BMW is kicking off its Neue Klasse era of car design in high style with the all-new 2027 model year BMW iX3 – and demand for the new electric crossover is so high that BMW is reportedly sold out through to the end of 2026, already.
more…The ultra-fast Xiaomi SU7 Ultra made enough headlines with its astonishing 0-60 sprints and record Nürburgring lap times to drum up around 3,000 sales per month – but the good times seem to have come to an end, and Xiaomi sold just 45 units in December.
more…I reached out to a Texas Chevy dealer about a 2023 Bolt EUV LT Redline they list in their inventory, and despite talking to two different reps and probably an AI, I couldn’t get the answer to one simple question: why is their price more than $13,000 above sticker?
more…
India’s pathway to achieving net-zero emissions by 2070 will require an estimated USD 10 trillion (INR 883 lakh crore) in cumulative investments. Against this backdrop, credible corporate climate transition planning […]
The post India Needs USD 10 Trillion For Net-Zero By 2070, But IEEFA Says Corporate Transition Plans Are Fragmented And Largely Compliance-Driven appeared first on SolarQuarter.
In 2025, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) achieved a record year in Montenegro, committing €215 million across 18 projects – the highest annual business volume and project […]
The post EBRD Made €215M Investment In Montenegro In 2025, Driving Green Transition, Private Sector Growth, And Regional Connectivity appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Youth are playing a central role in driving system-wide transformations in the energy sector, using digital tools such as artificial intelligence to make renewable energy technologies more accessible and impactful […]
The post Youth Lead Global Energy Transition At IRENA Youth Forum 2026 In Abu Dhabi, Harnessing AI And Digital Tools For Renewable Energy Access appeared first on SolarQuarter.
In 2025, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invested €1.35 billion in Poland across 44 projects, maintaining strong support for the country’s energy security, business growth, and the […]
The post EBRD Invests €1.35B In Poland In 2025, Supporting Green Energy, Private Sector Growth, And National Energy Security appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Nexus Renewables Inc., a full-service renewable energy developer and independent power producer operating as part of the Apricus Generation platform, has announced the appointment of Faizan Farooqi, the Company’s Vice […]
The post Nexus Renewables Appoints Faizan Farooqi To Board, Replacing Former CEO Keith Sandor Following Termination For Cause appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Visionary entrepreneur and global business leader Zaya Younan, Founder and Chairman of Younan Company, has announced a strategic expansion into large-scale renewable energy with the launch of a major utility-scale […]
The post Visionary Entrepreneur Zaya Younan Enters Renewable Energy With 880 MW Solar + 460 MW Battery Project In California, Generating $100M Annually appeared first on SolarQuarter.
In 2025, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) invested a record €955 million in 37 projects in Romania, marking a significant increase from the €707 million invested across […]
The post EBRD Invests Record €955M In Romania In 2025, Up from €707M In 44 Projects In 2024, Driving Green Transition And Private Sector Growth appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Construction has commenced on significant renewable energy projects across the Middle East, including the 1.5 GW Khazna Solar Project in the UAE, Oman’s first solar and storage initiative, and various expansions in Tunisia and Saudi Arabia. These efforts aim to enhance energy security, support climate goals, and foster regional partnerships in clean energy.
The post MiddleEast Weekly Updates: Khazna 1.5GW Solar Project Begins; Dentons Backs Oman Solar + Storage and More… appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Stichting Clean Energy and Energy Inclusion for Africa (CEI Africa), through its Crowdlending Window, along with crowdfunding platform Energise Africa, has mobilised $2.9 million in financing to support the development […]
The post CEI Africa and Energise Africa Mobilise $2.9 Million to Develop Nine Solar Mini-Grids in Rural Benin appeared first on SolarQuarter.
Pekat Group Bhd, through its subsidiary Pentas RE Sdn Bhd, has signed a 21-year Power Purchase Agreement for a solar and battery storage project in Kuantan, Pahang. The 25MWac solar facility combined with a 40MWh battery highlights Pekat's commitment to renewable energy, offering economic and environmental benefits while supporting Malaysia's energy transition.
The post Pekat Group Secures 21-Year PPA For 25 MW Solar And 40 MWh Battery Project In Kuantan appeared first on SolarQuarter.
