January 29, 2023: Deal Flow Likely Coming Soon

Markets and investors are feeling a bit optimistic, with the Dow Jones up 1.8% last week, S&P 500 up 2.5%, and Nasdaq composite up 4.3%, while indices may be due for some consolidation here, deal-flow is likely not far behind after a very muted 2022. Sophic Clients, Clear Blue Technologies closed the final tranche of an oversubscribed $2.5 million private placement and Jasper Commerce announced a $500K unit financing. Sophic Clients Legend Power Systems, OneSoft Solutions and Real Luck Group announced a positive end to 2022, which bodes well for 2023. Shopify shares surged more than 12% on Wednesday after the e-commerce software provider raised prices for its subscription plans. Victoria-based holding company WeCommerce is set to consolidate with its parent company, Tiny Capital. Stripe reportedly approached investors about raising more capital — at least US$2 billion — at a valuation of US$55 billion to US$60 billion. According to The Wall Street Journal, Stripe would not use the money toward operating expenses but rather to cover a large annual tax bill associated with employee stock units. It is not clear if any discussions are ongoing. Activist investor Elliott Management has reportedly snapped up a multibillion-dollar stake in Salesforce. Buzzfeed soars 200% on plans to use OpenAI to help write stories. Shares of Intel dropped nearly 10% in after-hours trading after the chip giant reported weak earnings, sales forecast. Amazon launches RxPass, a US$5/month Prime add-on for all-you-need generic drugs covering 80 conditions. Japan and the Netherlands are poised to join the US in limiting China’s access to advanced semiconductor machinery. The Netherlands will expand restrictions on ASML Holding NV. After years of bumbling along, investment in the energy transition appears to be taking off. Businesses, financial institutions, governments and end users around the world sunk US$1.11 trillion into low-carbon technologies, according to a new report from BloombergNEF.

Sophic Client Clear Blue Technologies (CBLU-TSXV, CBUTF-OTC, 0YA-FRA) closes final tranche of oversubscribed $2.5 million private placement.

The second tranche raised $1,294,420 in gross proceeds and follows a $1,269,667 (gross) first tranche that closed in December 2022. Total gross proceeds for the two tranches were $2,564,086, exceeding the Company’s targeted $2,500,000. The total number of shares and warrants issued were 36,629,805 and 36,629,805, respectively. The second tranche adds four new institutional investors to Clear Blue’s investor base, including Pegroco Invest AB (“Pegroco”), an investment company that separately sold its 49% stake in eSite to Clear Blue. http://bit.ly/3kPAoc5

Sophic Capital client Jasper Commerce Inc. (JPIM-TSXV) announces unit financing.

The Company announced a non-brokered financing consisting of units for gross aggregate proceeds of up to $500,000 plus an over-allotment option of up to 50% at the sole discretion of the Company. The net proceeds will be used for general working capital and business purposes. Each Unit is comprised of: (i) $1,000 principal amount of 12% secured convertible debentures issued by the Company with a maturity date of five years from the date of issuance; and (ii) 20,000 common share purchase warrants of the Company. Each Warrant is exercisable into one Common Share of the Company at an exercise price of $0.10 for a period of 48 months following the closing date of the Offering. Closing of the Offering is intended to occur in one or more tranches with the first tranche expected to close on or around February 7, 2023. http://bit.ly/3j3d62g

Sophic Client Legend Power Systems Inc. (LPS-TSXV, LPSIF-OTC) confirms active power management in design standard for major city in North America.

Sophic Capital client, Legend Power® Systems, a global leader in commercial Active Power Management solutions, confirms that Active Power Management solutions will be part of new building design and construction standards as well as major electrification renovation standards for a major North American municipality. This confirmation represents between 300 to 500 Active Power Management systems over the next few years within this municipality’s building portfolio. http://bit.ly/3kzSwqj

Sophic Client OneSoft Solutions Inc. (OSS-TSXV, OSSIF-OTC) reports fiscal 2022 financial summary estimates, corporate update and fiscal 2023 guidance.

