Author: Arnes Biogradlija

By repurposing Northvolt’s flagship Dwa factory in Poland, Lyten isn’t just chasing scale—it’s betting the future of lithium‑sulfur will outflank giants shackled by brand‑new gigafactory gambles. The 270,000 ft² plant, once poised to deliver up to 12 GWh of battery‑energy‑storage systems, instead became a pawn in Northvolt’s bankruptcy chessboard. Lyten swooped in, closing the deal in Q3 2025, and plans to fire up production immediately, leapfrogging years of construction and hundreds of millions in capital outlay. This brownfield playbook isn’t theoretical. In 2024, Lyten converted Cuberg’s Bay Area lithium‑metal lines into the first commercial lithium‑sulfur pilot, proving that repurposed assets can meet rigorous…

In 2023, U.S. venture investment in energy innovation dropped 27% from its 2021 peak. While inflation and interest rates played a role, insiders suggest a more systemic issue: a stagnating ecosystem that fails to scale bold ideas. Doug Wicks, a former Program Director at ARPA-E, has seen firsthand why so many promising solutions fall short—not in the lab, but in the systems meant to support them. WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE Wicks, now an independent strategic advisor, believes the U.S. energy innovation pipeline is undermined by bureaucratic inertia and a reluctance to prioritize “fast failure” over procedural rigor. “We’re not…

A key indicator of Germany’s hydrogen ambitions has dimmed: despite a national target of 10 GW of installed electrolyser capacity by 2030, just over 1 GW has reached final investment decision. Germany’s H2UB Boxberg initiative, announced in April 2024, aimed to repurpose decommissioned lignite‑fired units into Europe’s largest green energy hub. The project centred on a modular “flexibility power plant” concept: an initial 110 MW PEM electrolyser converting surplus wind and solar power into green hydrogen, complemented by large‑scale battery storage and hydrogen‑fired turbines to supply firm, around‑the‑clock power. In June 2025, LEAG confirmed it was “postponing plans for hydrogen production in Boxberg…

An abrupt exit by Queensland’s state‑owned Stanwell Corporation has abruptly halted what would have been Australia’s largest green hydrogen facility, underscoring how shaky economics and wavering offtake commitments are forcing a strategic retreat across the nation’s nascent hydrogen sector. The Central Queensland Hydrogen Project (CQ‑H2) had envisioned an initial 720 MW electrolyser array producing up to 73,000 tonnes of green hydrogen annually, with plans to scale to 2.88 GW for over one million tonnes per year. Total capital expenditure was pegged at roughly AUD 12.5 billion (USD 8.2 billion). Yet in a terse statement on July 1, 2025, Stanwell confirmed it was “discontinuing its involvement in the CQ‑H2…

Inner Mongolia’s latest approval of a 1,000 MW integrated wind-solar-to-hydrogen project marks a structural shift in China’s hydrogen policy execution, as it simultaneously pioneers renewable hydrogen production and long-distance pure hydrogen pipeline transport—an infrastructure blend still rare even by global standards. The Damao Banner project, led by Huadian Power via its subsidiary Inner Mongolia Huadian Huayang Hydrogen Energy Technology Co., Ltd., reflects a calibrated push by the Chinese central and regional governments to close the gap between hydrogen production potential and practical deployment. Totaling over 6.76 billion yuan (USD 930 million), this project is the first in Inner Mongolia to…

By mid‑2025, the Senate’s GOP majority had every reason to trumpet a legislative victory: a 940‑page reconciliation package promising permanent tax cuts, beefed‑up military spending and border security, all wrapped in President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill.” Yet buried in that ostentation lies a far darker reality: the near‑obliteration of America’s clean energy future. At the heart of the uproar are the dramatic rollbacks to the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) and Production Tax Credit (PTC) for wind, solar and storage projects. A recent analysis shows the Senate version phases full‑value credits down to zero by 2032—shrinking support from 100 percent today…

By 2024, the global sodium-ion battery (SIB) research ecosystem had generated over 15,600 peer-reviewed publications—an exponential growth from fewer than 10 articles annually just two decades prior. This surge reflects not only scientific interest but also rising industrial urgency to find lithium alternatives amid volatile pricing and geopolitical constraints. A new scientometric review by Qahtan et al. provides the first comprehensive data-driven mapping of the SIB field, revealing both deep-rooted challenges and underexploited opportunities that will shape the trajectory of scalable energy storage. Material Abundance, But Technological Gaps Sodium, the sixth most abundant element in Earth’s crust, boasts a global…

In power systems with high shares of renewables, traditional inertia is vanishing. The surge in global renewable energy penetration—23.2% of power generation as of 2019 and climbing—has outpaced grid modernization efforts, creating a widening gap between power generation variability and system stability. This shift has elevated energy storage systems (ESSs) from supportive infrastructure to a central pillar in grid frequency regulation—a role previously dominated by conventional rotating machinery. Frequency Instability: A Consequence of High Renewable Penetration As synchronous generators give way to inverter-based renewable energy sources (RESs), system inertia, which historically dampened frequency deviations, is plummeting. The result is a…

As geopolitical tensions increasingly reshape global supply chains, Eve Energy’s $1.2 billion expansion into Malaysia signals more than a simple capacity boost—it reflects a broader strategic recalibration among Chinese battery manufacturers seeking to derisk export routes and regionalize production. The company’s announcement on June 27 to scale up energy storage battery production in Kedah State positions Malaysia as a rising node in the global energy storage value chain, but also raises questions about long-term competitiveness, localization, and trade policy exposure. Southeast Asia’s Rising Role in Battery Manufacturing Eve Energy’s project, set to occupy 484,000 square meters in Kulim City and…

The delivery of the first major project cargo to Duqm marks a quiet but critical milestone in Oman’s bid to become a global player in green hydrogen and ammonia. On the back of rising demand for zero-carbon fuels, the arrival of oversized plant equipment signals more than just construction progress—it underscores the intensifying competition across the Gulf to monetize renewable resources through export-oriented hydrogen value chains. Heavy Cargo Arrives Ahead of 2027 Commissioning Last week’s delivery, orchestrated by Khimji Ramdas Shipping, included 14 packages of heavy-lift equipment, among them a single component weighing 120 metric tonnes. The cargo was transported…