CrossBoundary Access, Africa’s first blended finance platform for mini-grids, and ANKA, a leading mini-grid developer, have completed the acquisition of an asset company owning four operational mini-grid projects in Madagascar. […]
The post CrossBoundary Access and ANKA Acquire Four Operational Mini-Grids in Madagascar appeared first on SolarQuarter.
The government of Zambia has taken a significant step toward strengthening its energy sector by partnering with the United Arab Emirates to develop a large-scale solar power project. A high-level […]
The post Zambia Partners With UAE For 300 MW Solar Project To Boost Energy Security And Economic Growth appeared first on SolarQuarter.
LFB Group’s dedicated data centre division has rebranded to Apx, in a move the company says reflects the “complexity, pace and performance expectations” now defining the European data centre market.
The rebrand comes as operators and developers grapple with rising compute intensity, with AI deployments pushing rack densities higher and putting greater scrutiny on cooling performance and delivery timelines. In that environment, Apx says closer collaboration earlier in the design and build cycle – including co-engineering and pre-commissioning – is becoming increasingly important.
The name should also feel familiar. Apx has already been used by LFB Group before – with it naming an entire cooling infrastructure product series after it. Now, however, that name is going to be expanded to the whole division.
Apx will feature the familiar dedicated team from LFB Group, which was previously part of Lennox, so the experience that the company has gathered over the last 20 years will continue to be there – just under a new name.
Given its established position in the market – why the rebrand? Well, the company says that Apx is all about market positioning. Not only has the company recently debuted three new products, but the company is keen to capitalise on the explosive growth that is occurring in the data centre market – especially in Europe.
The company is positioning its strength on the pre-commissioning and early validation work, with capabilities it describes as spanning precision manufacturing, automated testing and climatic validation.
Matt Evans, CEO at Apx Data Centre Solutions, argued that the ability to validate performance earlier has become a differentiator as large projects are announced at pace. He noted, “The industry’s dams have well and truly burst, with billion dollar projects and developments being announced almost every week. Keeping on top of this demand though, has never been more important.
“Today, collaboration is everything. Operators are searching for partners who can offer them both flexibility and agility, enabling them to build for the future while reacting quickly to what’s happening right now. That’s where co-engineering becomes critical; by working with designers, contractors and operators from day one, we can shape decisions together, anticipate challenges and engineer solutions before they become problems.”
Evans added that front-loading engineering work is intended to reduce uncertainty once equipment reaches site. He continued, “While no one can predict what’s around the corner, one thing is clear: performance has to be proven earlier. It’s been one of our grounding principles since the start; the idea that pre-commissioning must be core to every product’s DNA. By front-loading engineering, validating performance up-front and removing uncertainty before components reach sites, we give operators the head space, and time, to meet the demand.
“The direction of travel is clear: scale, capacity and density. And I couldn’t be more excited about where we’ve taken this business. The new Apx name marks our next chapter, and it’s one we’re genuinely proud to be part of.”
While it has a new name, Apx will continue to sit within the wider LFB Group, which also includes HVAC specialist Redge and refrigeration business Friga-Bohn. The group says this structure provides industrial-scale manufacturing support and engineering expertise across refrigeration and mechanical disciplines.
Alongside the branding change, Apx is also expanding headcount. The company said it will recruit across project management, operations, controls, commissioning and sales support roles in France, Germany and the Netherlands. By 2027, its dedicated data centre team is expected to reach around 50 employees.
Saudi Arabia is reportedly preparing to scale back NEOM, its marquee ‘gigaproject’ on the Red Sea, with it instead looking to develop an AI data centre hub instead.
According to unnamed sources cited by a report in the Financial Times, Saudi Arabia will scale back its hugely ambitious NEOM megaproject to create a new livable region in the desert in the northwest of the country, on the Red Sea coast. The project was announced in 2017 by Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman and was a cornerstone of his Vision 2030. It was to cover about 26,500 square km, roughly the size of Belgium (see map below).
The image above, from 27 October 2024, shows Sindalah, a luxury island destination and the first physical showcase of NEOM.
NEOM was due for completion in 2030 and included plans for a city called The Line – a row of 500m tall skyscrapers stretching for some 200km. However NEOM suffered many delays and cost overruns, as well as criticism for potential environmental damage and being unrealistic, among other things.
