Methane seeps

Hey there,

Hope you had a nice weekend. Last week was replete with some significant fundraising rounds and lots of relevant news, so let’s dive right in.

ONE STORY IN A SENTENCE AND A CHART

• Of all generation sources, nuclear power currently enjoys the least partisan divide, a far cry from what the lay of the land looked like five years ago. Link.

NEWS, DATA, AND HEADLINES

• Scientists discovered over 40 active methane seeps in Antarctica's Ross Sea, with many appearing at previously studied sites, suggesting new formation. The seeps raise concerns about accelerating warming as excess methane emissions could warm the world quickly. Link.

• The World Meteorological Organization reported global carbon emissions rose to record levels in 2024, marking the largest annual increase since modern atmospheric measurement began in the 1950s. Link.

• DNV's 2025 Energy Transition Outlook projects global net-zero emissions won't be achieved until the early 2090s, with temperatures stabilizing at 2.2°C above pre-industrial levels. The forecast shows 2050 emissions at 22 gigatons, only 43% below current levels. Link.

• BloombergNEF forecasts global energy storage additions will reach 92 gigawatts in 2025, up 23% from last year, with utility-scale projects comprising 84% of annual growth despite U.S. federal funding cuts. Link.

• Iran doubled its solar capacity this year and plans to quadruple it again within three years as the country shifts renewable energy from policy to strategic necessity amid power shortages. Link.

• Rivian announced layoffs affecting more than 600 of its 15,000 employees as EV market challenges continue to mount. Link.

• Michigan seeks to recover $175 million in incentives from Gotion's $2.4 billion EV battery plant, effectively killing the project. Link.

• The U.S. and Qatar jointly lobbied the EU to water down climate rules, calling the Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive an "existential threat" to industrial competitiveness. The directive allows fines up to 5% of global revenues for companies whose supply chains harm human rights or the environment. Link.

• The OGMP 2.0 framework shows nearly one-third of global oil and gas production now reports emissions at the Gold Standard level through measurement-based monitoring. However, 88% of satellite-detected methane alerts still go unaddressed, despite representing emissions equivalent to 24,000 passenger vehicles per day per leak. Link.

• Four additional clean energy manufacturing projects totaling $1.6 billion were canceled in the U.S. in September. Link.

• Thermal battery startup Rondo Energy began commercial operations on its first 100-megawatt-hour heat battery in California's Kern County oil fields, using solar-heated bricks to generate steam for enhanced oil recovery, replacing gas-fired boilers and cutting 13,000 metric tons of CO₂ annually. Link.

• The BP-JERA joint venture announced it will not proceed with Beacon Wind, a planned 1.2-gigawatt wind farm off Massachusetts, stating "we see no viable path" forward. Link.

• General Motors announced plans to introduce "eyes-off" autonomous driving on the Cadillac Escalade IQ electric SUV in 2028, allowing drivers to engage in other activities while the vehicle operates on highways using LiDAR, radar, and specialized cameras. Link.

• Auto parts manufacturer Dana Incorporated laid off over 100 employees from its Michigan EV battery factory following unexpected drops in customer orders driven by the elimination of federal EV tax credits. Workers were told not to work their final day. Link.

• The Federal Reserve and FDIC rescinded Biden-era policy requiring major banks to factor climate change risks into long-term planning, with regulators calling it "distracting" and "not necessary." Critics warned these changes put the economy at risk of higher costs as warming worsens. Link.

• Carbon registry Isometric expanded operations to cover landfill methane and hydrofluorocarbons, partnering with Recoolit and Cool Effect to develop protocols for eliminating emissions of the climate superpollutants responsible for nearly half of global warming. Link.

• Michigan's Palisades nuclear plant received fresh fuel on Monday, marking a significant milestone toward becoming the first permanently shuttered US nuclear plant to restart. The $1.5 billion loan from Biden's DOE was the only Loan Programs Office deal maintained without interruption through the administration change. Link.

• The Department of Energy canceled $700 million in battery manufacturing grants to companies including Ascend Elements, American Battery Technology Co., Anovion, ICL Specialty Products, and glass manufacturer LuxWall, following earlier cancellation of $7.5 billion across 321 clean energy projects. Link.

