Government ministries from Singapore and the US have announced the start of a joint feasibility study on regional energy connectivity, advancing energy cooperation plans first mooted in July 2022. The feasibility study will be jointly conducted by Singapore and the US over two phases, according to a joint ministerial statement on energy cooperation by the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry, Energy Market Authority of Singapore and the United States Department of Energy (DOE) on April 3.

Scientists have studied photosynthesis in plants for centuries, but an international team now believes it has unlocked new secrets in nature's great machine that could revolutionize sustainable fuels and fight climate change. The team says it's determined that it's possible to extract an electrical charge at the best possible point in photosynthesis. This means harvesting the maximum amount of electrons from the process for potential use in power grids and some types of batteries.

Domestic electricity users with high volume usage may be the next target for higher tariffs, following upward adjustments for large corporations in January, according to CGS-CIMB Research. In view of coal and gas prices peaking in late-2022, CGS-CIMB Research economist Nazmi Idrus estimated the subsidy bill for the government in managing higher power rates will balloon to RM6.8 billion in 2023, from an estimated RM6 billion in 2022.

From April 1, Tata Power hiked power tariff for low-end residential consumers-up to 100 units monthly consumption-in Mumbai's suburbs by 23% and Adani Electricity 11% latest orders of the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Comission (MREC) have revealed.

On an April day, the founder of a U.S. startup called Make Sunsets stood outside a camper van in Mexico’s Baja California and released two weather balloons containing sulfur dioxide into the air, letting them float towards the stratosphere. Entrepreneur Luke Iseman said the sulfur dioxide in the balloons would deflect sunlight and cool the atmosphere, a controversial climate strategy known as solar geoengineering. Mexico said the launch violated its national sovereignty.

Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) said it  has taken steps to enable GDS IDC Services (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd’s data centre campus at the Nusajaya Tech Park in Johor Bahru to start operations in July through an interim supply of 16 megawatts (MW) of high voltage electricity. "Plans are underway to ensure the increased maximum demand of 85.5MW is delivered within 2023,"  the utility company said in a statement issued jointly with GDS on Sunday (March 26).

Pioneering research from the University of Melbourne highlights the potential of nano inks to significantly reduce energy usage. These innovative ‘phase change inks’ have the potential to revolutionise how we heat and cool buildings, homes, and cars, paving the way for sophisticated ‘passive climate’ control.

European Union countries are split over whether to allow nuclear energy to contribute to meeting their renewable energy targets, a dispute threatening to delay one of the EU’s main climate policies. Negotiators from EU countries and the European Parliament hold their final scheduled round of negotiations on Wednesday, to set more ambitious EU goals to expand renewable energy this decade. The goals are key to Europe’s efforts to slash CO2 emissions by 2030 and quit Russian fossil fuels.

The Economy Ministry will launch the National Energy Transition Roadmap by June 30 this year at the latest in a bid to speed up projects involving transition to renewable energy as well as restructure the economy. Its minister Rafizi Ramli said accelerating the transition to renewable energy is in line with the requirements of the global economy and would also ensure the country’s future energy supply position.

European startup Sun-Ways has devised a mechanical device to deploy removable solar panels along railway tracks. This innovation could be implemented on half of the railway lines across the globe, according to the Swizerland-based energy startup.  The area between railroad lines is broad enough to accommodate standard-sized solar panels without impeding train passage, claims co-founder Sun-Ways, Baptiste Danichert.

Indonesia’s presidency at the next ASEAN Chairmanship may hold the key to unlocking the region’s most ambitious and promising energy project, the ASEAN Power Grid (APG) project. This year, Indonesia will chair a multilateral meeting (again) called the 2023 ASEAN Chairmanship, with the theme of “ASEAN Matters: Epicentrum of Growth.” This meeting will hone in on enhancing ASEAN’s institutional capacity and effectiveness to be a fast-growing, inclusive, and sustainable economic region.

Sunway Group will create cooperative projects with Tenaga Nasional Bhd (TNB) and look into new possibilities in the fields of clean energy enterprises, environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) capabilities, and energy transition solutions. Both parties inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on March 17.