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California co. announces fully sustainable, hydrogen-powered data center in Houston

moving in

The 1-gigawatt site will be constructed at a cost of approximately $8 billion. Photo courtesy ECL

The Houston area will soon be home to what's being lauded as the first fully sustainable 1-gigawatt data center on a 600-acres site east of Houston.

Data center-as-a-service company ECL, headquartered in Mountain View, California, announced its plans to build the ECL TerraSite-TX1. Hardware and cloud service company Lambda will serve as its first tenant. Lambda and other AI leaders will get access to necessary space and power for the next wave zero emission innovations.

Phase 1 of TerraSite-TX1 will be complete by summer of 2025 with a cost of approximately $450 million. The 50 megawatt of data center capacity will be utilized by data center cloud and AI cloud operators. The 1-gigawatt site will be constructed at a cost of approximately $8 billion. The funding will come from ECL and financial partners.

ECL Terrasite-TX1 comes at a needed time for Texas with The Electric Reliability Council of Texas stating on June 12 that the state’s power grid needs will grow approximately double by 2030. This is due in part to the growth of data centers and AI. The ECL Terrasite-TX1 is built to help eliminate the stress on the state’s power grid and help facilitate “state-level economic development and growth of the AI industry,” according to a news release.

ECL houston data centerThe project will span over 600 acres east of Houston. Rendering courtesy ECL

ECL data centers are built to be modular, which allows for expansion in 1-megawatt increments. They are “ built to suit” and delivered in less than 12 months, which is shorter than the industry standard of 36 to 48.

“While others talk about delivering off-grid, hydrogen-powered data centers in five, ten, or 20 years, only ECL is giving the AI industry the space, power, and peace of mind they and their customers need, now,” Yuval Bachar, co-founder and CEO of ECL, says in a news release. “The level of innovation that we have introduced to the market is unprecedented and will serve not only us and our customers but the entire data center industry for decades to come.”

ECL’s ECL-MV1 is the world’s first off-grid, hydrogen-powered modular data center that operates 24/7 with zero emissions, less noise, and a negative water footprint that replenishes water to the community. ECL-MV1 offers a 10x increase in “energy efficiency with a power usage effectiveness of 1.05 and a 7-times improvement in data density per rack, which is ideal for AI high-density demand” according to the release.

“The data center technology committed to by ECL is truly transformative in the industry,” Lambda's Vice President for Data Center Infrastructure Ken Patchett adds. “We believe ECL’s technology could unlock a powerful and eco-conscious foundation for AI advancement. This new infrastructure could give researchers and developers essential computational resources while drastically reducing the environmental impact of AI operations.”

From Your Site Articles
NanoTech is targeting new overseas markets for its energy efficiency products. Photo via Getty Images

Promising Houston startup expands energy efficiency product to Middle East, Singapore

big move

NanoTech Materials has announced a big expansion for its business.

The Houston company, which created a roof coating using nanotechnology that optimizes energy efficiency, has partnered with Terminal Subsea Solutions Marine Service SP to bring its products to the Gulf Cooperation Council and Singapore. TSSM will become a partner of Houston’s NanoTech Materials products, which will include the Cool Roof Coat, Vehicular Coat, and Insulative Coat for the GCC countries and Singapore.

NanoTech Materials technology that ranges from roof coatings on mid- to low-rise buildings to shipping container insulation to coating trucks and transportation vehicles will be utilized by TSSM in the partnership. NanoTech’s efforts are focused on heat mitigation that can reduce energy costs, enhance worker safety, and minimize business risks in the process.

“Businesses and communities within the GCC and Singapore feel the impact of extreme temperatures and longer Summers more acutely than any other region in the world,” Mike Francis, CEO of NanoTech Materials, says in a news release. “We have an opportunity to make a real impact here through reduced energy load, cooler and safer working conditions, and a reduced carbon emissions output from the hottest, driest place on earth. We are incredibly excited to be partnering with our colleagues at TSSM to bring this powerful technology to the region.”

One of the areas that will benefit from this collaboration is the Middle East. The GCC region is characterized by a desert climate, which has average annual temperature reaching 107.6°F and summer peaks climbing as high as 130°F. The effects of these extreme conditions can be dangerous for workers especially with strict labor laws mandating midday work bans under black flag conditions, which can result in productivity losses as well.