OneSoft had a strong finish to the year, with $2.2 million in revenue for Q4 2022, almost $1 million or 81% higher than Q4 2021, contributing to a 55% increase in Fiscal 2022 revenue over Fiscal 2021. The Company believes Fiscal 2023 revenue will exceed $10 million, of which about 90% is forecast to come from increased use of our software-as-a-service solutions as existing customers onboard more of their pipeline assets. Forecasted cash is expected to be $4 million at Fiscal 2023 year-end and cash from operations to be approximately break even near the end of the year, thus the Company does not anticipate raising additional capital based on the current plan and budget. http://bit.ly/3Y7cc3D

Sophic Capital Client Real Luck Group (LUCK-TSXV, LUKEF-OTCQB) announces a strong end to 2022.

Sophic Capital client, Real Luck Group Ltd. and its subsidiary companies doing business as “Luckbox”, an award-winning provider of licensed, real money esports betting, sports betting and casino games, announces that it’s December operating results exceeded objectives – building on strong operations in November. The company achieved over CAD$3 million in Global Betting Handle by the end of Q4; monthly revenue grew 120%, and Total Player Deposits grew by 420% since the group first shared these KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) in August of last year. http://bit.ly/3wfOXZc

Shopify (SHOP-NYSE, SHOP-TSX) stock jumps 12% following subscription price increase.

Shopify shares surged more than 12% on Wednesday after the e-commerce software provider raised prices for its subscription plans. The roughly 30% price hike, which is in effect for new merchants, will take effect for existing merchants on April 23, but current sellers who switch from monthly to yearly subscriptions will be able to lock in their current prices. Shopify had kept prices “largely unchanged for the last 12 years,” Shopify COO and vice president of product Kaz Nejatian wrote in a blog post on Tuesday. While the majority of Shopify’s revenue comes from add-on services like payment processing and lending, the company’s subscription business is a higher-margin stream of revenue. Shopify’s subscription growth has slowed more recently from pandemic-era peaks, when more merchants were setting up online stores. https://tinyurl.com/yj44xzy5

Tiny enters deal to go public on TSXV through merger with WeCommerce.

Victoria-based holding company WeCommerce is set to consolidate with its parent company, Tiny Capital. The acquisitive companies have entered into a definitive amalgamation agreement that will make Tiny a public company on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV). Created by Tiny in 2019, WeCommerce focuses on acquiring businesses within the Shopify partner ecosystem. Tiny remains WeCommerce’s largest shareholder. In March 2022, WeCommerce acquired e-commerce survey and insights platform provider KnoCommerce. Other companies under WeCommerce’s portfolio include Archetype Themes, Out of the Sandbox, and Yopify, among others. WeCommerce started trading on the TSXV in December 2020 with a share price of $7. Since January 2022, when the company’s stock was priced at $12.55 per share, WeCommerce’s share price has declined by over 80 percent. WeCommerce’s stock is trading at $1.96  at press time. http://bit.ly/3HxBnH2

Bitcoin infrastructure startup Blockstream raises US$125 million to expand crypto mining services.

Montréal-based startup Blockstream, which develops Bitcoin and blockchain technologies, has raised $167.3 million (US$125 million) in convertible note and secure loan financing as it hopes to optimize the volatile crypto market. Kingsway Capital led the convertible note, with participation from other investors, including Fulgur Ventures. Blockstream said this recent capital sum will be allocated toward the expansion of its mining facilities to meet “the strong demand” for Blockstream’s institutional hosting services. In 2021, Blockstream raised $266 million (US$210 million) in what it described as the first close of its Series B round. That financing brought Blockstream’s valuation to $4 billion. Samson Mow, who was CSO at Blockstream at that time, told BetaKit that Blockstream aims to raise between US$300 million and $400 million for its Series B round. Bloomberg reported in December 2022 that Blockstream was raising new funding at a lower valuation than its 2021 Series B round. The outlet reported that people familiar with the matter said the valuation may be below $1 billion, which would strip Blockstream of its unicorn status designation. http://bit.ly/3Re5HcW

Pender Ventures closes first half of $100 million target for second venture fund.

