consumer-focused systems to manage home energy.

The new investment is separate from, but complementary to, Rendesco’s joint venture with Last Mile Heat.  Rendesco’s new build home solutions are owned by Last Mile Heat, enabling house builders to install ground source heat solutions in their developments at a considerably lower cost than with other low-carbon heat sources.  The joint venture has already developed a pipeline of £150m worth of clean heat infrastructure, boosting futureproofed heating of dwellings.

Rendesco’s founder Alastair Murray said: “I am pleased to welcome Clean Growth Fund, Eurazeo & Aviva Ventures as investors in Rendesco.

“This funding means Rendesco is incredibly well capitalised, in parallel to the significant capital available to deploy into capex costs via Last Mile Heat.  Their collective expertise and support will be invaluable as we pursue our ambitious growth plans, rapidly expanding our clean heating solutions to reach millions of homes.”

Susannah McClintock of specialist investors the Clean Growth Fund enthused: “Decarbonising heat is critical to achieving Britain’s Net Zero targets. Rendesco’s heat network solutions provide a cost-effective, efficient route to delivering the low carbon heat required for the transition away from gas to renewables. This investment aligns with our commitment to empower early-stage entrepreneurs to tackle the climate change crisis.”

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The duo are seeking to deepen their 25 year relationship around the compound of nitrogen & hydrogen.

Global demand for ammonia is estimated to grow to more than 600 million metric tonnes by 2050 due in part to its greater ease of storage and transport when compared with pure hydrogen.  Operators of industrial processes, plus power generators and shipping lines are looking with increased interest at the compound.  Its low carbon variant is predicted to meet two-thirds of ammonia demand by mid-century, implying an estimated market size for low carbon ammonia of over $200 billion then.

Johnson Matthey reckons its patented LCH^TM technology captures as much as 99% of the CO2 released in producing ammonia.  Combined with JM’s autothermal reformer, or in conjunction with JM’s gas heated reformer, the LCH method has been selected for early and prestigious blue hydrogen projects such as BP’s 700-megawatt H2Teesside hydrogen plant, and the 600-megawatt H2H Saltend project undertaken with Equinor and German company Linde.

Thyssenkrupp Uhde brings to the partnership its unique uhde^® dual pressure technology.

The firm’s heritage includes licensing, engineering or building more than 130 ammonia plants worldwide since 1928. It says it leads the market in bigger plants, those producing more than 3,000 tonnes per day.

For Johnson Matthey, its managing director of CT licensing Alberto Giovanzana said: “We know multiple routes are needed in the energy transition. Ammonia provides several options because it can be used directly in power and shipping industries, and as a hydrogen carrier to safely transport hydrogen to areas it is not easy to produce.

“Combining our expertise and over two decades worth of partnership with thyssenkrupp Uhde, we are excited to offer this technology which will allow our customers to produce ammonia with significantly lower CO2 emissions.”

Thyssenkrupp Uhde’s chief operating officer Lucretia Löscher said: “We are committed to our purpose, ‘we create a livable planet’. With this strong partnership we further broaden our portfolio of climate-friendly solutions and can help our customers even better to reach their sustainability goals.”

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Headed by Devrim Celal, the fulfilment platform has announced a multi-year deal with municipal utility Saint John Energy, (SJE) in New Brunswick on Canada’s east coast, licencing Kraken’s end-to-end customer service platform.

As Kraken’s first partner in the North American energy market to license its customer platform, SJE can now use Kraken to support its progress towards a decentralised, decarbonised grid for its 36,000 customers.

SJE will adopt Kraken’s end-to-end utility operating system, enabling it to create & brand new green energy-focused services, deliver advanced customer care through relentlessly efficient processes, and flexibly manage its distribution network.

Kraken, which is part of Octopus Energy Group, will import and integrate all of SJE’s residential & business customers onto its all-in-one customer service, billing, optimisation, and asset management platform.

