Climate

Tesla revamps the Megapack in attempt to reverse its declining storage business

Climate /

Tesla is updating its utility-scale Megapack batteries as it seeks to stem the decline of its lucrative energy storage business. The new battery product known as Megapack 3, which Tesla revealed late Monday, are a bid to lure utilities and data center developers that are desperate for power. Megapack 3 stores around 1 megawatt-hour more […]

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Geothermal is too expensive, but Dig Energy’s impossibly small drill rig might fix that

Climate /

On a farm near Manchester, New Hampshire, I was recently treated to a gusher of dirty water, not exactly the sort of thing that most startups will show a reporter. But for Dig Energy, the mud is a feature, not a bug, of its compact drilling rig.  The startup, which has been operating in stealth

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Advanced geothermal startups are just getting warmed up

Climate /

When Congressional Republicans took a sledgehammer to the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, advanced geothermal startups were largely spared. Drilling for renewable energy appears to be one of the few things that engenders bipartisan support. Now, with the uncertainty settled, geothermal companies are announcing deals that promise to pave the way for broader deployment of

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Judges side with Trump EPA over canceled Inflation Reduction Act grants to nonprofits

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The battle over $20 billion worth of climate-related funding authorized by Congress continues as an appellate court ruled on Tuesday in favor of the Environmental Protection Agency, which had terminated Biden-era grants made to nonprofits. The legal tussle stems from EPA administrator Lee Zeldin’s decision to cancel grants dispersed as part of the Inflation Reduction

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India’s Offgrid raises $15M to make lithium optional for battery storage

Climate /

Lithium has become the default choice for battery-powered systems, but its limitations — from volatile supply chains to short lifespans — are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Offgrid Energy Labs, a deep-tech startup based in India, wants to make lithium less central, especially when it comes to battery storage. The seven-year-old startup, incubated at IIT

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Terraton wants to be the McDonald’s of biochar

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If there’s one thing McDonald’s has done for the world, it’s made starting a burger restaurant relatively straightforward. Franchisees buy into the system, and in return they get equipment, marketing, and even an operating manual. Terraton wants to bring that same model to biochar, a technology that turns agricultural waste into a carbon dioxide-sequestering fertilizer.

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Hyundai is working with a startup on plant-based leather that smells like the real thing

Climate /

Confession time: My household owns two cars, one with leather and one with “leather.” The former feels amazing, the latter … well, let’s just say it’s not fooling anyone. Based on the samples currently sitting on my desk, leather alternatives don’t have to feel so artificial or be so harsh on the environment.  Most fake

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How one AI startup is helping rice farmers battle climate change

Climate /

Fixing climate change is no small task — just ask carbon removal developers like Mitti Labs. The New York-based startup has developed technology to measure how much methane is released by rice paddies and uses it to train hundreds of thousands of farmers in climate-friendly practices. It’s the sort of high-touch endeavor that venture capitalists

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Frontier buys $31M worth of antacids for the ocean

Climate /

Frontier, the carbon removal clearinghouse founded by Google, Strip, Shopify, and others, announced today that it is buying 115,208 metric tons of carbon removal credits from geoengineering startup Planetary in a deal worth $31.2 million.  Where most Frontier deals to date have bought carbon from startups specializing in direct air capture, enhanced weathering, or bioenergy

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Yottar wants to help energy users find capacity on the electrical grid

Climate /

From AI to EVs, the world’s demand for power is soaring, and the electrical grid is feeling the squeeze.  Enter Yottar, a startup that maps electrical grid capacity to help companies figure out where they can plug in new data centers, EV charging stations, and other power-hungry equipment. “The electrification super cycle is colliding with

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