Pender Ventures has secured $50 million in the first close of its second venture fund, bringing the Vancouver-based venture firm halfway to its $100 million target. The limited partners (LPs) that took part in this close include the Export Development Bank of Canada (EDC), Vancity, Bank of Montreal (BMO) Capital Partners, CIBC, Western Canada wealth management firm Kinsted Wealth, and undisclosed individual investors. As the venture capital arm for the broader PenderFund Capital Management organization, Pender Ventures also saw participation from the group’s growth fund. While the firm did not disclose all the LPs in its first fund, many of those disclosed are returning investors, including Vancity and Export Development Canada through its Women in Trade program, which focuses on women-led businesses. http://bit.ly/3Y0lhep

Smile Digital Health secures $30 million Series B to expand AI, machine learning capabilities.

Toronto-based health data company Smile CDR (operating as Smile Digital Health) has raised approximately $30 million in Series B funding. Smile said it has “grown rapidly” since its inception almost seven years ago. Smile said the round was led by existing investors, including the commercialization arm of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, UPMC Enterprises. Smile said that this new round of funding will be allocated to expanding its artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning capabilities. Founded in 2016, healthtech firm Smile offers a suite of health data fabric and exchange solutions. Data fabric refers to the end-to-end integration of various data pipelines and cloud environments through intelligent and automated systems. Smile claims that its health data fabric architecture enables healthcare providers, payers, and IT vendors to build secure, composable, and scalable data infrastructures. https://tinyurl.com/4nynt973

Spinout Traction Complete standing on its own with new $6.7 million Series A, big-name clients.

Vancouver software startup Traction Complete began as one of Traction on Demand’s first products. In 2019, it became one of a handful of spinoff companies from Traction on Demand. Under the shadow of Traction on Demand, Traction Complete has quietly grown to serve hundreds of clients, helping Asana, Cisco, Coveo, DocuSign, and Zendesk sell better with Salesforce. When Salesforce acquired Traction on Demand’s Salesforce consulting business in early 2022, Traction on Demand’s tech spinouts, including Traction Complete, were not part of the deal. Now, armed with $6.7 million (US$5 million) in Series A financing, a trio of products, and a roster of big-name clients, Traction Complete is ready for the spotlight, as the company gears up for growth as an independent firm. The startup’s all-equity, all-primary Series A round, which closed in late 2022, was led by Vancouver-based Pender Ventures and San Francisco’s Thomvest, with support from other undisclosed investors. Salesforce Ventures has previously put money into the company, joining a Traction Complete cap table that also includes other ex-Traction on Demand employees. http://bit.ly/3Jjtw0R

Nuula sold to Nav Technologies following collapse of Series A round.

FinTech startup Nuula has been acquired by United States-based Nav Technologies following the collapse of Nuula’s Series A round late last year. Nav announced its acquisition of Nuula on Thursday. Nuula CEO Mark Ruddock initially publicly spoke about the company’s failed Series A round in October, which he attributed to “a set of unforeseen circumstances.” When Nuula’s Series A fell apart, the company’s board of directors decided that Nuula should initiate the process of selling its assets. Nuula was formerly named “BFS Capital,” and operated for two decades offering small business loans. The company began its transformation into a data and analytics app in 2019, when it opened an engineering hub in Toronto. In 2021, it announced US$120 million in secured funding, which comprises a $100 million loan book facility, $10 million in conversion of legacy debt, and $10 million in equity. In that year, Nuula also rebranded and moved its headquarters from the US to Toronto. Nuula launched its rebranded offering to the US in 2021, focusing on delivering business insights and financial products to small business owners. It then launched in Canada in 2022 in partnership with fellow Canadian startups Caary and OneVest. https://tinyurl.com/4sp88tmu

Stripe tried to raise more funding at a US$55-60 billion valuation.