As Canada’s oldest incorporated city, Saint John on the 45^th parallel has been a test bed for electrification. Its 70,000 or so inhabitants face average January temperatures of minus 12 Celsius, and 167 days a year when temperatures do not rise above freezing point.

So the municipal power provider has had to come up with energy innovations, deemed among the most forward-looking in north America. More than 75 percent of the city’s customers have homes & premises heated by electricity. More than 70 percent of customers rent water heaters, and more than 20 percent of residents rent heat pumps.

In 2019, SJE became the world’s first utility to deploy a Tesla Megapack to store power, cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and reduce grid strain.

As the utility continues to employ solutions to reach Net Zero, the partners say Kraken’s end-to-end management platform will be critical in supporting the utility’s future energy transaction needs while easing emerging grid constraints resulting from new technologies in renewable generation and consumer low-carbon behaviours.

Greg Jackson, founder of Octopus Energy Group, said: “Around the globe, Kraken partners with some of the most trusted energy brands to decentralise, decarbonise, and above all, modernise the grid.

“Saint John Energy’s track record as an innovative early adopter makes this partnership a natural fit for us as we look to drive the energy transition worldwide. As our first utility and distribution partner in North America, we are excited to support Saint John Energy in bringing more affordable, reliable solutions to its customers in Canada.”

Ryan Mitchell, president and CEO of Saint John Energy said: “We’re proud and excited to partner with Kraken, which not only has a transformative platform but an international reputation for best-in-class solutions tailored to the energy industry.”

“Implementing its solutions will give our customers more information and control over their energy needs” Mitchell added.  “It will allow Saint John Energy to pursue more innovative solutions in clean energy and the transition to Net Zero.”

The Canadian deal follows Kraken’s recent pilot partnership to reduce grid constraints in Connecticut, its successful U.S. launch of SmartFlex, and a licensing agreement with a Texas-based energy asset manager, Tenaska.

Kraken currently looks after 54 million utility customers across the globe. Managing around 155,000 domestic devices— or over 38 GW of contracted power, it stands as one of the largest residential virtual power plants in the world.

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Based at Lichtenfels, near Kassel in central Germany, Voodin Blade Technologies says its lumber blades help turbines reduce CO2 emissions by up to 78% against conventional materials, and cut up to 20% from turbine production costs.

The four year old start-up has attached its innovative structures, 19.3 metres in length, to an existing turbine tower already erected at Breuna, near Kassel.  60- and 80-meter blades are also taking shape on the firm’s drawing board.

Voodin’s boss Tom Siekmann says that while up to 90% of wind turbines are recyclable, conventional blades are currently not. Their usual construction is of fibreglass and carbon fibre sealed with epoxy resin.  Though some manufacturers are trying, the materials have proven difficult and expensive to break down.

Holz on to your Hütte! Wir in it, to spin it!

Conventionally sourced turbine blades have a working life of up to 25 years. With the first generation of blades now reaching end of life, towers – sometimes known in Germany as ‘white asparagus’ – need to be re-equipped with replacements.

Voodin makes its wooden blades from laminated veneer lumber, or LVL, a sandwich of many thin layers, glued together.

“At the end of their lifecycle, most blades are buried in the ground or incinerated. This means that, at this pace, we will end up with 50 million tonnes of blade material waste by 2050. With our solution, we want to help green energy truly become as green as possible,” said Siekmann.

Voodin Blade Technology uses CNC – ‘computer numerical control‘ – lathes to create complex 3D shapes.   The method allows for a high level of automation, obviating the moulds used in conventional manufacturing.  CNC milling also adds flexibility and versatility to designs as they advance to reality.

Increased automation means less labour and so cheaper production. Manufacturing thus does not need to be offshored to countries with lower labour costs, avoiding delay in supply chains. Production can even be achieved closer to the host turbine parks, further trimming back emissions and transport costs.