NanoTech’s proprietary technology, the Insulative Ceramic Particle (ICP), will be used to address challenges in energy efficiency and heat control in the logistics and built environment sector. The platform can be integrated into many applications, and the impact can range from reducing greenhouse gas emissions to protecting communities that are wildfire-prone. The core of the technology has a lower conductivity than aerogels. It also has a “near-perfect emissivity score” according to the company. The NanoTech ICP is integrated with base matrix carriers; building materials, coatings, and substrates, which gives the materials heat conservation, rejection, or containment properties.

By combining the ICP into an acrylic roof coating, NanoTech has created the Cool Roof Coat, which reflects sunlight and increases the material's heat resistance. This can lower indoor temperatures by 25 to 45°F in single-story buildings and reduce the carbon emissions of mid to low-rise buildings. This can potentially equal energy savings from 20 percent up to 50 percent, which would surpass the average 15 percent savings of traditional reflective only coatings.

“This technology will have a huge impact on supporting the region's aggressive climate initiatives, such as Saudi Arabia’s Green Initiative, aiming to reduce carbon emissions by 278 million tons annually by 2030,” Jameel Ahmed, managing director at TSSM, says in the release. “The regional efforts to enhance climate action and economic opportunities through substantial investments in green technologies and projects are evident, and we are proud to be offering a product that can make a difference.”

NanoTech says its coating maintains its effectiveness over time and doesn’t suffer UV degradation issues which are helpful, especially in extreme weather conditions workers and businesses face in regions like the Middle East.

The DOE funding will go toward the creation of a new Texas-based revolving loan fund that operationally matches the existing Texas LoanSTAR revolving loan program. Photo via Getty Images

Texas lands largest portion of energy efficiency-focused federal grant program

DOE deal

Texas is among one of 17 states and territories to receive a portion of $66 million in awards for initiatives that pump federal dollars into their communities to support energy efficient projects.

The funds come from the U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Capitalization Grant Program. The RLF Program awards are intended to be put toward state-based loans and grants that go towards local businesses homeowners, and public spaces for "for energy efficiency audits, upgrades, and retrofits to increase energy efficiency," according to the DOE.

Texas received the largest portion thus far at $22.4 million. The dollars will go toward the creation of a new Texas-based revolving loan fund that operationally matches the existing Texas LoanSTAR revolving loan program.

The program currently finances energy-related, cost-reduced retrofits of public spaces as well as local municipalities. As of last year it had awarded more than 337 loans totaling more than $600 million, according to the Texas Comptroller's website.

In addition to the revolving loan, the state plans to use the DOE funds to provide free energy audit services to the community.

The DOE also awarded funding to create similar revolving loan programs and grants in Arizona, Georgia, Iowa, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

According to the DOE, every federal dollar invested into a state or local revolving loan fund can bring more than of $20 in private capital toward successful energy financing programs.

“Increased opportunities for low-cost financing will help states and territories expand access to the money-saving clean energy tools that will benefit the residential, commercial and public sectors,” Jennifer M. Granholm, U.S. Secretary of Energy, said in a statement. “We are excited to see states and territories take advantage of targeted and impactful financing options to transform their communities.”

The latest funding is the third award made by the RLF Program, which plans to make another round of awards later this year and a total $242 million once wrapped.

Other awards in this latest round include:

  • Arizona ($1,690,280)
  • Colorado ($1,631,220)
  • Delaware ($746,400)
  • Georgia ($2,453,810)
  • Iowa($7,068,920)
  • Kansas ($6,706,230)
  • Maine ($863,110)
  • Massachusetts ($1,894,760)
  • Minnesota ($1,884,300).
  • Nevada ($1,043,290)
  • New Jersey ($2,383,510)
  • New Mexico ($5,692,530)
  • Oklahoma ($7,592,300)
  • Puerto Rico ($1,070,490)
  • Rhode Island ($762,790)
  • U.S. Virgin Islands ($576,170)

Click here and here to read more about the previous awards.

Earlier this summer the DOE also awarded four Houston companies have received $50,000 each from the U.S. Department of Energy to further develop their carbon dioxide removal technology. Click here to read more.

Daikin is the world’s leading air conditioning and refrigeration company, with its US headquarters and North America manufacturing facility based in Waller, Texas. Photo via htxenergytransition.org

Visiting Daikin: Houston energy transition innovation is the heart of operations

the view from HETI

In the energy capital of the world, we often think and talk about the energy transition and low carbon solutions in the context of energy production and distribution – whether it’s adding more renewables to the grid, reducing the CO2 emissions of our existing energy resources with CCUS and Hydrogen, developing energy storage technology to manage intermittency, or deploying other innovative solutions designed to produce or deliver more energy with fewer emissions – Houston is leading on all fronts.