When payments giant Stripe raised US$600 million at a US$95 billion valuation in 2021, it made headlines for raising capital at the highest-ever valuation for a privately held startup. Defending that valuation appears to be challenging. The fintech company has reportedly approached investors about raising more capital — at least US$2 billion — at a valuation of US$55 billion to US$60 billion. According to The Wall Street Journal, Stripe would not use the money toward operating expenses but rather to cover a large annual tax bill associated with employee stock units. It is not clear if any discussions are ongoing. That information came to light on the same day that Stripe was said to have told employees that it had set a 12-month deadline for itself to either go public or pursue a transaction on the private market. TechCrunch reached out to Stripe, which responded with “no comment.” The news comes after several months of apparent struggles at Stripe. In November, it laid off 14% of its staff, or around 1,120 people, saying it had “overhired for the world we’re in.” And the company slashed its internal valuation more than once over the past year. Earlier this month, TechCrunch reported that Stripe had cut its internal valuation to US$63 billion. That 11% cut came after an internal valuation cut that occurred six months prior, which valued the company at US$74 billion. Raising more capital at a US$55 billion to US$60 billion valuation would certainly be characterized as a down round — but Stripe would hardly be the first large fintech to do so. Fellow European and BNPL behemoth Klarna last year raised US$800 million at a US$6.7 billion valuation, an 85% drop compared to the US$45.6 billion it was valued at in June of 2021. In 2021, Stripe reportedly notched gross revenues of US$12 billion and was EBITDA profitable, according to Forbes. The company’s products, in its own words, power payments for online and in-person retailers, subscriptions businesses, software platforms and marketplaces, “and everything in between.” It has not publicly revealed revenue figures since 2021. https://tinyurl.com/44dp55uj

Microsoft makes multibillion-dollar investment in OpenAI.

Microsoft said it would expand its commercial partnership with OpenAI as part of a new multi-billion dollar investment in the artificial intelligence developer, the two companies said Monday. Microsoft will remain OpenAI’s exclusive cloud provider and use more of its technology across consumer and enterprise products, according to the announcement. The new investment adds to Microsoft’s previous US$1 billion investment in OpenAI in 2019 and a subsequent investment in 2021, the size of which has not been disclosed. Microsoft declined to specify the size of the new investment or the specific terms of the deal, such as whether some or most of it would be in the form of credits OpenAI could use to store or process data in Microsoft’s cloud. Semafor previously reported that Microsoft was in advanced talks to invest as much as US$10 billion. And earlier this month, the companies were negotiating terms that would grant Microsoft 75% of OpenAI’s profits until its principal investment is paid back, and 49% of profits after that until it hits a theoretical cap, The Information previously reported. The partnership with OpenAI has enabled Microsoft to rocket past competitors in selling cloud-based AI services after Microsoft’s own reseachers stumbled in doing so, The Information reported Monday. The two companies have collaborated to develop the hardware and software needed to power OpenAI’s software, which can understand language and give humanlike answers. Microsoft is now incorporating that technology in its Bing search engine as well as Office apps, The Information was first to report. https://tinyurl.com/3z6py6j7

Elon Musk is being investigated by the SEC for Tesla self-driving claims, report says.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk is facing scrutiny by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding his specific comments and efforts to promote the automaker’s claims regarding its “self-driving” capabilities, Bloomberg reports. The SEC investigation into Musk is part of its overall efforts to determine whether Tesla has run afoul of its rules in promoting its FSD and Autopilot offering. The SEC doesn’t typically comment on any ongoing investigations prior to formally filing suit, and has not commented on this case in particular. But recent revelations may explain why Musk is in their crosshairs when it comes to Tesla “self-driving” technology: Last week, testimony given by a senior engineer on the Tesla team working on its Autopilot software revealed that a video the company released in 2016 purporting to show a Tesla vehicle driving itself was in fact staged. Reporting by Bloomberg later revealed that the video was overseen and directed by Musk himself. https://tinyurl.com/ypremr7c

