Author: Arnes Biogradlija

Wärtsilä has secured the fourth expansion phase of Origin Energy’s Eraring battery facility in New South Wales, adding 360 MWh to bring total capacity to 700 MW / 3,160 MWh upon completion in early 2027. The project’s scale positions it among the world’s largest battery installations, though its economic viability depends heavily on Australia’s National Electricity Market mechanisms for frequency control ancillary services, capacity payments, and energy arbitrage spreads that have demonstrated considerable volatility as renewable penetration increases and coal retirements accelerate. The sequential expansion approach across four stages since 2023 reflects a risk-managed strategy allowing Origin to validate technical…

Hydrogen Oman has confirmed BP’s withdrawal from the Duqm Green Hydrogen Project, marking the second project cancellation from the nation’s inaugural hydrogen auction round following the HyDuqm venture’s termination by mutual agreement. The exits occur as BP restructures its global hydrogen portfolio, withdrawing from projects in Australia and the United Kingdom alongside Oman, exposing tensions between government ambitions for hydrogen export economies and developer reassessments of project economics amid persistent offtake uncertainty and capital cost inflation. Hydrom announced both project conclusions at the 2025 Green Hydrogen Summit in Oman, framing the decisions as portfolio adjustments rather than fundamental strategy failures.…

For years, the hydrogen world has behaved like a teenager hopped up on optimism: big promises, loud declarations, and the belief that the whole planet would run on H₂ by “next summer.” Markus Exenberger, Executive Director at H2Global, puts that fantasy to rest. In our conversation at H2 MEET, he was brutally clear: the real work is only now being done — the slow, meticulous, bureaucratic, deeply unsexy work that turns hype into functioning markets. WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW HERE And that’s exactly why this moment matters more than anything that came before. Markus started by reminding us that the…

European energy storage hardware startups have raised €2.14 billion in equity funding, accounting for 46.7% of capital raised over the past three years, according to analysis from Avnet Silica covering commercial, industrial, and grid-scale applications. The investment acceleration reflects mounting pressure to address renewable intermittency and grid stability challenges. However, capital concentration patterns reveal persistent questions about which technologies can achieve commercial scale against entrenched lithium-ion incumbents and Chinese manufacturing dominance. Mechanical storage systems captured €696.7 million, more than double the €331.8 million directed toward battery energy storage systems, despite representing fewer companies in the European startup landscape. This funding…

Air Products and Yara International have outlined a partnership structure for low-carbon ammonia projects in Louisiana and Saudi Arabia, with Yara positioned to acquire ammonia production facilities representing approximately 25% of an estimated $8-9 billion Louisiana complex after performance verification. The arrangement addresses a persistent challenge in carbon capture projects: securing offtakers willing to commit capital before operational proof, while deferring substantial asset acquisition until technical and commercial risks diminish. The Louisiana Clean Energy Complex targets production of more than 750 million standard cubic feet per day of low-carbon hydrogen with 95% CO2 capture, feeding 2.8 million tonnes per year…

Croatian oil and gas company INA has contracted Koncar and Siemens Energy’s local subsidiary for €22.5 million to develop a 10 MW electrolyzer facility at its Rijeka refinery, backed by €15 million in state aid through the national recovery and resilience plan. The project represents a 67% public subsidy rate, indicating that green hydrogen production economics at this scale remain heavily dependent on government support despite growing policy pressure on refineries to reduce process emissions. Refineries constitute one of the largest existing hydrogen consumption sectors, currently sourcing the molecule primarily through steam methane reforming of natural gas. This gray hydrogen…

Iberdrola has established Carbon2Nature Australia as a joint venture with its local subsidiary, initiating a 688-hectare restoration project targeting Drooping Sheoak grassy woodland on South Australia’s Eyre Peninsula. The project represents the Spanish utility’s entry into Australia’s Australian Carbon Credit Unit market, a mechanism that has issued approximately 200 million ACCUs since 2012 but faces ongoing scrutiny regarding additionality claims and permanence guarantees in land-based sequestration projects. The Talia Station initiative focuses on Allocasuarina verticillata woodland restoration, an ecosystem classified as critically endangered under national environmental legislation. Extensive agricultural conversion across the Eyre Peninsula reduced this vegetation type to fragmented…

Eurowind Energy has divested its 50% stake in the Potentia-Viridi battery energy storage system to an unnamed American independent power producer, marking the Danish developer’s withdrawal from a California project initially structured as a joint venture with Capstone Infrastructure Corporation. The transaction signals a broader recalibration of European renewable developers’ US market strategies as regulatory complexity, interconnection delays, and financing costs challenge profitability projections that drove transatlantic expansion in previous years. The PoVi facility represents a four to eight-hour duration battery storage asset designed to provide grid services and renewable energy firming capacity in Alameda County. Planning documents submitted to…

The Netherlands has committed €19.3 million through the Dutch Research Council and National Growth Fund programme GroenvermogenNL to the HyFINE consortium, a collaboration targeting the decarbonization of specialty and fine chemical manufacturing. Combined with €2 million in co-funding and €2.8 million in-kind contributions, the €24.2 million initiative reflects growing recognition that current production pathways for high-value chemical intermediates present both economic and environmental liabilities that incumbents must address. Specialty and fine chemicals constitute a segment characterized by low production volumes, high margins, and complex synthesis routes. These compounds serve as essential precursors in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, advanced materials, and other sectors…

Calgary-based Eavor Technologies has connected its Geretsried facility to the German grid, representing the first commercial deployment of closed-loop multilateral well geothermal technology. The milestone arrives as European nations accelerate baseload renewable capacity additions, though the economics and scalability of closed-loop systems remain under industry scrutiny. The Geretsried project distinguishes itself from conventional geothermal through its closed-loop architecture, which eliminates the need for water sourcing, treatment infrastructure, and periodic redrilling cycles that typically burden open-loop installations. This design choice addresses two persistent cost drivers in geothermal operations: formation water management and production decline over time. Whether these theoretical advantages translate…