Today’s ESG Updates
- The UK’s Net Zero Economy Delivers Higher Wages: The UK’s £105 billion net zero economy supports 1.1 million total jobs.
- Rosneft First Quarter Net Income Skyrockets: Rosneft’s net earnings jumped sevenfold to 115 billion roubles due to high oil prices.
- Gigascale Capital Launches $250 Million Climate Fund: Founded by Meta’s former CTO, the venture capital firm launched its first fund targeting early-stage physical climate technologies.
- GE Vernova Blocked from Walking Away: A judge ordered the supplier to continue work on the $4.5 billion Vineyard Wind project despite an active contractual fee dispute.
The UK’s net zero economy delivers higher wages and high economic value
The UK’s net zero economy is worth £105 billion in gross value added – almost 4% of the UK’s economic output. Direct employment in net zero businesses is some 308,000 people, rising to 1.1 million when supply chains and associated businesses are taken into account. Net zero workers earn an average of over £43,000 a year, some 11% above the national average of £39,000.
Each worker in the net zero economy generates nearly £120,000 a year for the wider economy, about 1.5 times the national average for adding value. About 22,000 small businesses across the UK are engaged in activities aimed at cutting greenhouse gas emissions and boosting renewable energy. According to the Office for National Statistics, the wider green economy, including sectors like waste, pollution remediation, water, and nature, accounts for more than 600,000 direct jobs.
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Further reading: UK’s growing green economy worth more than £100bn a year, research finds
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Rosneft first quarter net income skyrockets to 115 billion roubles
Russian oil company Rosneft’s first-quarter net earnings jumped sevenfold from the previous three months due to a rally in global oil prices, foreign exchange moves, and one-offs. The company warned that recent drone attacks on its refineries, depots, production facilities, and exporting terminals may lead to potential asset impairments and weaken reported profits.
Rosneft’s net income for January through March increased to 115 billion roubles ($1.60 billion) from 16 billion roubles in the October to December period. First-quarter revenue rose by 4.3% from the previous three months to 2.032 trillion roubles. Rosneft accounts for around 40% of Russia’s total oil production.
Oil and gas condensate output in the first quarter edged down by 0.4% from October-December to 3.74 million barrels per day due to harsh weather in Siberia.
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Further reading: Rosneft’s Q1 income jumps but company warns attacks may impair assets
Related Articles
Here is a list of articles selected by our Editorial Board that have gained significant interest from the public:
Mike Schroepfer’s Gigascale Capital launches $250 million climate fund
Climate-focused venture capital investor Gigascale Capital announced the launch of Gigascale Capital Fund I, a new $250 million fund. The new fund targets early-stage companies that are rebuilding the physical economy for climate impact.
Gigascale Capital was founded in 2023 by former Meta Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer. The firm focuses its investments on clean energy, grid infrastructure, supporting supply chains, advanced manufacturing, and AI applied to the deployment and design of physical systems. To date, Gigascale has invested in more than 25 companies, including small nuclear reactor startup Radiant, fusion tech company Xcimer, sustainable chemical producer Dioxycle, and clean baseload power startup Arbor Energy.
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Further reading: Gigascale Capital Launches $250 Million Early-Stage Climate Tech Fund
GE Vernova blocked from walking away from $4.5 billion offshore wind farm
A Massachusetts judge declined to lift an order forcing turbine supplier GE Vernova to continue working on the Vineyard Wind project or to send the dispute into arbitration. The judge had issued the injunction after Vineyard Wind sued GE Vernova over a notice threatening to terminate their agreement due to $360 million in unpaid fees. Vineyard Wind argues it is entitled to withhold hundreds of millions of dollars from GE Vernova after a flawed turbine blade collapsed in 2024, causing two years of delays.
The dispute involves a $4.5 billion project off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, which is the largest offshore wind farm in New England. Vineyard Wind, a joint venture between Spain’s Iberdrola and Denmark’s Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, argued that the project’s commercial viability would be threatened if GE Vernova were permitted to walk away and stop servicing the 62 turbines on the 806-megawatt development.
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Further reading: GE Vernova loses renewed bid to end work on New England wind farm
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of impakter.com — In the Cover Photo: Wind turbines on the hills in Scotland. Cover Photo Credit: Carl Jorgensen
