Climate Tech Newsletter: July 13, 2026

Welcome to last week’s edition of the CBKNY’s Weekly News Highlights. Explore the latest policies, innovations, and market trends driving the future of climate tech.

Climate Tech Insights

Nuclear dominated this week: four US microreactors achieved criticality, and Palisades neared America's first plant restart. Microsoft's emissions jumped. Chinese integrators captured 76% of global BESS while BYD-Masdar unveiled 11GWh round-the-clock storage in Abu Dhabi. Honda-LG retooled an Ohio EV plant for grid batteries, Sunrun proposed homes as AI data centers, and a super El Niño threatens global food prices.

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1. 'Huge Wave' of Carbon Storage Projects Causes Alarm in Small-Town USA as Oil Firms Eye Billions in Subsidies
   July 12, 2026 – The Guardian

2. Super El Niño Could Cause Severe Shock to Global Food Prices Lasting Into 2028, Economists Warn
   July 12, 2026 – The Guardian

3. Four Nuclear Reactors Hit a Big Milestone in the US
   July 9, 2026 – MIT Technology Review

4. South Korean Supply Chain Players Tapped for 3.2 GW Offshore Wind Project
   July 9, 2026 – Offshore Wind

5. Why Data Centers Powered by Off-Grid Gas Flunk a New Climate Investor Test
   July 9, 2026 – Latitude Media

6. UK Roundup: Field Closes Financing on 1GWh Portfolio; Pulse Clean Energy Selects Envision for 310MWh Project
   July 7, 2026 – Energy Storage News

7. Palau Solar-Plus-Storage Site to Add 19.8MWh BESS in Australian-Backed Augmentation
   July 10, 2026 – Energy Storage News

8. Honda-LG ES Begin ESS Cell Production at Retooled Ohio EV Cell Facility
   July 8, 2026 – Energy Storage News

9. Frontier Power USA Picks Four Sites to Deploy 920MWh of Eos Zinc Hybrid-Cathode BESS
   July 9, 2026 – Energy Storage News

10. European Battery & BESS Manufacturing Gets Boost With Eni Storage and Hithium Gigafactory Milestones in Italy, Spain
    July 7, 2026 – Energy Storage News

11. Elestor, Windpark Zeewolde Partner on 10-40-Hour Hydrogen-Iron Flow Battery LDES Project in Netherlands
    July 8, 2026 – Energy Storage News

12. Chinese System Integrators Capture 76% of Global BESS Market as Competition Intensifies
    July 7, 2026 – Energy Storage News

13. 'Battery Storage May Be Important, But We Also Welcome Long-Duration Storage': QIC on Queensland's North West Energy Fund
    July 8, 2026 – Energy Storage News

14. Battery Storage Business Models Explored for AI Data Centres With Nordic Reserve Market Revenues and US Household Computing Power
    July 9, 2026 – Energy Storage News

15. Australia's CleanPeak Energy to Deploy 120MWh Battery Storage System at Western Sydney International Airport
    July 7, 2026 – Energy Storage News

16. Amazon Pens Battery Storage PPA for 220MWh Solar-Plus-Storage Site in Australia
    July 6, 2026 – Energy Storage News

17. India Looks to Untapped Graphite Riches for Slice of Critical Minerals Boom
    July 9, 2026 – Climate Home News

18. America's First Nuclear Plant Restart May Be Near the Finish Line
    July 10, 2026 – Canary Media

19. Could Hydropower Hamper NYC's Building Decarbonization Law?
    July 7, 2026 – Canary Media

20. Clean Energy Helped the Grid Avoid Heat-Wave Catastrophe
    July 10, 2026 – Canary Media

21. Quaise Energy Raises $134M to Fuel Superhot Geothermal Ambitions
    July 7, 2026 – Canary Media

22. In This Brooklyn Warehouse, Stoves Are Turned Into Batteries
    July 7, 2026 – Canary Media

23. Duke Energy Proposes Special Rules for Data Centers in North Carolina
    July 6, 2026 – Canary Media

24. Microsoft Adjusts Climate Agenda as Emissions Leap
    July 9, 2026 – Trellis

25. 'World's First' 600 hp Hydrogen Engine Achieves China VI Compliance for Heavy-Duty Use
    July 12, 2026 – Interesting Engineering

26. UNIGRID's Sodium-Ion Home Battery Debuts in Europe, US Is Next
    July 10, 2026 – Electrek

27. BYD Wins 11.3 GWh Battery Deal for World's Largest Solar+Storage
    July 10, 2026 – Electrek

28. China's Giant Gobi Solar Plant Runs After Dark on Salt, Not Batteries
    July 9, 2026 – Electrek

29. Sunrun Wants to Pay You to Turn Your Home Into an AI Data Center
    July 8, 2026 – Electrek

30. The Moment Appears Ripe for Sustainable Aviation Fuels, But the Market's Still Hedging
    July 6, 2026 – Corporate Knights

31. CCSA Outlines $47B Taxpayer Saving via Private-Led GGR Market
    July 9, 2026 – Carbon Herald