The company believes wooden blades can even flourish in challenging working offshore, where around 85% of current turbines are located

“According to all our tests, our blades are even more durable than the existing fiberglass blades, as they show fewer fatigue characteristics and are proven to endure all kinds of onshore weather conditions extremely well,” Voodin co-founder Jorge Castillo explained.

Blade on the feather, body between the knees

Traditional German respect for wood, natural materials and forests runs deep in the country’s ecological culture.  Former Bundestag MP Josef Göppel, a past advocate for community energy in Angela Merkel’s government, represented a forestry-dependent seat in Bavaria.

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As the world’s largest offshore windfarm in construction, Hornsea is expected to be operational by 2027. It will contribute toward the UK government’s goal of 50GW of offshore wind by 2030.

Over-bending, abrasion and fatigue of underwater cables present a challenge for offshore wind developers such as Ørsted. The patented system offered by Balmoral Comtec, a company in the Balmoral Group, uses materials designed to improve operational performance and increase resistance to mechanical fatigue.

The protection system locks together mechanically, removing a reliance on chemical bonding, notoriously unpredictable and problematic to validate over a field’s life.  The supplier says its technology guarantees market-leading strain and stiffness levels, unachievable through traditional component design.

Pictured on the left above, Balmoral Comtec’s projects director Fraser Milne said: “Hornsea 3 will be a vital project for the UK’s energy transition. We’re thrilled to play a role”.

Work will be carried out in the firm’s 250,000sq ft factor in Aberdeen, by members of Balmoral Group’s 650-strong workforce

“As windfarms and turbines expand in size, scale and complexity”, Milne went on”, our industry leading expertise, scalable manufacturing capability will be crucial as offshore wind developers and OEMs navigate these complex challenges.”

For Ørsted, its Hornsea 3 project director Luke Bridgman, said: “Hornsea 3 is a nationally-significant renewable energy project, providing low-cost, clean energy at scale.

“To successfully deliver an offshore windfarm of this magnitude, it’s vital that we draw on the extensive knowledge and expertise of our teams, contractors and suppliers. We look forward to working alongside Balmoral Comtec as we progress through the next stages of construction.”

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Energy Systems Catapult was launched in 2015 by Innovate UK, the arms-length governmental body steering marketable scientific research.

The Catapult has since built a team of nearly 300 experts across energy technologies, including engineering, consumption, financial & commercial management and energy policy. It draws on sector-leading test facilities & modelling tools, as well as data amassed in more than 500 research projects.

Dr Cocker’s 28 years of industrial experience includes spells with innovators and some of the UK’s biggest energy companies.  In the past decade he chaired both the Energy Innovation Centre and the Energy & Utilities Industrial Partnership.

He said: “The Catapult has created an impressive track record helping promising clean technology businesses to bring innovative energy products and services to market.

“With just 26 years left to hit our Net Zero target, this is an incredibly important and exciting time. We are seeing companies aiming to transform the energy system, making the transition to a zero-carbon economy easier, cheaper, more accessible, and simpler for consumers.

“There are a host of economic opportunities that innovators – large and small – can seize as we make the move to Net Zero. I look forward to helping the Catapult team to support these talented innovators to reshape the sector.”

The Catapult’s chief executive Guy Newey said: “Tony will be a fantastic addition. He brings a wealth of sector experience and expertise that will help bolster our mission to accelerate Net Zero energy innovation.

Dr Cocker will step into the role previously held since 2015 by Nick Winser CBE. The departing boss said: “Energy Systems Catapult has come so far since it was founded. We have helped deliver economic growth, supporting hundreds of companies to create new products and services that will be key to getting us to Net Zero.

“In our work in Local Area Energy Planning or Warm Home Prescription, we have ignited a spark in the innovation space to create a better approach that benefits both consumers and innovators

Based in Birmingham, Energy Systems Catapult is part of a network of nine world-leading technology and innovation centres. It fosters collaboration between industry, government, research organisations and academia.

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RenewableUK, the Offshore Wind Industry Council, the Crown Estate and Crown Estate Scotland say their Industrial Growth Plan plots a course to mark out the UK as a leader in offshore wind’s global growth.