• Japan's new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi plans to slow solar farm development over energy security concerns about Chinese panels while keeping nuclear power central to strategy. Only 14 of 33 commercially available reactors have restarted post-Fukushima, with just three more expected online by 2030. Link.

• The U.S. and Australia jointly pledged $1 billion each to prioritize approximately 100 critical mineral and rare earth projects over six months, with an $8.5 billion pipeline ready to counter China's control of most global supply and virtually all refining capacity for key elements. Link.

• Brazil's state oil company Petrobras received regulatory consent for new drilling off the Amazon River mouth after years of negotiations, weeks before Brazil hosts the 2025 COP climate summit. Critics dismiss President Lula's argument that oil revenues will fund Brazil's energy transition. Link.

• The world's largest carbon offset certifier determined that most credits from a massive Zimbabwe forest-protection project failed to benefit the atmosphere after a two-year probe. The project powered green claims for Volkswagen, Gucci, Nestlé, and McKinsey, dealing a blow to carbon markets, which have shrunk over two-thirds since 2021. Link.

• The EPA proposed to unwind President Trump's first-term law phasing down potent greenhouse gases in air conditioning, citing refrigerant shortages that raised contractor prices up to five times and left Americans without AC during peak summer heat. Link.

CURATED DEALS

Larger funding rounds:

• Crusoe Energy, based out of Denver, raised $1.375 billion in Series E equity funding at a $10+ billion valuation to build data centers and energy infrastructure powering AI workloads. Mubadala Capital and Valor Equity Partners co-led. Link.

• Redwood Materials, based out of Carson City, Nevada, raised $350 million in Series E funding led by Eclipse, with participation from NVentures, to accelerate energy storage deployment and expand its battery recycling and refining capacity. Link.

• Return Energy, based out of Amsterdam, raised €300 million (~$348 million) from APG Asset Management to develop and operate grid-scale battery storage. Link.

• Spiro, based out of Nairobi, Kenya, raised $100 million in equity funding co-led by The Fund for Export Development to expand its battery-swapping network for electric motorbikes across Africa, marking the continent's largest-ever EV mobility investment. Link.

• Seneca, based out of San Francisco, raised $60 million in equity funding co-led by Caffeinated Capital and Convective Capital to develop autonomous aerial systems for wildfire detection and suppression. Link.

• Stardust Solutions, based out of Israel but now also expanding to the U.S., raised $60 million in equity funding led by Lowercarbon Capital to develop solar geoengineering technology using aerosols to reflect sunlight, aiming for deployment readiness by decade's end. The company is also seeking patents for its unique reflective particle systems (not the traditional sulfur dioxide). Link.

• Arbor Energy, based out of El Segundo, California, raised $55 million in Series A funding co-led by Lowercarbon Capital and Voyager Ventures to build modular, zero-emission gas turbines for baseload power. Link.

• Electra, based out of Boulder, Colorado, unveiled a demonstration facility producing up to 500 metric tons of low-carbon iron annually, supported by $50 million from Breakthrough Energy Catalyst, $8 million in Colorado tax credits, and $186 million Series B funding, with purchase agreements from Nucor, Toyota Tsusho, and INTERFER Edelstahl Group. Link.

Medium-sized funding rounds:

• Meva Energy, based out of Gothenburg, Sweden, raised €40 million (~$46.4 million) in venture debt funding from the European Investment Bank to build modular gasification plants producing biogas for manufacturing. Link.

• MATR Foods, based out of Copenhagen, raised €20 million ($23.2 million) in Series A funding co-led by Novo Holdings and the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, with an additional €20 million in venture debt bringing total funding to €40 million ($46.4 million), to scale fermented plant-based meat production from 30 to 4,000 tonnes annually by 2027. Link.

• Fourth Power, based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts, raised $20 million in Series A+ funding led by Munich Re Ventures to build its first molten-tin thermal battery for low-cost, long-duration energy storage by 2028. Link.

• Sensenet, based out of Vancouver, raised $14 million in Series A funding led by Stormbreaker to expand its AI-powered wildfire detection system that leverages cameras, gas sensors, and satellites. Link.