Elon Musk tells court Google had ‘standing interest’ in buying Tesla, encouraging him to take it private with Saudis.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk told a court Tuesday that Google had a “standing interest” in buying the electric-vehicle maker, which encouraged him to try taking the company private with Saudi funds. The billionaire pointed to the interest from Google’s parent Alphabet laid down in an earlier deposition as he defended his 2018 “funding secured” tweet in an ongoing civil trial. Musk told his lawyer Alex Spiro in a cross-examination that this factored into his decision to try and take Tesla private. The investors have accused Musk of illegally manipulating Tesla’s stock price by saying he had funding in place to take the carmaker private at US$420 a share. Musk said that in planning to take Tesla private, he entered into negotiations with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which he said “unequivocally” supported his plan.  Musk also said he would have sold SpaceX stock to take Tesla private. According to a 2015 book on Musk, the Tesla CEO had a US$11 billion deal in place to sell the company to Google in 2013, but it fell through when Musk and former Google CEO Larry Page started arguing over specifics of the deal, during which time Google began to turn a profit.  http://bit.ly/3Hzj6cg

Activist investor Elliott Management has reportedly snapped up a multibillion-dollar stake in Salesforce.

Elliott Management has taken a multibillion-dollar stake in Salesforce, putting more pressure on the cloud software leader that is already the target of another activist investor. The high-profile activist investor, which has around US$56 billion in assets under management, is jumping into Salesforce as the tech company deals with steep layoffs and a management shakeup. It’s the second time in three months an activist investor has bought into Salesforce, after Starboard Value said it had taken an undisclosed stake in October as it urged the group to lift its margins. Salesforce is in a period of upheaval, after it said earlier in January it would lay off 10% of its workforce and that co-CEO Bret Taylor would depart at the end of the month, leaving Benioff in charge. The software maker’s share price has dropped 50% since hitting a high of US$307.25 in November 2021. The company acquired workplace messaging platform Slack for US$27.7 billion in December 2020, after buying data analytics tools Tableau for US$15.3 billion. http://bit.ly/3XGNNlw

Vice Media is up for sale, again.

Vice Media is restarting its sale process to find a new owner, according to a memo sent by the company’s CEO Nancy Dubuc. The move, which could result in the sale of the whole company or different parts of its business, comes after Vice tried multiple times in the past few years to sell itself or go public. Under Dubuc, Vice has made multiple attempts to sell all or parts of its business, as The Information has previously reported. Last year, Vice was reportedly in talks with Greek broadcaster Antenna on a sale, but those conversations fizzled; Antenna is likely to remain a bidder for Vice in this new sales process, according to reports by the New York Times and CNBC. Vice’s decision to restart the sale process comes at a time when revenue is down for digital-media outlets amid a broad economic downturn that has slashed ad spending. It forced Vice to cut costs last year, though the company is still unprofitable and missed its 2022 revenue target by more than US$100 million, according to The Wall Street Journal. That means the company and its investors are highly unlikely to net a price that comes anywhere close to its peak valuation of US$5.7 billion in 2017, or the relatively more sober valuation of US$2.5 billion Vice sought when it tried to go public via a merger with a special purpose acquisition company in 2021. https://tinyurl.com/5y5pjvcy

Buzzfeed soars 200% on plans to use OpenAI to help write stories.

BuzzFeed stock surged more than 200% on Thursday on reports that the digital media company is making moves to boost its editorial content using AI from the creator of ChatGPT. Shares of the company were up as much as 203% Thursday, trading at US$2.88. Reports also said that Meta will pay BuzzFeed millions of dollars to bring more creators to Facebook and Instagram in a deal reached with the social media giant last year. The deal is part of partnership valued at nearly US$10 million. The company announced cuts to its news division in an effort to become more profitable last year, but the stock has continued to decline. BuzzFeed in December laid off 12% of its staff, axing around 180 roles. http://bit.ly/3kTe2q8

Intel shares plummet after weak earnings, sales forecast.