The UK’s offshore wind industry already employs 32,000 people, the plan calculates. Each new big offshore turbine park can add £3bn to the economy.

Employment is set to rise to over 100,000 by 2030. Ten years further on, investment in new marine spinners will create an wealth of over £90bn for the nation, says the report.

Steps set out in the group’s plan would support an additional 10,000 jobs a year and boost Britain’s GDP by £25 billion more between now and 2035, if the nation can accelerate yearly offshore deployment to 6GW, in line with our net zero targets.

The UK, the researchers note, already boasts the world’s second biggest national pipeline of offshore wind projects at all stages of development. At nearly 100GW, that stands at more than six times the nation’s capacity now generating.

Choke points already noticeable in making, equipping and deploying maritime spinners could yet scupper those targets, though.  The Plan identifies strategic new factories and manufacturing capabilities needed to head off the threat.

Key technology areas enabling  uninterrupted investment include manufacture of wind blades and turbine towers, foundations, cables and other key components and services for projects, both in UK waters and for export.

Invoking new AI technologies, the document sets out plans to expand testing facilities for cutting-edge technology, such as new materials  for blades and floating collars.  Under the aegis of Britain’s Catapult technology stimulators, a new national innovation hub for the sector should be created, incorporating a new advanced technology institute.

Almost £3 billion of new funding must be directed at turbine enablement, says the report. With private finance doing the heavy lifting, a return to the economy of just under £9 for every £1 invested is possible.

Many of Britain’s competitors have introduced new incentives to attract investment in offshore wind projects and domestic manufacturing, hoping to replicate home success.

RenewableUK boss Dan McGrail said: “Our plan is the deepest dive ever into offshore wind’s supply chain, identifying the highest-value components and services which the UK should focus on to get the biggest economic bang for our buck from future wind farm development.

“For example, it shows that the UK will need three hundred giant turbine towers every year for offshore wind projects between now and 2030 to deliver government targets. The plan charts a clear course for us to ensure that we seize that massive economic opportunity”.

Energy secretary Claire Coutinho added: “Plans set out by industry today will work with our £1 billion Green Industries Growth Accelerator to make sure the UK can build out the supply chain – including the turbine blades and high-voltage cables that we will need to produce cheaper, cleaner, more secure energy.”

Read the industrial growth plan here.

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In a policy programme dubbed CCUS Vision, energy secretary Claire Coutinho wants increasing numbers of storage providers to compete in the embryonic technology, as they offer capacity and deals to industrial producers of CO2.

Launched today, the package of policies is part of emerging promotion of CO2 storage, backed over coming decades with £20 billion of public money.

Coutinho believes CCUS Vision can add £5 billion to the economy by mid-century. Her goal is a fully competitive storage market by 2035, featuring tradable CO2 products with sophisticated features.

In this decade alone, D-ESNZ believes CCUS will create 5,000 jobs in handling and trading the pollutant-cum-feedstock, at the same time cutting storage costs to market participants.

International storage trades are also sought, as ministers seek to make Britain a global hub for CO2 transactions, mimicking its established role as a global financial centre.  Early exposure for UK firms in storage trading can, or so ministers believe, give them a first-mover advantage in pricing and settling global deals.

Besides geology and decades of relevant skills acquired in maritime engineering, Britain’s CCUS advantages include, say ministers, a wealth of exhausted gas field such as the re-purposed Rough storage facility under the North Sea, pictured. Our island status offers safe capacity for planet-warming CO2, currently estimated by officials at up to 78 billion tonnes.

The CCUS Vision raft of policies is the government’s latest step in delivering its ambitions in carbon storage.   As part of that overall £20 billion investment, Whitehall has a goal of up to 30 million tonnes of CO2 sequestered every year by 2030.