In addition, Saudi Arabia is hosting the Expo international trade fair in 2030 and the football World Cup in 2034, both of which involve large scale investment. Work on NEOM was paused in 2025 while the government looked at its options in a year-long review which is scheduled to conclude in this quarter.
According to a report in the Financial Times, focus for the region will be more on industry, such as becoming a hub for data centres. Its location means sea water can be used for cooling and the Crown Prince is keen to make his country a leader in AI infrastructure – a hub for data centres to power AI – to attract inward investment and high profile international partners.
An unnamed source cited by the FT said the location had other advantages too, such as digital infrastructure and its position at the crossroad of three continents (Africa, Asia and Europe), plus almost limitless renewable energy and available land.
It’s not the first time NEOM has been touted as potentially playing host to data centres, with DataVolt committing $5 billion DataVolt to develop a new 1.5 GW net zero AI campus at NEOM’s Oxagon. That was expected to come online in 2028, but it’s unknown if it’ll be impacted by the planned rethink for the NEOM area.
This article originally appeared on Mobile Europe, with additional commentary from Data Centre Review.
Lanarkshire has been named the UK’s latest AI Growth Zone, with the UK Government backing a major expansion around DataVita’s data centre site in the area.
This is the first AI Growth Zone located in Scotland, which has long been positioned as an ideal area to host one – given the abundance of renewable power that is available in the region. The Scottish Government has also been keen to promote the area in hopes of developing it into a leading zero-carbon, cost-competitive green data centre hub.
The Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone, which is the fifth AIGZ to be announced, is set to be based around DataVita’s campus, with the Scottish data centre firm delivering the site in partnership with AI cloud provider CoreWeave. That’s slightly different from other sites, which have often been positioned around multiple data centre operators, such as the North East Growth Zone, which is being centred around expansions to existing campuses from Cobalt Park Data Centres and the QTS Cambois.
Despite being centred around the one expanded campus, the UK Government still has big hopes for the site. In fact, it’s hoped that the site will bring more than 3,000 jobs to the area over the coming years, including 50 apprenticeships. Around 800 roles are expected to be higher-paid AI and digital infrastructure jobs, spanning everything from research and software to permanent staff running and maintaining data centres, with the remainder tied to construction and site development.
Alongside job creation, ministers are pointing to £8.2 billion of private investment, plus a community fund worth up to £543 million over the next 15 years, which the Government says will be raised as data centre capacity comes online.
The Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone may be centred around DataVita and CoreWeave’s partnership, but that doesn’t mean it’s just a single facility. To the contrary, the site is expected to feature 100MW of AI-ready data centre capacity, over 1GW of renewable energy infrastructure connected via private wire, and ‘Innovation Parks’ intended to attract adjacent industries that want proximity to large-scale compute.
That extra power will be key to the deployment of this latest AI Growth Zone, with it seen as a key tenet of gaining the designation, but it should also go some way towards helping reduce public opposition. Another data centre located to the south of Glasgow in Hulford has seen intense local opposition due to its enormous power demands, with residents outraged that the site wouldn’t even need to calculate the environmental impact on the local area.
DataVita and CoreWeave will be keen to avoid the same backlash – which is why the companies are leaning heavily on a whole host of sustainability claims for its Lanarkshire AI Growth Zone. As well as using renewable energy to help power the site, the two firms also plan to make use of waste heat.
The current plan is that excess heat from cooling systems could, in time, be redirected to support the nearby University Hospital Monklands, described as Scotland’s first fully digital and net zero hospital – though that element is presented as something to be explored once the site is fully up and running, rather than a guaranteed near-term deliverable.
That would be a huge win for advocates of heat networks, with a recent report suggesting that waste heat from UK data centres could heat 3.5m+ homes – it could also help the site win favour with local residents who are impacted by the plans.
It’s not the only part of the plan that has been developed in a bid to win over residents. In fact, a community fund – worth up to £543 million over 15 years – will also be set up to support local programmes ranging from skills and training packages through to after-school coding clubs and support for local charities and foodbanks.
DataVita’s parent company, HFD Group, is also expected to contribute £1 million per year to local charities and community groups, on top of the Growth Zone community funding mechanism.
Commenting on plans for the first AI Growth Zone in Scotland, the UK’s Technology Secretary Liz Kendall noted, “Today’s announcement is about creating good jobs, backing innovation and making sure the benefits AI will bring can be felt across the community – that’s how the UK government is delivering real change for the people of Scotland.