• Mondra, based out of London, raised €10 million (~$11.6 million) in Series A funding led by AlbionVC and Planet A Ventures to expand its AI-powered supply chain intelligence platform for food industry emissions management. Link.

Smaller funding rounds:

• Etalytics, based out of Darmstadt, Germany, raised €8 million (~$9.3 million) in Series A funding led by M12 to expand its AI software monitoring industrial energy systems. Link.

• Nutropy, based out of Evry-Courcouronnes, France, raised €7 million (~$8.1 million) led by Big Pi Ventures to scale production of casein-based "cheeseable milk" powder ahead of 2027 launch. Link.

• Sizable Energy, based out of Milan, raised $8 million in equity funding led by Playground Global to develop offshore pumped hydro storage systems that leverage the ocean’s depth and gravity for long-duration energy storage. Link.

• Milvus Advanced, based out of Oxford, raised $6.9 million in seed funding led by Hoxton Ventures to develop earth-abundant nanoalloy materials replacing rare metals in electrochemical applications. Link.

• Zparq, based out of Älta, Sweden, secured €5.5 million (~$6.4 million) in EU funding through EIC Accelerator to build its Z10 electric marine drivetrain platform to create a more sustainable alternative to traditional marine engines. Link.

• Janta Power, based out of Dallas, raised $5.5 million in seed funding led by MaC Venture Capital for its three-dimensional solar tower systems that may unlock three times more capacity per acre than traditional panels. Link.

• Coolant, based out of San Francisco, raised $4.3 million in seed funding from General Catalyst and Floodgate to advance its AI-powered models for spatial intelligence and 3D ecosystem mapping to understand and protect the planet's ecosystems. Link.

• PilaEnergy, based out of Milan, raised $4 million in seed funding to develop plug-in batteries for buildings that install in minutes with mesh coordination and edge computing. Link.

• Fuvex, based out of Tudela, Spain, raised €3.2 million (~$3.7 million), combining €1.5 million in grants and €1.7 million in equity funding, to develop long-range autonomous drones for inspecting critical industry infrastructure. Link.

• Hydryx, based out of Amsterdam, raised €2.5 million (~$2.9 million) in seed funding led by Marcel Smits and Graduate Entrepreneur to scale its AI-driven landfill methane management system to support emissions capture for green energy conversion. Link.

• Hulo, based out of Leeuwarden, Netherlands, raised €2.3 million (~$2.7 million) in seed funding led by VP Capital and Lumo Labs to expand its AI-driven leak detection platform offering utilities hardware-free water loss reduction. Link.

• Allye Energy, based out of London, raised $2.5 million in seed funding led by Elbow Beach to repurpose EV batteries into modular energy storage systems. Link.

• Rightcharge, based out of London, raised £1.6 million (~$2.1 million) in seed funding led by Soulmates Ventures to expand its EV fleet charging platform that automates home-charging reimbursements and integrates public charging access. Link.

• Good Heat, based out of Sydney, Australia, raised over $2 million in equity funding from Understorey Ventures to deploy thermal energy storage systems for industry. Link.

• Upcycled Plant Power, based out of Newport, U.K., raised £1.5 million (~$2 million) from Elbow Beach to scale AI-powered robotic technology converting broccoli waste into plant-protein and fiber ingredients. Link.

• HotGreen Solutions, based out of Datchet, U.K., raised £1.2 million (~$1.4 million) in pre-seed funding led by Empirical Ventures to scale ultra-efficient industrial heat pumps delivering up to four times boiler efficiency. Link.

Not saying how much rounds:

• exnaton, based out of Zurich, Switzerland, raised an undisclosed amount of Series A funding co-led by 4impact Capital and Elevator Ventures to expand its AI-powered utility intelligence platform that enables dynamic tariffs and smart EV charging across Europe. Link.

Funds:

• BigCircle Ventures, based out of Amsterdam, raised €2 million (~$2.3 million) to expand venture-building capacity to 10 cleantech startups annually, sourcing innovations from European research hubs. Link.

Ciao,

— Nick