Materials, Climate Finance & more - January 8
Novatron x Oxford Sigma - Fusion Power Plant Design; Membranes to recycle aluminum, PFAS-free membranes; Aluminum cladding for wind turbine nacelles;
In this newsletter:
Novatron & Oxford Sigma Partner on Fusion Power Plant Design
PyroCCS scales biochar production in Namibia and India
Renewables and Materials
Ionomr Innovations opens Boston facility to scale PFAS-free membranes production
MIT develops nanofiltration membrane for aluminum waste recycling
PaxOcean to build sustainable offshore construction vessels
Ekona Advances Clean Hydrogen Production with NGIF Support
Aluminium for Sustainable Wind Turbine Nacelles
Climate Finance
IUCN Project Strengthens Biodiversity Financing in Europe
Decarbon8-US Invests $800k in Renewable Energy Startups
Robeco Expands Climate and Nature Engagement in 2025
News from Governments
Brazil's National Policy for Sustainable Pequi Fruit Production
UK invests £2.4B to improve flood resilience amid climate change
South Africa Promotes Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining for Economic and Environmental Benefits
US GSA awards historic carbon-free electricity contract, including Nuclear
Alberta funds water reduction technologies for oil and gas
More reading on Sierra Leone’s Climate policies from the IMF.
Novatron & Oxford Sigma Partner on Fusion Power Plant Design
(January 8)
Swedish Novatron Fusion Group and UK-based Oxford Sigma announced a partnership to accelerate the development of commercial fusion power stations using Novatron’s NOVATRON reactor design. Oxford Sigma will contribute expertise in fusion materials, component design, and manufacturing.
PyroCCS scales biochar production in Namibia and India
(December 27)
Germany-based ClimateTech startup PyroCCS has built two biochar plants in Namibia, each producing 1,000 tons of biochar annually. The company aims to build 400 plants by 2030, creating nearly 10,000 jobs and generating 2,000 tons CO2eq carbon credits per year per plant. PyroCCS also works in India, partnering to produce biochar from agricultural waste.
Renewables and Materials
Ionomr Innovations opens Boston facility to scale PFAS-free membranes production
(January 07)
Canada and US-based Ionomr Innovations Inc. opened a new development and low volume manufacturing facility in Charlestown, Massachusetts. The company develops and produces PFAS-free ion-exchange materials to enable decarbonization solutions. The expansion aims to scale up production capacity and access skilled engineering talent.
MIT develops nanofiltration membrane for aluminum waste recycling
(January 07)
MIT engineers have developed a new nanofiltration membrane technology to recover aluminum ions from cryolite waste in aluminum production. The membrane selectively captures more than 99 percent of aluminum ions, reducing waste and enabling a circular economy for aluminum. This reduces the need for new mining and improves the environmental quality of waste generated by aluminum plants.
PaxOcean to build sustainable offshore construction vessels
(January 07)
Singapore-based PaxOcean has secured shipbuilding contracts for two Offshore Construction Vessels (OCVs) with a European shipowner. The vessels, measuring 123 meters in length, will support both conventional and renewable offshore energy industries and include features like a 1000KWh battery energy storage system and options for methanol readiness. Delivery is scheduled for 2027.
Ekona Advances Clean Hydrogen Production with NGIF Support
(December 19)
Canada-based Ekona Power Inc. completed development and field testing of a tri-generation pyrolysis system for clean hydrogen production. Supported by a $500,000 grant from NGIF Accelerator, the project reduces GHG emissions by up to 90%. Ekona is now focused on completing its Burnaby Pilot Plant and constructing a one-ton-per-day field demonstration plant.
Aluminium for Sustainable Wind Turbine Nacelles
(December 12)
Speira and Bayards Aluminium Solutions have developed a modular concept for wind turbine nacelle cladding using aluminium. Initial calculations show 18 percent less weight compared to GRP constructions, 67 percent less COâ‚‚ emissions during production, and 100 percent recyclability.
Climate Finance
IUCN Project Strengthens Biodiversity Financing in Europe
(January 06)
The IUCN, with support from the European Commission, launched a project in Belgium, Finland, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands to identify Environmental Harmful Subsidies (EHS) and improve biodiversity financing. The project aims to assess EHS, develop National Biodiversity Finance Plans, improve data governance, and build capacity, ultimately contributing to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework targets of reducing harmful incentives by at least $500 billion per year and mobilising $200 billion per year for biodiversity.