Details of the CCUS Vision include:

• Moving to a competitive allocation process for CCUS projects after 2026, speeding up the sector’s growth
• Easing market access after 2024 of CO2 projects free of pipelines, using other forms of transport such as ship, road and rail
• Establishing a working group led by industry to identify and adopt solutions to reduce the cost of capturing CO2

Four regional carbon capture clusters are earmarked by ministers to revive Britain’s coastal industrial areas; HyNet in North West England, East Coast Cluster in Teesside and the Humber, Acorn in Scotland and Viking in the Humber.

“Thanks to the UK’s geology, skills and infrastructure, we are in a unique position to lead the way on carbon capture technologies“, energy secretary Coutinho said.

“That is why we’re making one of the biggest funding commitments in Europe on carbon capture that will cut emissions from our atmosphere, while unlocking investment, creating tens of thousands of jobs and growing the UK economy.”

From the Carbon Capture and Storage Association, CEO Ruth Herbert responded warmly.  “We welcome the CCUS Vision published today, setting out a long-term strategy for the UK’s CCUS industry to be able to store over 50Mt a year by 2035 to support the decarbonisation of domestic industries and take advantage of export opportunities.

“It is great to see CO2 transport by ship, road and rail will be enabled from 2025 onwards, which will also support longer-term cross-border CO2 transport solutions.”

More details here.

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Re-opening old mine shafts across the globe and extending the lives of those approaching closure are the focus of GraviStore, the Edinburgh firm’s proposal for rapidly dispatchable clean power, including potentially at grid scale.

Today’s deal commits the multinational giant to assist Gravitricity in developing its alternative to pumped hydro storage and to battery chemistries relying on lithium and other rare metals.

Employing ABB’s knowledge of hoist engineering in deep shafts worldwide holds out potential, the parties believe, to give purposeful second life to scores of thousands of existing, often declining facilities.

Unlike batteries relying on chemical storage, Gravitricity says its proprietary technology can assist power storage at various scales over many decades, and without any decline in performance.

The firm says it has already proven Gravitricity technically, thanks to a scale demonstrator in Leith. Now it is exploring the potential to deploy its groundbreaking technology in decommissioned mines worldwide.

ABB contributes unique depth of experience, says the Scots firm, thanks to its record of installing over 1,000 hoist and winches in deep shafts worldwide, including the example pictured.

Under the new deal, ABB will collaborate by providing research and development, product development and engineering teams specialising in the design, engineering and operations of mine hoists and mechanical, electrical and control technologies for hoisting.

Mine operators in Europe, India and Australia are already showing interest in Gravitricity’s offering, according to the firm’s co-founder Martin Wright.

“As the world generates more electricity from intermittent renewable energy sources, there is a growing need for technologies which can capture and store energy during periods of low demand and release it rapidly when required,” Wright noted.

“Our GraviStore underground gravity energy storage uses the force of gravity to offer some of the best characteristics of lithium-ion batteries and pumped hydro storage – at low cost, and without the need for any rare earth metals.

The Swiss-Swedish multinational sees its co-development with the Edinburgh start up as another route in working with companies providing adjacent and value-adding technologies.

“ABB has 130 years of history with mine hoists, since we first electrified one in Sweden in the 1890s”, said Charles Bennett, global service manager in ABB’s process industries division.

“Collaborating with Gravitricity shows how we can continue to diversify and adapt our technologies,” “We are eager to progress….as we become part of the next generation of renewable energy storage systems and to make use of mine shafts that are no longer in service.”

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Weekly output of as much two tonnes of fuel grade green hydrogen is targeted for sale into AFC Energy’s UK H-Power Generator deployments. The firm has also secured initial distribution for the cracker, signing a letter of intent with a large European energy company, unnamed in today’s announcement.

Hydrogen is seen as a key stepping stone in vastly stepping up the power production essential to electrifying industrial processes which currently burn fossil fuels.

AFC’s ammonia cracker trial is to be located at an undisclosed location in the UK.  Ammonia feedstock will be provided from the Rotterdam plant of partner OCI Global.

