Good Morning. This is the Sunya Scoop. The newsletter that takes energy transition news and turns it into an easy-to-read email for you.
Here’s what we have for you today:
Blue Planet gets investment from Marathon Petroleum on CCS mineralization
Infinium teams up with Mo Industrial Park on eFuels in Norway
Ara invests in Paratus who expands into renewable power price-risk insurance
Amazon is the world’s largest corporate buyer of renewable energy
The almost headlines
In case you missed
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Blue Planet Systems Corporation has secured new funding and entered into a strategic collaboration with Marathon Petroleum Corporation (NYSE: MPC) to advance its technology.
Blue Planet’s patented Geomimetic® mineralization approach is used to sequester and permanently store CO2 in synthetic limestone aggregate, which is used in carbon-neutral and carbon-negative concrete and building products called CarbonStar®.
The funding and collaboration aim to enhance production through process automation and raise the technology readiness level of Blue Planet’s carbon mineralization facility on San Francisco Bay, which has been operational for the past two years.
Blue Planet has also received additional funding support from existing investor Signina Capital AG of Zurich, Switzerland, which provided project debt financing for the current plant.
Blue Earth Capital AG (“BlueEarth”) announces its private equity climate impact strategy, BlueEarth Climate Strategy, has received $378 million in investor commitments.
This includes $308 million from the BlueEarth Climate Growth Fund I.
Additionally, there are $70 million in commitments from LPs in a tailored mandate and co-investments.
BlueEarth Climate Growth Fund I is an Article 9 fund and part of the BlueEarth Climate Strategy, targeting investments in companies working to accelerate the net-zero transition, improve climate resilience, and promote a circular economy in North America and Europe.
Their investment themes include energy transition, buildings & mobility, climate intelligence, production & consumption, and food & agriculture.
In 2023, BlueEarth surpassed $1 billion in Assets under Management across its various investment vehicles, including Credit and Funds.
INERATEC, an e-Fuel company, has raised over $129 million in its Series B funding round.
The funding was led by Piva Capital and included participation from HG Ventures, TDK Ventures, Copec WIND Ventures, RockCreek, Emerald, Samsung Ventures, ENGIE New Ventures, Safran Corporate Ventures, Honda, and other investors.
The funding will accelerate the production and commercialization of carbon-neutral e-Fuel.
INERATEC aims to transform 1GW of renewable energy into 125 million gallons of sustainable e-Fuel by 2030.
The demand for ‘drop-in’ e-Fuels for hard-to-abate sectors such as aviation, shipping, and chemicals is expected to triple by 2030, reaching $13.6 trillion by 2050.
INERATEC’s technology involves turning CO2 and hydrogen into synthesis gas, then converting it into liquid and solid hydrocarbons.
INERATEC is expanding globally, with projects in the Netherlands and Chile, aiming to recycle over 12,000,000 metric tons of CO2 annually.
Infinium and Mo Industrial Park (Mo Industripark AS) have agreed to collaborate on developing Norway’s first advanced eFuels production facility in Mo i Rana, Norway.
Infinium’s eFuels are produced using waste carbon dioxide (CO2) and renewable energy-derived green hydrogen, aimed at decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors like aviation and maritime shipping.
Mo i Rana has allocated land for the eFuels project and will provide renewable power for producing green hydrogen, a key feedstock for Infinium’s process.
Mo Industrial Park is a prominent industrial development zone in Northern Norway with 110 businesses and approximately 2,900 employees, focusing on climate, sustainability, and the circular economy.
Infinium has previously announced eFuels projects in South Texas, West Texas (with commitments from Amazon and American Airlines), and Dunkirk, France (in partnership with Engie).
The new Norwegian project will initially produce 2,000 barrels per day (BPD) of eFuels, including eSAF, eDiesel, and eNaphtha, with the potential for expansion.
Infinium has multiple eFuels projects in development globally.
“We are excited to partner with Mo I Rana on the development of an eFuels project in Northern Norway, leveraging the abundant hydropower in that geography.”
Natural gas flows to U.S. LNG export plants hit a one-year low due to an Arctic freeze and issues at Freeport LNG’s Texas facility.
Gas flows to major U.S. LNG export plants dropped from a monthly record of 14.7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) in December to an average of 13.9 bcfd in January.
Daily LNG feedgas was set to increase by approximately 4.2 bcfd over two days to 13.5 bcfd but had dropped to a one-year low of 9.2 bcfd on Tuesday, down 5.8 bcfd from Jan. 13-16.
Most reductions occurred at Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass facility in Louisiana, Corpus Christi operation in Texas, Freeport LNG’s Texas plant, and Cameron LNG’s Louisiana plant.
Due to high gas prices in the U.S., some energy firms likely opted to sell gas supplies domestically rather than liquefy it for overseas sales, especially with global gas prices at lower levels in Europe and Asia.
Paratus Holdings Limited (“Paratus”) is expanding its commercial operations.
They are introducing a renewable power price-risk insurance solution, pending regulatory approval.
This expansion follows a growth equity investment from Ara Partners, a global private equity and infrastructure firm specializing in industrial decarbonisation investments.
Paratus was founded in 2020 and previously commercialized the world’s first energy and freight insurance policies.
They have developed a proprietary insurance policy to protect producers and consumers of renewable power and transition fuels from energy price risks.
Amazon is the world’s largest corporate purchaser of renewable energy for the fourth consecutive year.
The company invested in over 100 new solar and wind energy projects in 2023.
Amazon’s renewable energy portfolio comprises more than 500 projects globally, with a capacity to generate over 77,000 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of clean energy annually, enough to power 7.2 million U.S. homes.
Their investments are aimed at achieving 100% renewable energy for their operations by 2025, supporting various facilities including data centers, fulfillment centers, stores, and corporate offices.
Amazon’s renewable energy projects have also contributed to over $12 billion in global economic investment and the creation of 39,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2022.
We released a podcast, Sunya Stories.
The first episode features a conversation with Cemvita’s Moji Karimi
We published our first Sunya Spotlight profile on Oxy’s STRATOS DAC project.
The largest deal last week was the Chesapeake – Southwestern merger which we covered in last Thursday’s edition
Tuesday’s edition – covered Oxy’s two carbon removal deals and BlackRock buying Global Infrastructure Partners for $12.5bn
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DISCLAIMER: None of this is financial advice. This newsletter is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. Please be careful and do your own research.