Sino-EU Investment Agreement Expectations

1. Chinese businesses operating in Europe are urging authorities in the European Union to quickly resume the approval process for the China-EU Comprehensive Agreement on Investment, or CAI, and expedite its signing, said a report released by China's top foreign trade and investment promotion agency.

2. The report — Business Environment of the European Union 2022/2023 — provided by the academy of the Beijing-based China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said that a favorable business environment is a common expectation of foreign-invested businesses, and will create greater attraction for Chinese companies.

Renewable hydrogen production uses old tech in novel way

1. Using deep sea platform technologies to take advantage of stronger winds than those blowing closer to shore was first conceptualized in the 1970s during the energy crises. At that time, the first wind power engineering program in the United States addressed Congress, saying that turbines could eliminate the country’s reliance on imported energy.

2. William Heronemus, a professor of engineering from the University of Massachusetts envisioned offshore wind turbines generating electricity that could power seawater electricity for the storage of that energy as renewable hydrogen fuel.  It took about fifty years, but that vision is now in development from several angles.

3. Projects developing platform technologies for massive wind turbines have become commonplace and are well underway, broadening the access offshore wind has to the stronger winds that blow over deeper waters.

Penang Automation Cluster building local supply chain and elevate SME capabilities

1. Building automated equipment systems is akin to the assembly and production of vehicles. Visitors to automotive manufacturing plants would have observed that they usually operate in industrial clusters — the better to attract customers, precision engineering firms and material suppliers. Likewise for technology equipment manufacturers and automation houses, as they would require high-precision metal fabrication components, modules and systems to build their products.

2. More than four years ago, three tech-savvy manufacturers — ViTrox Corp Bhd, Pentamaster Corp Bhd and Walta Engineering Sdn Bhd — conceived the idea to build a world-class fabrication cluster at Batu Kawan Industrial Park in Penang that would serve as a one-stop metal component supply chain hub.

3. The result was Penang Automation Cluster Sdn Bhd (PAC), formed in January 2017 with the mission of enhancing the local ecosystem and uplifting the capabilities of local small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Energy storage technology: three trends to watch

 1. Energy storage market dynamics are shaping the evolution of battery formats, components and production

2. Rapid growth in deployments is making the energy storage system (ESS) sector the new competitive battlefield for battery manufacturers. Whether diversifying from the electric vehicle (EV) market or focusing specifically on ESS, it’s an attractive opportunity to capitalise on a strong outlook over the next decade.