Author: EnergyNews.biz Newsroom

The Netherlands will require an estimated 38,000 trained professionals to support its green hydrogen economy, a figure that underscores a growing constraint in Europe’s energy transition: workforce capacity rather than technology readiness.

More than 90 percent of global electricity grid infrastructure sits at the distribution level, yet much of it was designed for a one-directional system that no longer reflects how power is generated and consumed.

Saudi Arabia is moving to procure 12,000 MWh of battery storage capacity in a single tender round, signaling a material shift in how the Kingdom balances renewable expansion with grid stability. The initiative, led by Saudi Power Procurement Company, introduces six large-scale Battery Energy Storage System projects, each rated at 500 MW with four-hour discharge capability, bringing the total to 3,000 MW of capacity.

China’s coal-producing provinces generate roughly one billion tonnes of carbon emissions annually, a volume nearly double that of Germany, placing regions such as Shanxi and Shaanxi at the center of the country’s decarbonization challenge.

India’s target of 5 million metric tonnes of green hydrogen production annually by 2030 would exceed the current global market by a factor of five, highlighting both the scale of ambition and the execution gap facing the sector.

The Irish regulator is advancing a tariff reform that could materially reshape the economics of battery storage by eliminating dual grid charging structures that industry participants have long identified as a barrier to deployment.

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) is advancing a 300 megawatt battery energy storage system with 1,500 megawatt hours of capacity at its Patache project in Chile.

Japan is preparing an investment package of approximately 1 trillion yen, equivalent to about 6.3 billion dollars, to scale a domestic circular economy for metals and plastics by 2030, according to a government action plan.

A planned Mediterranean green hydrogen hub in Alexandria is moving into structured feasibility assessment after AlexFert, a subsidiary of Valmore Holding, signed a memorandum of understanding with Orascom Construction, Abu Qir Fertilizers and Chemical Industries, and UEG Green Hydrogen Development Holding Limited during EGYPES 2026.

Europe’s push to localize critical battery materials is accelerating as TSR Group and BASF formalize a collaboration targeting key bottlenecks in electric vehicle battery recycling, from dismantling through to material reintegration.