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China develops high-temperature reactor without steam cycle – helium drives turbine directly
At the end of July 2026, China achieved a decisive development step in gas-cooled nuclear technology. A helium turbine in the megawatt class generated electricity with pure helium in hot test operation for the first time in China. The system works with a closed Brayton circuit. In the future, the hot helium could therefore directly…
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Several climate ministers no longer want an electric car as their official vehicle
Berlin – Several German climate and environmental policymakers will no longer be driving purely electric cars in 2026. This is revealed by the new company car assessment published by Environmental Action Germany (DUH) on September 1. Hamburg’s Senator for the Environment, Katharina Fegebank, and Saxony’s State Minister for the Environment, Georg-Ludwig von Breitenbuch, have switched…
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Energy transition costs up to one trillion euros – yet 9 out of 15 targets are at risk of failure
Germany has been pouring billions into its energy transition for years, yet key targets remain out of reach. According to McKinsey’s calculations, additional costs of up to one trillion euros could be incurred over the next decade. At the same time, nine of the 15 metrics analyzed are at risk of falling off track—specifically regarding…
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Google plans to invest 13 billion euros in digital infrastructure in Finland
US tech giant Google has announced a massive expansion of its investments in data centers and digital infrastructure in Finland. As the company announced on Wednesday, 13 billion euros are to be invested in the Scandinavian country over the next two years. The move represents “Google’s largest single investment in Europe”—and serves as proof of…
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Drone defense: Federal government orders multi-million-euro systems – and stumbles over its own rules
Berlin – A major failure in government procurement has come to light regarding drone defense systems for German airports. According to reports by Die Welt, the Federal Police ordered systems costing millions from an Israeli manufacturer. It was only subsequently discovered that a Europe-wide tender process was required. The importation then apparently stalled due to…
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Fertilizer: Europe’s second-largest producer considers cutting ammonia production
Prague/Wittenberg – Since September 2, 2026, AGF Nitrogen has been considering curtailing ammonia production at its European plants. The move is driven by sharply rising natural gas prices and persistently high costs for CO₂ certificates. Ammonia is the key chemical precursor for nitrogen-based fertilizers and numerous other nitrogen products; consequently, reduced ammonia production could drive…
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Gas prices in Europe hit 3.5-year high – storage facilities only 65 percent full
Europe enters September facing significant pressures in energy and financial markets. On September 1, gas prices briefly hit their highest level in three and a half years, while inflation in the eurozone rose to 3.3 percent. The primary drivers are disrupted LNG supplies from Qatar and the repercussions of the conflict involving Iran. At the…
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Spending freeze in Ilm-Kreis: Personnel costs no longer covered
In the Ilm-Kreis district of Thuringia, District Administrator Petra Enders initiated a freeze on budget spending on September 2, 2026. A preliminary assessment of actual figures reveals unfunded expenditures, with even the district’s reserves no longer sufficient to cover the deficit. Additionally, personnel costs exceeding the budgeted amounts remain unauthorized. Consequently, the funds earmarked for…
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According to operators, the necessary filling of gas storage facilities is barely possible anymore
Operators of gas storage facilities in Germany have warned that the window of opportunity for filling their sites is closing. “Technically, a fill level of around 77 percent can still be reached by November 1,” the Initiative Energien Speichern (Ines) stated on Tuesday. Consequently, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs does not consider Germany’s supply…
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VW plans to phase out the Seat brand by the end of 2029
Wolfsburg/Martorell – Volkswagen apparently plans to phase out the Seat brand by the end of 2029 at the latest. This is revealed in internal executive board documents that came to light on September 3, 2026. The group intends to increasingly shift products as well as sales and production structures to Cupra. With this move, VW…
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AI boom in the US: 189 GW of gas-fired power plants planned for data centers
In the US, the boom in AI and data centers triggered a massive expansion of gas-fired power plants during the first half of 2026. Currently, 189 gigawatts of capacity—intended to directly supply data centers—are in the planning, pre-construction, or active construction phases; at the start of the year, this figure was roughly half as high.…
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Paper mill in Baiersbronn closes following insolvency – 220 employees lose their jobs
The Baiersbronn virgin-fiber paperboard mill in the Freudenstadt district will cease production in September 2026. The company had already filed for insolvency in June but initially continued operations. High energy and production costs, a lack of orders, and difficult market conditions weighed on the site. Furthermore, a planned takeover fell through because a prospective buyer…
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Gravity storage in China: 148-meter tower delivers 100 MWh of electricity
A 148-meter-tall gravity energy storage system is set to be located in Rudong, eastern China, by 2026; it mechanically stores surplus electricity generated from renewable sources. The facility, built by Energy Vault, has a power output of 25 megawatts and a capacity of 100 megawatt-hours. It operates by using surplus electricity to lift heavy composite…
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Halberstadt Sausages: Plant closing for good – all remaining employees laid off
Halberstadt, August 26, 2026 – Production operations at the historic site of the famous Halberstadt sausages have failed. Halberstädter Konserven GmbH is ceasing business operations permanently. Production has been at a standstill since early June, and all remaining employees have since received termination notices. At the start of the most recent insolvency proceedings, 152 workers…
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Solar farms: New Science study measures decline in bird diversity in China
China, August 2026: A new study published in Science links the rapid expansion of solar farms to a measurable decline in bird diversity. Researchers analyzed data from 2,344 counties covering the period from 2014 to 2023. For every one-standard-deviation increase in the intensity of PV promotion policies, the Shannon index of bird diversity fell by…