“From thousands of new jobs and billions in investment through to support for local people and their families, AI Growth Zones are bringing generation-defining opportunities to all corners of the country.”
Danny Quinn, Managing Director of DataVita, added, “Scotland has everything AI needs – the talent, the green energy, and now the infrastructure. But this goes beyond the physical build. We’re creating innovation parks, new energy infrastructure, and attracting inward investment from some of the world’s leading technology companies.
“This is a real opportunity for North Lanarkshire, and we want to make sure local people share in it. The £543 million community fund means the benefits stay here – good jobs, new skills, and investment that actually reaches the people who live and work in this area.”
Schneider Electric’s Matthew Baynes, VP, Secure Power and Data Centres, Schneider Electric, UK & Ireland, concluded, “In the twelve months since the introduction of the AI Opportunities Action Plan, the UK has seen much progress towards its AI ambitions.
“The new AI Growth Zone (AIGZ) announced today in Lanarkshire demonstrates just how far the country has come in its plans to build a sovereign AI nation, with Scotland becoming a critical new infrastructure hub and joining those in Wales, Oxfordshire, and the Northeast of England.
“Furthermore, the country has now secured more than £31B in investment from some of the world’s largest, leading tech companies, demonstrating that the UK has the people, resources and ambition to make AI a centrepiece of a new and revitalised Industrial Strategy.
“While this can be considered a success in many respects, there is still much work to do. Access to renewable power remains one of the biggest hurdles facing many parts of the country, and as the UK’s energy technology partner for data centres and AI Infrastructure, we believe there is a clear opportunity to catalyse the both the AI and green transitions by turning data centres into the energy centres of the future – fast-tracking new developments with behind-the-meter power generation and microgrids.
“Furthermore, the AIGZ announced today could not be more timely. We believe Scotland, with its cool temperate climate and rich conditions to generate renewable energy, provides a key opportunity to create secure, scalable and sustainable infrastructure capable of galvanising the AI race. Now, the UK’s sustainability and AI ambitions must work together hand-in-glove, demonstrating that today’s technology can be a catalyst for a greener future, powered by AI.”
Data Centre Review is launching a new monthly column series, dubbed On the Record, which will feature regular commentary from named contributors across the data centre industry.
The new series is designed to provide a spotlight to select voices to share perspectives on the issues shaping the sector, from resilience and energy regulation to skills and emerging technologies.
Data Centre Review has always been a town hall – a place where diverse opinions are allowed to shine, and that will continue. However, unlike one-off guest comment pieces, On the Record is structured as a recurring series, with contributors publishing on Data Centre Review each and every month. That gives our readers a consistent set of industry viewpoints to follow over time.
Each On the Record column will offer a direct, accountable viewpoint from a recognised organisation or specialist contributor. Topics will span the challenges and opportunities facing data centres today, including:
We’re launching the series with two initial contributors:
On the Record with the Data Centre Alliance – This column will bring an industry-wide perspective on standards, priorities and the big conversations influencing the sector.
On the Record with Critical Careers – This column will focus on careers and representation in the industry, with an emphasis on women entering data centres and the barriers that still exist
The first On The Record with the Data Centre Alliance is now live, exploring the topic of water scarcity and whether the UK’s data centre industry can do more when it comes to reducing its water usage. You can read that here.
Additional contributors are expected to be added over time, expanding the range of organisations and topics represented within the series.
Waste heat from the UK’s latest crop of data centres could be used to heat at least 3.5 million homes by 2035, according to new research that argues the country risks letting a major low-carbon heat source go unused without investment in heat network infrastructure.
The analysis, produced by heat mapping organisation EnergiRaven in partnership with Danish energy and sustainability consultancy Viegand Maagøe, links projected growth in data centres to a significant rise in recoverable ‘waste’ heat. It estimates that data centres could provide enough heat for between 3.5 million and 6.3 million homes by 2035, depending on factors including the efficiency and design of future facilities.
The research lands as the UK grapples with two parallel challenges: the rapid expansion of energy-hungry digital infrastructure to support cloud computing and AI, and the long-running difficulty of decarbonising heat – still dominated by gas boilers across much of the housing stock.
