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Gigascale Capital Launches $250 Million Early-Stage Climate Tech Fund

Gigascale Capital Launches $250 Million Early-Stage Climate Tech Fund

Climate-focused VC investor Gigascale Capital announced the launch of Gigascale Capital Fund I, a new $250 million fund targeting early-stage companies that are “rebuilding the physical economy for climate impact.” Founded in 2023 by former Meta CTO Mike Schroepfer, Gigascale invests in companies developing technologies enabling energy, materials, and infrastructure systems to scale, be cheaper, more productive and cleaner, with…

Eurazeo’s Impact Buyout Fund Acquires Circular Economy Platform T1A

Eurazeo’s Impact Buyout Fund Acquires Circular Economy Platform T1A

France-based investment firm Eurazeo announced that it has acquired a majority stake in Denmark-based T1A Group through its impact buyout fund Eurazeo Planetary Boundaries Fund (EPBF), aimed at supporting the company’s expansion and accelerating the growth of its circular economy-focused IT refurbishment platform. Founded in 2001, Denmark-based T1A IT Asset Disposition (ITAD) provider built on a circular economy logic, providing…

It’s good to talk: Driving better standards in a risky world

Reading an article in the Financial Times recently, I was reminded of the 1986 Challenger space shuttle disaster, where all seven astronauts died shortly after launch, and NASA’s response to the incident.  The cause was not a single catastrophic failure, but a culture of complacency. Engineers had long warned about the vulnerabilities, but because previous launches had succeeded despite similar…

Rio Tinto Commissions $1.5 Billion Low Carbon Aluminum Project in Canada

Rio Tinto Commissions $1.5 Billion Low Carbon Aluminum Project in Canada

Global mining and metals company Rio Tinto announced the start of commissioning of a $1.5 billion expansion project at its Complexe Arvida facility in Quebec, aimed at increasing the company’s production of low-carbon aluminum for use by customers across the transportation, construction, electrical applications and consumer goods sectors. The expansion project utilizes Rio Tinto’s proprietary AP60 smelting technology, which, when…

UBS Appoints Alexander Seidler as Head of Sustainability and Climate Risk

UBS Appoints Alexander Seidler as Head of Sustainability and Climate Risk

UBS has appointed as Alexander Seidler as Head Sustainability and Climate Risk, with responsibility for implementing the bank’s sustainability and climate risk (SCR) framework. Seidler initially joined UBS in 2006, holding a variety of environmental and social risk-related positions in Zurich, London and Singapore, and departing in 2022 to join Credit Suisse as Head of Sustainability Risk. He rejoined UBS…

Microsoft Signs 140 MW U.S. Solar Deal with Avangrid

Microsoft Signs 140 MW U.S. Solar Deal with Avangrid

Spanish multinational energy company Iberdrola’s U.S. subsidiary Avangrid announced that it has signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with Microsoft, to provide the tch giant with electricity from its new 140 MW solar project in Washington. The agreement marks the fourth U.S. renewable energy project under contract between Avangrid and Microsoft, which also include PPAs in Ohio and California, which…

EQ offers sustainable portfolios via Timeline platform

EQ Investors has launched its sustainable portfolios on the Timeline platform, making them available to financial planners and their clients via the platform for the first time. This will give Timeline’s network of planners direct access to the sustainable model portfolios. The firm said the portfolios are designed to deliver competitive long-term returns by seeking out companies making a positive…

Drax acquires Bluefield Solar Income Fund for £548m

Drax Group has acquired Bluefield Solar Income Fund (BSIF) for £548m through its subsidiary Drax Smart Generation, after the BSIF board decided a higher interest rate environment caused its shares to trade at a consistent double-digit discount to NAV, making a sale the best option. It comes with an additional 2.25 pence per share dividend, making the total value 94.824…

Quilter launches targeted support offering

Wealth manager Quilter has launched a new targeted support offering, available through its Quilter Invest arm, which is designed to support clients through earlier stages of their investment journey. It now offers a practical and proportionate route to investing through targeted support, while keeping the door open for full advice through Quilter in the future. Quilter said customers are guided through a short, attitudinal-based assessment…

China Draws $9 Billion Order Book for New Green Bond Offering

China Draws $9 Billion Order Book for New Green Bond Offering

China’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) announced the completion of a new green bond offering, the second-ever by the central government, raising RMB 6 billion (USD$887 million) for environmental initiatives ranging from clean transportation to pollution reduction. The offering drew very strong demand, with the order book reaching RMB 62.4 billion (USD$9.2 billion), with the issuance more than 10 times oversubscribed….