Shares of Intel dropped nearly 10% in after-hours trading after the chip giant reported a sales decline of 32% to US$14 billion during its December quarter compared to the previous year, along with a net loss of US$664 million. The results, which come a few days after Intel laid off more than 500 employees in California, illustrate its continuing challenges amid a broad slowdown in business and consumer technology spending. Intel’s desktop PC chip unit’s sales dropped 36% and its server and AI chip unit’s sales fell 33% compared to last year’s quarter. One bright spot was its Mobileye autonomous driving unit, whose sales grew 59% to US$565 million. Now all eyes are on AMD, which has so far navigated the tepid spending climate better than its larger rival. AMD, whose revenue grew 29% to US$5.6 billion in its October quarter, reports December quarter earnings next Tuesday. https://tinyurl.com/ytskbnew

Spotify lays off 6% of staff.

Spotify’s chief content officer Dawn Ostroff is leaving the company as the music streaming firm lays off roughly 6% of staff, according to a memo sent by CEO Daniel Ek on Monday. Ostroff had spearheaded the company’s expansion into podcasts over the past few years. The audio streaming giant is cutting about 600 jobs as part of an effort to cut costs. In the memo, Ek said he was “too ambitious” to invest ahead of the company’s revenue growth, echoing similar mea culpas from many other tech executives. Spotify in October axed 11 of its original podcast shows, and laid off nearly one-third of the union members in its podcast production units Gimlet and Parcast. Ostroff’s responsibilities will be absorbed by Chief Business Officer Alex Norström, who will now lead the company’s engineering and product teams alongside Chief Product Officer Gustav Söderström as co-presidents. https://tinyurl.com/yckptaek

Amazon launches RxPass, a US$5/month Prime add-on for all-you-need generic drugs covering 80 conditions.

More than two years since announcing Amazon Pharmacy to take some of the prescription drugs business away from big (and smaller) drug stores, Amazon is launching a new product to expand its reach in the space. It’s taking the wraps off RxPass, a service where Prime users in the U.S. can pay a monthly flat fee of US$5 to get as many generic versions of medications as they need. Amazon said that initially the service will cover generic drugs for 80 common ailments. On one hand are the basic predicaments and pitfalls of systems like those in the U.S. that rely on. Amazon would not disclose how it arrived at US$5 and whether that’s a subsidized figure to attract more users, but data published last year by health policy researchers KFF, citing figures from the OECD, noted that in the U.S. in 2019, annual per-capita. out-of-pocket payments for prescribed medicines annually averaged US$164. http://bit.ly/3RdVKft

Crypto market breaks above US$1 trillion for the first time since FTX’s collapse, with bitcoin set for its best month since October 2021.

The cryptocurrency market is now valued more than US$1 trillion for the first time since the collapse of FTX in November, signaling a strong rebound in investor confidence even as the industry faces headwinds. Bitcoin, the world’s largest cryptocurrency, hit a five-month high above $23,000 over the weekend and is up almost 40% in January, on course for the best month since October 2021. The total market capitalization of virtual currencies has climbed by almost US$250 billion so far in January. It reflects a U-turn in sentiment after a dismal 2022 – a year dubbed a “crypto winter” – that saw market cap crash by more than US$1.4 trillion, and bitcoin lose 64% of its value as the industry suffered a string of high-profile crypto bankruptcies including FTX and Three Arrows Capital. Investors are warming to risk assets as cooling inflation fuels hopes for the Fed to pull back on rate hikes. http://bit.ly/3HdKrQ0

SEC scrutiny blocks some crypto firms from going public.

Another crypto broker, Galaxy Digital Holdings Ltd., has faced repeated rounds of questions from SEC staff about its business since filing paperwork to go public on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Galaxy, which isn’t using a SPAC structure, announced in March 2021 that it wanted to become a U.S.-listed public company and hoped to clear SEC review by the end of that year. The SEC didn’t set out to stop the companies from going public, according to a person familiar with the matter, but crypto firms believe the pace of the agency’s review hurt their efforts, particularly after the crash of a well-known cryptocurrency and the failure of a large crypto hedge fund that hit many exchanges and lenders. Most crypto firms say their digital assets aren’t securities, and therefore they don’t need to comply with investor-protection rules. SEC Chair Gary Gensler disagrees and contends that much of the industry is noncompliant.  http://bit.ly/3HBfEOm

Japan, Netherlands to join US in chip controls on China.