Ammonia’s well-established global supply chains are a major advantage as as a hydrogen carrier fuel, AFC believes.   A string of mobile cracker plants such as trialled by the firm holds out potential to remedy a major weakness for the technology, its current lack of commercially available ammonia cracking technologies.

Based at Dunsfold, Surrey, AFC has production partnerships spanning Europe.  High profile clients for its off-grid carbon-stripped power include Spanish construction giant Acciona and the Extreme E offroad e-mobility racing series.

The firm cites a forecast from technology advocates the Hydrogen Council that 400 out of the 660 million tonnes of hydrogen needed every year for carbon neutrality by 2050 will be transported over long distances. The same source says approximately 45% of that figure will be sourced from ammonia, a compound of hydrogen and nitrogen.

AFC Energy says its cracker system will consume a fraction of the power consumed by electrolysers, the alternative method of making green hydrogen from water.  Yoking mobile fuel cells to distributed ammonia crackers will free up and expand fuel cells’ use in refuelling electric trucks or re-charging batteries of ships converted to electric propulsion.

Nine months of work this year have gone into building and calibrating the demonstrator, says the company. Tests in the new year will attempt hydrogen output of up to 99.7% purity.

Re-packaging the pilot onto a containerised platform will also be a priority.   Success there will enable AFC to market a standalone product, capable of being sold to hydrogen consumers.

AFC’s chief executive Adam Bond said:  “With an ammonia cracker offering market leading efficiency, low power consumption and the production of fuel cell grade hydrogen, AFC Energy’s first pilot project is a major step forward in unlocking the barriers of hydrogen logistics and transport.

“The cracker system, in containerised form, will be capable of replication across Europe and Asia with our ability to generate low cost, decarbonised hydrogen from internationally traded green and blue ammonia being a key step forward in the evolution of the global hydrogen market.”

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Oxford-headquartered Velocys, convertors of end-of-life plastics into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) , is opening its new 52,500 square feet factory in Ohio, due to house assembly operations for the reactor cores essential to its production of low-carbon avgas.

After agreement and a grant from local officials, the 52,000 square foot plant will start building up to 48 cores per year from mid-2024.

That level of output will yield, the company believes, the twelve reactors which a single commercial-scale SAF biorefinery might need to convert dead household and industrial plastics into carbon-light aviation fuel, giving around approximately 1TWh per year of energy.

Velocys’ CEO Henrik Wareborn said: “Our Ohio state-of-the-art facility is a real milestone both for us and for the move to decarbonise the aviation industry.

“It is another critical piece in the jigsaw to go alongside the support we are receiving from regulatory and policy initiatives in all our core markets. I would like to offer my thanks to the state of Ohio, and to the many contractors who have completed this project in such a short time”.

Meanwhile Gatwick-based renewable heat innovator Naked Energy today expands its European presence, partnering with Lithuanian building maintenance and management company City Service Engineering.

Heat decarbonisers Naked Energy have solar thermal and PV-based technology that combines the warming capabilities of both sources, while furnishing electricity.

CEO and founder Christophe Williams says the firm’s highly energy-dense hybrid solar PVT technology delivers up to four times the carbon savings per square metre that conventional solar PV can achieve.

Performance like that gives Naked’s hybrid panels the advantage of decarbonising heat most cost-effectively where insolation space is limited.

That quality makes Naked’s kit a compelling proposition in chilly Lithuania. The Baltic nation imports all of its gas and was Europe’s first to suspend Russian imports, after Putin’s unprovoked assault in February 2022 on Ukraine.

Since then, ministers in Vilnius have accelerated its investment into solar. They now aim for one-third of Lithuania’s 1.4 million households to generate their own electricity by 2030.

Said Williams: ‘City Service Engineering has a fantastic reputation and long-standing relationships with companies across its 25 years of operations in Lithuania and Latvia.

“We are thrilled to be working with them and helping their customers in their transition to renewable heat.

