Young people in the UK have said financial firms have an important role to play in driving progressive societal change but must do so in an authentic way with words that are followed up with action, according to MRM’s inaugural Young Money Report. The report – Guidance not Gratification: Why financial services needs to reclaim its finfluence, surveyed 1,000 UK-based…
Shakeout: Resetting sustainable investors’ expectations
Headlines are grim for sustainable investments. But headlines are frequently misleading. To paraphrase Mark Twain, the figures suggest reports of its death may be somewhat premature. First of all, though, a caveat: how one defines “sustainable” greatly affects the calculation, as does the market on which one focuses. Here I’m focusing on the UK market, with a rather restricted definition…
Microsoft Sources Renewable Energy from New U.S. Solar Projects in Texas, Illinois
Clean energy developer EDP Renewables North America (EDPR NA) announced the delivery of three new solar projects in Illinois and Texas totalling 400 MW, with Microsoft purchasing 389 MW of electricity and renewable energy credits (RECs) from the projects through long-term virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs). The three new projects include the 140 MW Wolf Run Solar Project, and the…
Arcadia Acquires Clean Energy Procurement Platform RPD Energy
Energy management platform Arcadia announced the acquisition of RPD Energy, which markets renewable electricity primarily to large commercial and industrial customers. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Launched in 2014, Washington D.C.-based Arcadia provides energy data and management solutions, including community solar subscriptions, enabling homes and businesses to access renewable energy without needing to install solar panels by connecting…
StormFisher Hydrogen Raises $50 Million to Produce Clean Fuels for Hard to Abate Sectors
e-Fuels project developer StormFisher Hydrogen announced that it has secured a $50 million investment from Hy24’s Clean Hydrogen Infrastructure Fund, with proceeds aimed at accelerating its pipeline of clean fuel production projects in North America. Founded in 2006, Houston-based StormFisher Hydrogen develops and operates production facilities that produce e-Fuels, providing clean fuel solutions to help decarbonize hard-to-abate industrial sectors. The…
Columbia Launches Masters Degree in Climate Finance
Columbia University’s Columbia Climate School announced today the launch of a new masters degree program for climate finance, the first of its kind in the U.S., aimed at training professionals to address the challenges and opportunities of climate change and the global energy transition. The program will be offered in close collaboration with the Columbia Business School, providing an “interdisciplinary…
Proxy Advisory Firm ISS Removes DEI Factors from Voting Recommendations for U.S. Boards
Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) announced that it will no longer include diversity considerations such as gender and race in its voting recommendations for boards of directors in the U.S., in light of the increased political scrutiny on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)-related practices. The move by ISS forms part of a series of major adjustments being made…
Macquarie Exits the Net Zero Banking Alliance
Australia-based financial services group Macquarie announced that it has decided to leave the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), expanding what had been a primarily North America-focused series of exits from the UN-backed coalition of banks dedicated to advancing global net zero goals through their financing activities. While Macquarie did not explicitly state reasons for its departure from the net zero group,…