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Energy Transition in Motion (Week of June 27, 2025)

Hart Energy · last updated June 27, 2025 – 11:21 AM

Tech giant Meta Platforms has returned to privately-held developer Invenergy for more renewable energy to power its operations and data centers.

The two have signed four more agreements for nearly 800 megawatts (MW) of solar and wind energy, Invenergy said June 26. The electricity will be sourced from the Yellow Wood and Pleasant Prairie solar energy centers in Ohio, the Decoy Solar Energy Center in Arkansas and the Seaway Wind Energy Center in Texas. The solar facilities are scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2027, with the wind facility starting up in 2028.

“We’re laser-focused on advancing our AI ambitions—and to do that, we need clean, reliable energy,” said Urvi Parekh, head of global energy at Meta.

The latest agreement brings Invenergy and Meta’s total partnership to about 1.8 gigawatts (GW). Agreements between Meta and Chicago-based Invenergy surpassed the 1-GW mark in December 2024 when the two announced a deal for 760 MW of energy from Invenergy solar centers in Arkansas, New Mexico, Ohio and Texas.

Technology companies like Meta have increasingly turned to renewables as they aim to lower greenhouse gas emissions while consuming more electricity to power data centers that support services such as cloud computing and AI. The agreement with Invenergy is one of several deals the tech company has made with renewable energy providers. Others have included a nuclear power deal with Constellation Energy and geothermal with Sage Geosystems.

“Winning the AI race requires reliable, cleaner, affordable energy and energy infrastructure—today and in the future,” said Ted Romaine, executive vice president of origination for Invenergy. “We’re grateful for our continued relationship with Meta and look forward to future partnerships as we work to strengthen American energy independence and economic prosperity.”

Here’s a roundup of this week’s renewable energy news.

Energy storage

Moment Energy’s BESS Manufacturing Hub Hits Full-Scale Production

Moment Energy on June 25 said its battery energy storage system (BESS) manufacturing facility in Vancouver, British Columbia, has entered full-scale production.

The facility produces the Luna BESS, which is scalable to 10 megawatt hours (MWh). Moment Energy transforms repurposed batteries into energy storage for commercial and industrial use.

“Over the past six years, Moment has worked closely with leading automakers to develop the safest and most advanced energy storage system on the market,” said Edward Chiang, CEO and co-founder of Moment Energy. “Now with North America’s first UL 1974-certified facility repurposing batteries at scale, we’re able to take a crucial step toward achieving a circular economy and securing critical material retention.”

Hydrogen

Germany’s LEAG Suspends H2UB Green Hydrogen Plan

Plans to build one of Europe’s largest green energy hubs on the site of disused coal-fired power plant units in eastern Germany have been postponed indefinitely, energy firm LEAG said on June 27.

The announcement comes a week after ArcelorMittal dropped plans to convert two German steel plants to carbon-neutral production, citing high energy costs.

LEAG said H2UB Boxberg was being postponed as political and economic conditions for the plant had not developed as expected. It said the previous coalition government had indefinitely delayed implementation of the federal Power Plant Safety Act, a key regulatory pre-condition.

“We are currently postponing plans for hydrogen production in Boxberg and initially shifting our focus to other technologies for the generation, storage and flexible provision of electricity,” a LEAG spokesperson said.

LEAG announced the project in April 2024. It called for the construction of a center for hydrogen production and energy use, along with large-scale green electricity storage, on the grounds of lignite-fired power station units that were decommissioned in the 1990s.

In 2023, the company announced its ambition to bring 7 GW of solar and wind capacity online by 2030 and invest 1 billion euros annually.

Is It Time for a Hydrogen Rebrand in the US?

Solar

BrightNight, Cordelio Bring 300-MW Arizona Solar Project Online

Commercial operations have started at the 300-MW Box Canyon solar project in Arizona, BrightNight said June 24.

The project is the first in the 2.5-GW Arizona portfolio of BrightNight and joint venture partner Cordelio Power to reach commercial operations. Located in Arizona’s Pinal County, Box Canyon was developed in partnership with the Southwest Public Power Agency.

“At over 900,000 MWh [megawatt-hours] of projected annual production, the Box Canyon Solar Project will provide reliable, clean and affordable energy for more than 40 years—generating local revenue, enabling continued economic growth in the region and creating skilled American jobs,” BrightNight CEO Martin Hermann said.

Gridmatic, Sol Systems Signs PPA for Solar Power in Texas

AI-enabled power marketer Gridmatic has signed a 10-MW power purchase agreement (PPA) for electricity from the Mars Solar project in Texas.

The project, which is managed and co-owned by Sol Systems, is located in Webb County, Texas, and part of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) region.

Gridmatic on June 26 said the project will support its commercial and industrial retail business and data center operator EdgeConneX. The company recently renewed its partnership with EdgeConnex for hourly matched clean energy.

