Ceramic and glass business news of the week for February 14, 2022

PLANTS, CENTERS, AND FACILITIES

Catalonia plans to reach 7 GW of solar under 2050 energy strategy

The Catalan government recently presented its 2050 energy roadmap, saying the region will need to install 12 GW of new renewables by 2030 and reach close to 62 GW of installed capacity by mid-century to achieve energy independence and a full decarbonization of its electricity system.

Glass Futures breaks ground on £54 million development

Glass Futures broke ground on its £54 million development in St Helens, U.K. The 165,000-square-foot global glass research and innovation facility is expected to complete in January 2023.

ACQUISITIONS AND COLLABORATIONS

Saint-Gobain sells Estonian glass processing business

Saint-Gobain is to sell its Estonian glass processing business Baltiklaas. The regional unit will be divested to Polar Glass, a subsidiary of Barrus, a glued laminated timber manufacturer in Estonia and supplier to window and door producers.

General Motors positions fuel cells to replace diesels

General Motors partnered with Renewable Innovations to provide its fuel cell power cubes to create a mobile power generator that provides 60 kilowatts of power from a mobile generator. These cells would replace traditional diesel backup generators and could provide onsite power for worksites, buildings, data centers, concerts, and festivals.

Grundfos partners with four organizations to assess rare earth sustainability

Grundfos partnered with BEC GmbH, Circularise, Minviro, and the global Rare Earth Industry Association to lead a three-year innovation project to build a blockchain based circular system for assessing rare earth sustainability.

Glass consortium aims to develop CO₂-neutral container production

The ZeroCO₂-Glas project is a consortium involving experts from the glass industry who aim to develop a new type of hydrogen-fired glass melting tank and corresponding glass-chemistry with the target of a completely CO₂-neutral container glass production.

Oklo, Argonne to commercialize advanced fuel recycling technology

California-based Oklo Inc. and Argonne National Laboratory signed an agreement formalizing their commitment to commercialize recycling technology for advanced reactor fuel as part of a U.S. Department of Energy-funded project. The project involves work with electrorefining technology to recycle fuel for use in advanced fission power plants.

OTHER STORIES

Exhibitor registration opens for drupa 2024

The international print and packaging industries will again meet at drupa, the world’s leading trade fair for printing technologies, taking place from May 28–June 7, 2024, at the fairground in Düsseldorf, Germany. Online exhibitor registration is now open. The deadline to register is Oct. 31, 2022.

SCHOTT leads the way for UN International Year of Glass

SCHOTT, the inventor of specialty glass, will sponsor three major international events as part of the United Nations International Year of Glass (IYOG) 2022. The first event was the opening ceremonies in Geneva on February 10–11, where CEO Frank Heinricht delivered a presentation on glass as an enabler in life science and pharma. Watch the recording here.

AMPED Consortium receives NSF IUCRC planning grant

The AMPED Consortium has received a $60,000 planning grant from the NSF through its prestigious Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers Program. The award will be evenly split between the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, and North Carolina State University.

Astronomy union announces new center to mitigate interference

The International Astronomical Union selected NOIRLab and SKA Observatory as co-hosts of a new Center for the Protection of the Dark and Quiet Sky from Satellite Constellation Interference. IAU proposed the center in 2021 to coordinate international efforts to mitigate the impacts of light pollution from satellite megaconstellations.

White House unveils $5 billion plan to blanket US highways with new electric-car chargers

The U.S. Departments of Energy and Transportation announced they will dole out nearly $5 billion over the next five years to help states beef up access to electric-vehicle charging. The goal is for the U.S. to have 500,000 public EV chargers by 2030, roughly 400,000 more plugs than are available today.

MARKET TREND

US household air conditioning use could exceed electric capacity in next decade

Climate change will drive an increase in summer air conditioning use in the U.S. that will likely cause prolonged blackouts during peak summer heat if states do not expand capacity or improve efficiency, according to a new study of household-level demand.

Research shows role rooftop solar could have played in preventing 2021 Texas power crisis

On the anniversary of a deep freeze that debilitated Texas’ power system and caused at least 246 deaths, a new white paper found that rooftop solar could have supplied more than enough electricity to meet the shortfall on all but two of the 13 days when power production fell short of forecasted demand.

NEW PRODUCTS

Three partners to develop and manufacture rare-earth-free automotive electric motor

Renault Group, Valeo, and Valeo Siemens eAutomotive signed a memorandum of understanding to form a strategic partnership for the design, co-development, and manufacture in France of a new-generation automotive electric motor, eliminating the use of rare earths.