But these aren’t the only solutions needed as we seek to solve one of the most challenging issues of our time. We cannot focus only on innovating the production and distribution of energy. As the demand for energy grows, locally and globally, we must also think innovatively about reducing the demand for energy, while still maintaining, and improving, quality of life. I had the opportunity recently to visit a company that is doing just that, right here in the Houston region.

Daikin is the world’s leading air conditioning and refrigeration company, with their US headquarters and North America manufacturing facility based right here, just 30 minutes northwest of downtown Houston in Waller, Texas. The Daikin Texas Technology Park, a 4.2 million ft2 facility, equal to 74 football fields, is dedicated to developing, manufacturing and marketing innovative solutions for meeting its customers’ needs while also reducing the energy required to keep people cool. Currently, air conditioning accounts for around 10% of global electricity consumption, with rapid demand growth expected in the future. As electrification becomes a key pathway to the decarbonization of various industries, demand for low-carbon power will continue to grow.

Achieving an affordable, reliable, and low-carbon future will require innovation across the entire energy value chain – from production to consumption, and, as the world’s leading air conditioning manufacturer, Daikin, is leading the way in developing innovative solutions to achieve optimum comfort and energy savings.

Three things struck me during my recent visit to the Daikin Texas Technology Park (DTTP):

  1. Innovation is at the heart of their operation. The integration of engineering and manufacturing in a single location facilitates collaboration and product innovation and accelerates implementation. The LEED Gold Certified facility was also innovatively designed to maximize energy efficiency and minimize environmental impact.
  2. People are a priority. The diversity of the 8000+ employees working at the DTTP was incredible. During the visit, we had the opportunity to see team members from many different backgrounds and with various skills and education working in all parts of their operation. They also offer a STEM scholarship program in partnership with the Waller Area Chamber of Commerce.
  3. They are environmentally focused. Daikin is fully committed to providing energy solutions that improve quality of life while also reducing environmental impact through improved efficiency. The heating and air conditioning products manufactured at the DTTP are some of the most innovative and energy efficient products on the market today – producing a more even temperature and offering as much as a 30% reduction in energy use compared to standard AC systems, all with a considerably smaller footprint.

As someone who spends a great deal of time thinking about the pathways to solving the global dual challenge of more energy with fewer emissions, much of my time is spent learning about innovations on the supply side of energy. It is exciting to learn that there is just as much innovation happening on the demand side of energy – and to see it happening right here in Houston.

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This article was written by Jane Stricker, executive director and senior vice president of theGreater Houston Partnership's Houston Energy Transition Initiative and originally ran on the HETI blog. HETI exists to support Houston's future as an energy leader. For more information about the Houston Energy Transition Initiative, EnergyCapitalHTX's presenting sponsor, visit htxenergytransition.org.

To learn more about Daikin’s entire line of innovative heating and air conditioning products and how they are Perfecting the Air, visit the Daikin global website.

The project will focus on testing 5G networks for "stability, interoperability, energy efficiency and communication performance." Photo via Getty Images

Rice-led project receives $1.9M in federal funding to test 5G energy efficiency, more

fresh support

A team of Rice University engineers has secured a $1.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration to develop a new way to test 5G networks.

The project will focus on testing 5G networks for software-centric architectures, according to a statement from Rice. The funds come from the NTIA's most recent round of grants, totaling about $80 million, as part of the $1.5 billion Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund. Other awards went to Virginia Tech, Northeastern University, DISH Wireless, and more.

The project at Rice will be led by Rahman Doost-Mohammady, an assistant research professor of electrical and computer engineering; and Ashutosh Sabharwal, the Ernest Dell Butcher Professor of Engineering and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Santiago Segarra, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and an expert in machine learning for wireless network design, is also a co-principal investigator on this project.

"Current testing methodologies for wireless products have predominantly focused on the communication dimension, evaluating aspects such as load testing and channel emulation,” said Doost-Mohammady said in a statement. “But with the escalating trend toward software-based wireless products, it’s imperative that we take a more holistic approach to testing."

The new framework will be used to "assess the stability, interoperability, energy efficiency and communication performance of software-based machine learning-enabled 5G radio access networks (RANs)," according to Rice, known as ETHOS.