EnergiRaven argues that many existing and planned data centres are located close to proposed new towns and to communities facing higher levels of fuel poverty, raising the prospect of linking local heat demand with a growing heat supply that would otherwise be rejected into the atmosphere.
“Our national grid will be powering these data centres – it’s madness to invest in the additional power these facilities will need, and waste so much of it as unused heat, driving up costs for taxpayers and bill payers,” commented Simon Kerr, Head of Heat Networks at EnergiRaven.
“Microsoft has said it wants its data centres to be ‘good neighbours’. Giving heat back to their communities should be an obvious first step.”
The report points to Greater Manchester as one area where this alignment could be particularly strong. It notes plans for around 15,000 homes at the Victoria North development and a further 14,000-20,000 at Adlington, alongside clusters of fuel poverty.
At the same time, the analysis highlights a concentration of data centre infrastructure around the city region, including more than a dozen existing sites and four additional facilities planned. EnergiRaven argues that, in theory, this proximity could make it easier to connect heat sources and new developments – provided heat networks are planned early enough, and built at sufficient scale.
More broadly, the research suggests the same pattern appears across the UK: growth in data centres is expected to increase the amount of recoverable heat, but the ability to use it will depend on whether networks exist to move that heat into nearby homes and buildings.
Capturing waste heat typically requires a heat network: insulated pipework that transports hot water from a heat source to buildings, where heat interface units (HIUs) can replace individual gas boilers. The report notes that waste heat recovery is widely used across parts of northern Europe, particularly in Nordic countries, where major sources of waste heat — including data centres, power stations and other industrial processes — are more routinely integrated into district heating systems.
In the UK, heat networks remain a comparatively small part of the heating mix, but policy has been moving to encourage growth. Some cities have already been designated as ‘Heat Network Zones’, where heat networks are assessed as the cheapest low-carbon option for decarbonising heat locally.
Regulatory changes are also on the horizon. Ofgem is due to take over regulation of heat networks in 2026, and new technical standards will be introduced through the Heat Network Technical Assurance Scheme (HNTAS), intended to improve consumer protections and investor confidence.
The Government’s recent Warm Homes Plan also includes a target to double the share of heat demand met by heat networks in England to 7% (27 TWh) by 2035, with a longer-term expectation that heat networks could supply around a fifth of all heat by 2050. It also pledges £195 million per year through the Green Heat Network Fund to support heat network development.
However, EnergiRaven argues that current policy settings still fall short of what would be needed to take full advantage of large-scale waste heat from data centres.
“Current policy in the UK is nudging us towards a patchwork of small networks that might connect heat from a single source to a single housing development. If we continue down this road, we will end up with cherry-picking and small, private monopolies – rather than national infrastructure that can take advantage of the full scale of waste heat sources around the country,” Kerr added.
“We know that investment in heat networks and thermal infrastructure consistently drives bills down over time and delivers reliable carbon savings, but these projects require long-term finance. Government-backed low-interest loans, pension fund investment, and institutions such as GB Energy all have a role to play in bridging this gap, as does proactivity from local governments, who can take vital first steps by joining forces to map out potential networks and start laying the groundwork with feasibility studies.”
A central recommendation in the analysis from EnergiRaven is the need for larger, strategic networks – which it describes as ‘Heat Highways’ – capable of transporting waste heat over longer distances and linking multiple sources and demand centres. The report suggests that smaller, isolated schemes may struggle to exploit the growing scale of data centre waste heat, particularly as facilities cluster in certain regions rather than being evenly spread across the UK.
Viegand Maagøe’s Peter Maagøe Petersen argues that building larger thermal networks could also provide benefits beyond household heating, including grid balancing and energy security.
“We should see waste heat as a national opportunity. In addition to heating homes, heat highways can also reduce strain on the electricity grid and act as a large thermal battery, allowing renewables to keep operating even when usage is low, and reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels. As this data shows, the UK has all the pieces it needs to start taking advantage of waste heat – it just needs to join them together,” he noted.
“With denser cities than its Nordic neighbours, and a wealth of waste heat on the horizon, the UK is a fantastic place for heat networks. It needs to start focusing on heat as much as it does electricity – not just for lower bills, but for future jobs and energy security.”
The underlying message from both organisations is blunt: data centre growth is already being planned and powered. The question is whether the UK will treat the heat those facilities inevitably produce as a resource – or continue to design energy infrastructure that ignores it.
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