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Licencing Kraken, the operations and software platform underpinning Greg Jackson’s challenger supplier, to both the gas company serving Japan’s capital city, and to Coventry-based water company Severn Trent, represents two globe-straddling transactions for Octopus, now risen in its seven years of existence to become Britain’s Number 2 power firm, in terms of account numbers.

Kraken, a German word for Octopus, has been the operational information hub of the UK challenger, its ‘deep brain’ supporting service provision, customer account management, plus transactions and billing.

Purchased in the British supplier’s early days and developed further under Boston Consulting alumnus Deepak Ravindran, Kraken has attracted increasing licencing income from utility and broadband providers as far apart as Sydney, Silicon Valley and Houston, as well as Tokyo.

Today’s deals bring the total number of energy, water and broadband accounts Kraken is licensed to manage to between 40 and 50 million, halfway towards the company’s goal of managing 100 million by 2027.

‘O-heyo, Tako-kun ‘ / Hello, little octopus

In the land of the rising sun, the first of today’s deals will see Kraken managing 3 million electricity customers of Tokyo Gas, with potential to add around eleven million gas customers in future.  Tokyo Gas has been a Kraken client for the past two years.

Founded as long ago as 1885, publicly quoted Tokyo Gas’s total of eleven million customers ranks it as Japan’s biggest retailer of natural gas.   Sales of ‘low voltage’ electric power began as recently as 2016, the year Octopus took off in Britain.

Back home, from today Coventry-headquartered water utility Severn Trent  is also now paying for Kraken to manage its 4.6 million accounts, including via customer service interactions, also powered by Kraken.

Extended and developed by Octopus Energy Group, Kraken has disrupted the energy sector with its operating efficiencies, drastically reducing the cost-to-serve, and improving customer and employee satisfaction.

Kraken launched to the market in 2016 with Octopus as its first client. It turbocharged Octopus’ rapid expansion and helped make it the only energy supplier to be Which? recommended six years in a row.

Severn Trent is the first water company to achieve the highest rating for its environmental performance from The Environment Agency for four consecutive years. The Midlands based FTSE 100 plans to invest £12.9bn in its region, bringing 7,000 jobs and major new projects that include laying new water mains the length of the UK – twice – in response to climate change and population growth.

 ‘Goin’ back to Jackson, / Hotter than a pepper sprout’

Of today’s licencing deals, Octopus CEO and founder Greg Jackson, pictured with Ravindran, observed: “Japan is the largest competitive energy market in the world – and no company is more respected than Tokyo Gas. Combined with Japan’s stringent requirements for customer service and the need to decarbonise rapidly, it’s a huge privilege for Kraken to be chosen”.

Tokyo Gas CEO Shinichi Sasayama explained; “We visited Octopus Energy and Kraken in London back in 2019, and were impressed by  their excellent business model and the platform that supports it. We are delighted that just a few years later Tokyo Gas is the first company in Japan to license the Kraken platform”.

Deepak Ravindran, CEO of Octopus’ Kraken Utilities arm, declared: “Unleashing the power of Kraken unlocks both better service for customers, and operational efficiencies never seen before in utilities. We’re thrilled to join forces with Tokyo Gas and Severn Trent as we gear up to bring our cutting-edge tech to even more utilities.”

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Running across the Great Sunburnt Country for 3,000 kilometres from Darwin to Adelaide starting on 22 October, the competition brings some of the world’s greatest scientific and engineering talent to Australia.

Vehicles can only be powered by the energy of the sun.  University-affiliated teams push the limits of technological innovation, crossing the Lucky Country’s Dead Red Centre in solar-powered contraptions which they have designed, engineered and built themselves.

Top Dutch Solar Racing is a multidisciplinary solar racing team based in Groningen. The team stands out as it is not linked to a single technical university; instead its members include students from a variety of institutions and at various educational levels.