Once created, the team of researchers will use the framework for extensive testing using novel machine learning algorithms for 5G RAN with California-based NVIDIA's Aerial Research Cloud (ARC) platform. The team also plans to partner with other industry contacts in the future, according to Rice.

“The broader impacts of this project are far-reaching, with the potential to revolutionize software-based and machine learning-enabled wireless product testing by making it more comprehensive and responsive to the complexities of real-world network environments,” Sabharwal said in the statement. “By providing the industry with advanced tools to evaluate and ensure the stability, energy efficiency and throughput of their products, our research is poised to contribute to the successful deployment of 5G and beyond wireless networks.”

Late last year, the Houston location of Greentown Labs also landed funds from the Department of Commerce. The climatetech startup incubator was named to of the Economic Development Administration's 10th cohort of its Build to Scale program and will receive $400,000 with a $400,000 local match confirmed.

Houston-based nonprofit accelerator, BioWell, also received funding from the Build to Scale program.


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This article originally ran on InnovationMap.

Texas ranked as the 40th most energy efficient state, according to a recent report. Photo via Getty Images

Texas falls short on list of most energy efficient states

big yikes

The Lone Star State again failed to perform well on an annual ranking of the most energy efficient states.

Texas ranked as the 40th most energy efficient state, according to WalletHub's annual report. Only eight continental US states ranked poorer, including Oklahoma, Tennessee, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia, and South Carolina, respectively.

Source: WalletHub

The report looked at home and auto energy efficiency, as the report's methodology outlines.

"We obtained the former by calculating the ratio of total residential energy consumption to annual degree days. For the latter, we divided the annual vehicle miles driven by gallons of gasoline consumed to determine vehicle-fuel efficiency and measured annual vehicle miles driven per capita to determine transportation efficiency," reads the study.

Texas scored a 36 out of 50 points for home energy efficiency and 41 points for auto energy efficiency.

The report's experts were asked about federal incentivization of energy efficiency for customers, and all were in agreement that this is key to the future of energy.

"Energy conservation is a big piece that needs to be tackled efficiently for us to make any progress on energy transition. Incentivizing consumers and businesses is necessary but only if there is a clear demonstration of changes in personal and business work/living habits that reduce the energy footprint," says Sanjay Srinivasan, director at EMS Energy Institute and professor at Pennsylvania State University.

Another recent report looked at Texas from the solar perspective, and Houston failed to place in the top 15 most "solar" cities in the United States. However, Austin led the way for Texas, ranking the No. 3 most “solar” city in the U.S., per Thumbtack. Austin, with the highest net-new solar panel installations within the past year in Texas, split up four Californian cities in the top five. Only San Diego (No. 1) and Los Angeles (No. 2) outranked Austin.

While there's room for improvement for efficiency, Texas has among the best prices for energy, as WalletHub found in a report this summer. Texas ranked No. 49 on the list of the 2023 Most Energy-Expensive States.

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Houston hub for clean energy startups names global founding partners

green team

EnergyTech Nexus, a Houston-based hub for clean energy startups, announced its coalition of Global Founding Partners last month at its Pilotathon event during Houston Energy and Climate Week.

The group of international companies will contribute financial and technical resources, as well as share their expertise with startup founders, according to a news release from EnergyTech Nexus.

“Our Global Founding Partners represent the highest standards of industrial leadership, technical expertise and commitment to innovation,” Juliana Garaizar, co-founding partner of EnergyTech Nexus, added in the release. “Their collaboration enables us to connect groundbreaking technologies with the resources, infrastructure, and markets needed to achieve global scale.”

Houston-based partners include:

  • Cemvita Inc.
  • Chevron Technology Ventures
  • Collide
  • Greentown Labs
  • Kauel
  • Oxy Technology Ventures
  • Revterra
  • Sunipro

“At Collide, we believe progress happens when the right people, data, and ideas come together. Partnering with EnergyTech Nexus allows us to support innovators with the insights and community they need to accelerate deployment at scale,” Collin McLelland, co-founder and CEO of Collide, a provider of generative artificial intelligence for the energy sector, said in the release.

"Revterra is thrilled to be a founding member of the EnergyTech Nexus community," Ben Jawdat, founder and CEO of kinetic battery technology company Revterra, added. "Building a strong network of collaborators, customers, and investors is critical for any startup — particularly when you're building novel hardware. The Energytech Nexus community has been incredible at bringing all of the right stakeholders together."