Decarbon8-US Invests $800k in Renewable Energy Startups
(January 7)
US-based E8 Angels, a cleantech angel investing community, announced that its Decarbon8-US 2024 fund invested over $800,000 in three renewable energy startups: Atlas Power Technologies, Cecilia, and Pecos Wind Power. The fund, administered by Realize Impact, focuses on renewable energy and received over 80 applications. For 2025, the fund will focus on Software and AI for Climate.
Robeco Expands Climate and Nature Engagement in 2025
(January 2025)
Robeco, a Dutch asset manager, has expanded its engagement in climate and nature, focusing on natural resource management, deforestation (expanding from palm oil to soy, beef, leather, paper and pulp), biodiversity, and human capital management. They are also initiating new themes on transition minerals (supply chains in electric vehicle batteries) and protecting shareholder rights from weakening regulations.
News from Governments
Brazil's National Policy for Sustainable Pequi Fruit Production
(January 07)
Brazil has implemented a National Policy for the sustainable management, planting, extraction, consumption, commercialization, and transformation of pequi and other Cerrado fruits. This policy prohibits predatory logging of pequi trees, promotes sustainable economic exploitation by traditional communities, and encourages planting seedlings to protect the Cerrado biome and support small farmers.
UK invests £2.4B to improve flood resilience amid climate change
(January 07)
The UK government, through the Environment Agency, is responding to recent floods impacting England. Over 41,000 properties were protected, but at least 300 flooded. £2.4 billion is invested over two years to improve flood resilience. The Floods Resilience Taskforce is accelerating flood defenses and enhancing national resilience to extreme weather, exacerbated by climate change.
South Africa Promotes Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining for Economic and Environmental Benefits
(January 07)
The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) in South Africa promotes Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining (ASM) to create jobs, boost economic growth, alleviate poverty, and improve environmental and health safety practices.
Small-scale mining is supported by mining legislation and allows for participants to hold mining permits to conduct artisanal and small-scale mining operations in their approved sites. Artisanal and Small-Scale consider the environmental and health & safety practices, as well as taxation and royalty legislations.
Illegal mining takes place at derelict and ownerless mines (D&O mines) under very dangerous conditions and through non-approved mining methods. Illegal mining is spearheaded by well-connected criminal syndicates who are heavily armed and often use explosives. They operate outside the legal framework which governs the mining sector in South Africa.
The DMRE established the Small-Scale Mining Fund to support ASM activities, offering financial assistance to approved applicants for capital, operational, and rehabilitation expenses.
GSA awards historic carbon-free electricity contract, including Nuclear
(January 02)
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced a 10-year contract with Constellation New Energy for over 10 million megawatt-hours of electricity, including 2.4 million MWh from new nuclear capacity. This is GSA’s largest energy purchase, providing power to 80 federal facilities and aiming for 100% carbon pollution-free electricity by 2030.
U.S. General Services Administration
Alberta funds water reduction technologies for oil and gas
(December 16)
Alberta’s government invested $2.7 million in three projects to reduce water use in oil and gas production. Aqua Pure Technologies and Eximius Environmental Solutions will develop water filtration technologies, while Canadian Natural Resources Limited will test a chemical additive to improve oil flow and reduce steam needs. The total investment across the three projects is $6.1 million.
Research
EU's Nature Restoration Regulation: Impact on Businesses and Investments
(December 17)
The European Union introduced the Nature Restoration Regulation (EU 2024/1991) to restore degraded ecosystems by 2050. EU countries must implement restoration measures to cover at least 20% of land and sea areas by 2030. The EU Commission estimates restoration will generate €1,860 billion in benefits, with costs of €154 billion, yielding an 8-38 times return on investment. Businesses must adapt to support restoration goals, creating opportunities in green finance and sustainable practices.
IMF Report: Climate Fiscal Policies in Sierra Leone
(October 26)
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) conducted a mission to Sierra Leone to assess climate fiscal policies. The report details Sierra Leone's climate challenges (rising temperatures, extreme weather), energy sector issues (low electricity access, reliance on fossil fuels), and recommendations for climate-resilient development, including energy sector reforms, sustainable agriculture, water management, disaster risk reduction, and institutional strengthening. The IMF projected that without adaptation, GDP per capita could decline by approximately 8 percent by 2100 due to warming.
Currently, less than 40 percent of the population has access to electricity, with unreliable service and frequent outages reported. Most electricity generation comes from hydropower and imported fossil fuels, which is expensive and contributes to high operational costs for state-owned energy companies. In addition, the inefficiencies in the energy sector, including outdated infrastructure, high transmission losses, and low bill collection rates, have left the sector financially vulnerable.
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