Ain’t no Verstappen us now

Four months ago Oxford PV, a 13 year old spin-off from the British university, achieved a world-record efficiency of 28.6% for converting light to power with its commercial-sized tandem solar cell, which features a perovskite coating laid on silicon. That’s around five points better than conventional silicon-only cells.

With an R&D base in Oxford and a factory near Berlin, Oxford PV plan to focus on home roofs and other area-constrained surfaces, when volume sales start early in 2024.  The company is clear-eyed about taking its technology beyond 30% efficiency.

Oxford PV and Top Dutch Solar Racing engineers have been working together for months, building and testing the technology that will power the team’s vehicle in their second attempt at the Bridgestone World Solar Challenge. The team narrowly missed out a podium spot in 2019, finishing in fourth place.

Motion without lotion

Video of the launch event of their latest car follows: .

Chris Case, Oxford PV’s co-founder and chief technology officer, said: “Our highly-efficient solar photovoltaic technology integrates with standard silicon solar cells to deliver more power in the same area – critical for enabling more affordable clean energy – as well as now hopefully powering the Top Dutch Solar Racing team across the Outback.

“We will be cheering Green Thunder the whole way.”

For the Dutch racers, photovoltaic engineer Laura de la Fuente Esteban added: “Over the past year our team has been studying how to capture the sun’s energy using innovative technologies that will allow us to compete against teams with over 10 years of experience.

“Tandem silicon solar cells from Oxford PV can outperform traditional silicon solar cells by at least 20%“, she added. “They represent the next big leap forward for solar power, as silicon cells approach their theoretical limits.”

Motion without lotion

Beginning in 1987, the World Solar Challenge occurs once every two years. In 2019, a record 53 entries from 24 countries were received and around 1,500 participants were observed and followed by a global audience of more than 25 million.

The Aussie organisers say the race’s challenge is not just about finishing the fastest, but about innovating towards a future of green mobility.

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SMRs hold out potential for nuclear power generation at lower output expense than the sky-high costs of conventional plants such as Hinkley Point C.  In SMRs’ development lies a need for automated data gathering and analysis, cutting down on lab testing & waste, as well as capital and operational expense.

A technique known as inductively coupled plasma tandem mass spectrometry underpins the parties’ intended explorations. It analyses samples of materials collected a variety of water chemistries within a Rolls-Royce SMR as an indicator of operating conditions within the reactor.

For several years NPL’s team of nuclear scientists have been working to develop traceable techniques for the rapid and repeatable detection of stable and radioactive pollutants for use in a range of nuclear scenarios, including decommissioning, environmental monitoring and nuclear forensics.

The advantages of the mass spectrometric technique have been widely published in scientific literature. As well as reduced analyst time, they include simultaneous measurement of multiple elements; rapid measurement time of several minutes per sample; and minimal or no sample preparation

The parties’ joint project offers an opportunity to apply tried and tested techniques to the safe and effective operation of SMRs.

NPL’s work with Rolls-Royce SMR aligns with its strategy to enable new energy sources and achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions. The work also contributes to wider ambitions to embed the science of measurement into the next generation of nuclear reactors before operational commissioning, to ensure national resilience for nuclear technologies.

Ben Russell, leader for nuclear metrology at the Teddington-based NPL, pictured, said: “Our group has pushed inductively coupled plasma tandem mass spectrometry to advance measurement capabilities for low level radioactivity measurement, with the methods and standards developed increasingly used by industry, academia, and other measurement institutes. We are excited to apply this technique to solving measurement challenges related to automated monitoring of SMRs.”

From Rolls-Royce SMR research manager Greg Wilkinson said: “Our SMRs offer a radically different approach to delivering nuclear power.

”Our design utilises long-established and well-understood pressurised water reactor (PWR) technology, allowing us to focus our research efforts in key areas, including in the development of inductively coupled plasma tandem mass spectrometry with NPL, to supplement and further enhance this technology. We look forward to collaborating with NPL’s world-leading nuclear metrology team to achieve our vision of delivering clean, affordable energy for all.”

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