Other partners, many of which have a strong presence in Houston, include:

  • BBVA
  • EarthX
  • Endress+Hauser
  • Goodwin
  • Greenbackers Investment Capital
  • ISR Energy
  • Latham & Watkins LLP
  • Ormazabal
  • Repsol
  • STX Next
  • XGS Energy

Jason Ethier, co-founding partner of EnergyTech Nexus, said that partnerships with these companies will be "pivotal" in supporting the organization's community of founders and Houston's broader energy transition sector.

“The Energy and Climate industry deploys over $1.5 trillion in capital every year to meet our growing energy demands. Our global founding partners recognize that this energy must be delivered reliably, cost effectively, and sustainably, and have committed to ensuring that technology developed without our ecosystem can find a path to market through testing and piloting in real-world conditions," Ethier said. "The ecosystem they support here solidifies Houston as the global nexus for the energy transition.”

EnergyTech Nexus also recently announced a "strategic ecosystem partnership" with Greentown Labs, aimed at accelerating growth for clean energy startups. Read more here.

CenterPoint launches $65B capital improvement plan

grid growth

To support rising demand for power, Houston-based utility company CenterPoint Energy has launched a $65 billion, 10-year capital improvement plan.

CenterPoint said that in its four-state service territory — Texas, Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio — the money will go toward building and maintaining a “resilient” electric grid and a safe natural gas system.

In the Houston area, CenterPoint forecasts peak demand for electricity will increase nearly 50 percent, to almost 31 gigawatts, by 2031 and peak demand will climb to almost 42 gigawatts by the middle of the next decade. CenterPoint provides energy to nearly 2.8 million customers in the Houston area.

In addition to the $65 billion capital improvement budget, which is almost 40 percent higher than the 2021 budget, CenterPoint has identified more than $10 billion in investment opportunities that could further improve electric and natural gas service.

“Every investment we make at CenterPoint is in service of our approximately seven million metered customers we have the privilege to serve,” CenterPoint president and CEO Jason Wells said in a news release.

“With our customer-driven yet conservative approach to growth, we continue to see significant potential for even more investment for the benefit of our customers that is not yet reflected in our new plan,” he added.

UH projects propose innovative reuse of wind turbines and more on Gulf Coast

Forward-thinking

Two University of Houston science projects have been selected as finalists for the Gulf Futures Challenge, which will award a total of $50 million to develop ideas that help benefit the Gulf Coast.

Sponsored by the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine’s Gulf Coast Research Program and Lever for Change, the competition is designed to spark innovation around problems in the Gulf Coast, such as rising sea levels, pollution, energy security, and community resiliency. The two UH projects beat out 162 entries from organizations based in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.

“Being named a finalist for this highly competitive grant underscores the University of Houston’s role as a leading research institution committed to addressing the most pressing challenges facing our region,” said Claudia Neuhauser, vice president for research at UH.

“This opportunity affirms the strength of our faculty and researchers and highlights UH’s capacity to deliver innovative solutions that will ensure the long-term stability and resilience of the Gulf Coast.”

One project, spearheaded by the UH Repurposing Offshore Infrastructure for Continued Energy (ROICE) program, is studying ways to use decommissioned oil rig platforms in the Gulf of Mexico as both clean energy hydrogen power generators as well a marine habitats. There are currently thousands of such platforms in the Gulf.

The other project involves the innovative recycling of wind turbines into seawall and coastal habitats. Broken and abandoned wind turbine blades have traditionally been thought to be non-recyclable and end up taking up incredible space in landfills. Headed by a partnership between UH, Tulane University, the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, the city of Galveston and other organizations, this initiative could vastly reduce the waste associated with wind farm technology.

wind turbine recycled for Gulf Coast seawall.Wind turbines would be repurposed into seawalls and more. Courtesy rendering

"Coastal communities face escalating threats from climate change — land erosion, structural corrosion, property damage and negative health impacts,” said Gangbing Song, Moores Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at UH and the lead investigator for both projects.

“Leveraging the durability and anti-corrosive properties of these of decommissioned wind turbine blades, we will build coastal structures, improve green spaces and advance the resilience and health of Gulf Coast communities through integrated research, education and outreach.”

The two projects have received a development grant of $300,000 as a prize for making it to the finals. When the winner are announced in early 2026, two of the projects will net $20 million each to bring their vision to life, with the rest earning a consolation prize of $875,000, in additional project support.

In the event that UH doesn't grab the grand prize, the school's scientific innovation will earn a guaranteed $1.75 million for the betterment of the Gulf Coast.

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This article originally appeared on CultureMap.com.

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