Japan and the Netherlands are poised to join the US in limiting China’s access to advanced semiconductor machinery, forging a powerful alliance that will undercut Beijing’s ambitions to build its own domestic chip capabilities, according to people familiar with the negotiations. US, Dutch and Japanese officials are set to conclude talks as soon as Friday US time on a new set of limits to what can be supplied to Chinese companies, the people said, asking not to be named because the talks are private. Negotiations were ongoing as of late Thursday in Washington. There is no plan for a public announcement of restrictions that will likely be just implemented, the people said. The Netherlands will expand restrictions on ASML Holding NV, which will prevent it from selling at least some of its so-called deep ultraviolet lithography machines, crucial to making some types of advanced chips and without which attempts to set up production lines may be impossible. Japan will set similar limits on Nikon Corp. The joint effort expands on restrictions the Biden administration unveiled in October that were aimed at curtailing China’s ability to manufacture its own advanced semiconductors or buy cutting-edge chips from abroad that would aid military and artificial-intelligence capabilities. The three countries are home to the most important companies that produce equipment for manufacturing chips, including ASML, Japan’s Tokyo Electron Ltd. and the US’s Applied Materials Inc. https://tinyurl.com/yza3bdrs

Energy transition investments hit US$1.1 trillion — with a T — last year.

Here comes the hockey stick. After years of bumbling along, investment in the energy transition appears to be taking off. Businesses, financial institutions, governments and end users around the world sunk US$1.11 trillion into low-carbon technologies, according to a new report from BloombergNEF. It was just over 30% more than 2021 and the second year in a row in which the growth rate exceeded that figure. Perhaps more notable is the fact that for the first time ever, money put into the energy transition matched funds spent on fossil fuel investments. If you count the US$274 billion spent on improving the electrical grid, then energy transition investments shot well past the fossil fuel fossils, hitting US$1.38 trillion. Over the last two decades, most low-carbon investments were targeted at renewables, including wind, solar and biofuels. They hit another record last year with US$495 billion invested, up 17% from 2021. But in recent years, money has also been flowing into more diversified sectors, including energy storage, space heating, sustainable materials and electrified transport. https://tinyurl.com/mrye877p

JFK airport’s new terminal will be powered by a microgrid and the largest rooftop solar array in New York City.

John F. Kennedy International Airport’s US$9.5 billion New Terminal One will be partly powered by a microgrid with 11.34 megawatts of electricity from rooftop solar, gas fuel cells, and battery storage. AlphaStruxure, in joint venture of the private equity firm Carlyle Group and France’s Schneider Electric, said that would produce 38% less greenhouse-gas emissions. The rooftop solar array – made up of more than 13,000 panels – will be the largest in New York City and at any US airport terminal. Construction began in September. The first of 23 gates are expected to open in 2026, and the work is set to be completed by 2030. http://bit.ly/3Hhhanx

New York City will require Uber and Lyft to go 100 percent electric by 2030.

In his State of the City speech Thursday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced that Uber and Lyft will be required to be zero emission by 2030. The decision by one of the world’s largest markets for app-based ridehailing has the potential to affect an estimated 100,000 for-hire vehicles. Adams said the move will build on efforts his administration has made to electrify the city’s fleet of vehicles while installing charging infrastructure to power those vehicles throughout the five boroughs. The mayor will likely implement his plan through the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission, which regulates the for-hire vehicle industry, including Uber and Lyft. Both companies are already in the process of taking steps to incentivize their drivers to switch to electric vehicles, either through partnerships with rental car companies like Hertz or by authorizing higher fares for drivers who use EVs. http://bit.ly/3ReGH56