Meta Taps Adapture Renewables for Texas Solar Power

Adapture Renewables on June 25 said it has executed two environmental attributes purchase agreements (EAPAs) with Meta for 360 MW involving two solar projects in the ERCOT region.

The projects are scheduled to begin commercial operations in 2027.

The agreements lift the total number of EAPA agreements between Meta and Adapture to nearly 700 MW across three states.

“This expanded partnership reflects the trust and alignment we’ve built with Meta over time,” said Jesse Tippett, vice president of origination at Adapture Renewables. “By structuring long-term agreements that balance risk and value for both parties, we’re helping to scale meaningful projects while enabling our partners to meet their clean energy goals.”

Sasol, Akuo Ink Virtual PPA in Texas

Sasol International Chemicals and renewable energy producer Akuo have signed a 15-year virtual PPA for the equivalent of 91 MW, roughly half of the annual electricity consumption at Sasol’s Lake Charles Chemicals Complex.

The renewable energy capacity is associated with the Tennyson solar farm that Akuo is building in Coke County, Texas, the company said June 25. The 195-MW plant is the company’s first solar power plant in the U.S.

Operations are scheduled to begin in the second half of 2026. The agreement is expected to lower Sasol’s CO₂ emissions by approximately 90,000 tons per annum, Akuo said.

Solar Panel Maker Meyer Burger Files for US Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Relief

Swiss company Meyer Burger has filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy relief in the U.S., the solar panel manufacturer said in a court filing on June 25.

Meyer Burger’s operations in both Europe and the U.S. have struggled to compete with cheaper products imported from Asia, piling pressure on the company.

Late last month the firm announced it was shutting down its U.S. factory in Arizona due to financial difficulties, and soon afterwards filed for insolvency for its German subsidiaries.

In its U.S. court filing, Meyer Burger listed it had estimated assets worth between $100 million and $500 million and liabilities worth between $500 million and $1 billion.

CleanCapital Buys Pacifico Energy Storage, Solar Assets

Wind

Bill Gates-Backed Airloom Starts Building Utility-Scale Wind Turbine

Airloom Energy, an energy generation technology startup, has broken ground on its pilot site where it plans to build out its first utility-scale turbine, the company said June 26.

Located near Rock River, Wyoming, the pilot site will focus on advancing a next-generation wind turbine that is smaller and modular with a rectangular—instead of circular—sweep area. The company, which has Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Energy Ventures among its backers, said the technology costs less and can be deployed faster than traditional turbines.

“With growing electricity needs, we need more flexible systems that can be built quickly, and deployed anywhere at large scale. That’s the only way we’re going to achieve and maintain energy security and independence,” said Airloom Energy CEO Neal Rickner. “Airloom’s proprietary, U.S.-manufactured turbines do just that—replacing bulky, costly models with low-cost compact designs that generate more energy in less space. This groundbreaking marks a key milestone in validating our power curve and achieving essential cost efficiencies for wind energy.”

Unlike horizontal-axis wind turbines, Airloom’s turbine design uses 10-m blades along a track held by 30-m towers. The design enables use at low-wind sites, sites with height restrictions, remote locations and visually sensitive areas, the company explained on its website.

At the pilot site, Airloom said it will install and test the design to validate its power curve, ensure efficiency of production, refine cost of deployment and expand maintenance documentation. It will also evaluate future use cases such as defense, disaster relief and offshore wind energy generation.

Airloom aims to complete its pilot site buildout before commercial demos begin in 2027.

Japan’s Industry Ministry, Siemens Gamesa Agree to Cooperate on Wind Power

Japan announced a cooperation framework with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy for the offshore wind sector, the industry ministry said June 24, the latest public-private deal to build a resilient domestic renewable energy supply chain.

With no wind turbine manufacturers in Japan, the aim is to work with global players to develop a domestic supply chain, an official overseeing wind power at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) told Reuters earlier.

Offshore wind is a pillar of Japan’s renewable energy strategy, but the country remains heavily reliant on imported wind turbines and components, posing a challenge to domestic production.

As part of the initiatives, Siemens Gamesa, the wind turbine division of Siemens Energy, also signed a memorandum of understanding with Japanese electronic parts maker TDK under which TDK will supply magnets to Siemens Gamesa’s wind turbines, the ministry said.

“We are bringing the newest technology to new markets, hence we are in Japan,” Marc Becker, CEO of Siemens Gamesa’s offshore business, said at the signing ceremony.

“We are also continuously expanding our supply chain, and hence we’re coming to Japan to work together with TDK on producing magnets in Japan, which will allow us further growth,” he said.

METI launched a similar framework earlier this month with GE Vernova, a major U.S. energy equipment company, to promote public-private cooperation in wind power, hydrogen and ammonia among other areas.

Japan aims to achieve 45 GW of offshore wind capacity by 2040, which is crucial for reducing its reliance on imported coal and gas for power generation. But its plans have stalled following three major rounds of auctions due to soaring costs and delays.

Hart Energy Staff and Reuters contributed to this report.

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