Daily Digest for

NTPC published the transcript of its 21st Annual Analysts & Institutional Investors Meet (18 Aug 2025), announced a group capex plan of INR 7 lakh crore to FY32, renewed targets including 60 GW renewables by 2032, expanded thermal additions (~26–27 GW) to reach ~88–89 GW, nuclear JV ASHVINI (4×700 MW) and a Pudimadaka hydrogen hub (~INR 85,000 crore).

Equinor and the Northern Lights JV (Equinor, Shell, TotalEnergies) have injected and stored first CO2 volumes into the Aurora reservoir 2.600 meters under the seabed, completing phase 1 (1.5 mtpa, fully booked); phase 2 will expand capacity to ≥5 mtpa supported by a 900,000 tpa Stockholm Exergi agreement and a CEF Energy grant.

Utah OED, TerraPower and Flagship Companies signed a non-binding MOU to jointly explore and identify sites for a Natrium® 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor with molten-salt storage (boost to 500 MW), aiming for preliminary site recommendations by end-2025.

IGL’s Sanjeev Bhatia said CBG and LNG will drive India’s gas growth; IGL to set up at least 10 CBG units (Narela unit due Oct 2025, 4 tonnes/day), plans for 50 LNG stations on the Golden Quadrilateral, and a national target to raise gas share from 6.5% to 15% by 2030.

IREDA signed a performance MoU with MNRE setting a Revenue from Operations target of ₹8,200 crores for FY 2025-26; IREDA achieved ₹6,743.32 crores in FY 2024-25 against a target of ₹5,957 crores.

University of Michigan lifecycle study finds BEVs have lower lifetime GHG emissions than ICE, hybrid and plug-in vehicles in every county of the contiguous U.S.; provides per-mile emission estimates (e.g., 486 g CO2e/mi for ICE pickup; 81 g CO2e/mi for compact BEV) and a free online calculator; published in Environmental Science & Technology.

KAIST and MIT developed a conductive silver nanofiber electrified-DAC that achieves >95% high-purity CO₂ capture using only 3V (smartphone-level) power, published in Advanced Materials and covered by PCT patent WO2023068651A1 with entries in US, EP, JP, AU, CN.

ACRA and SGX RegCo extended and phased the timelines for ISSB-based climate reporting: mandatory Scope 1 and 2 disclosures remain from FY2025 for all listed companies while Scope 3 is mandatory for STI constituents from FY2026; other ISSB-based CRD timelines are phased with STI from FY2025, non-STI ≥ S$1 billion from FY2028, and non-STI < S$1 billion from FY2030. For Large non-listed companies, ISSB-based CRD is deferred to FY2030 and external limited assurance to FY2032; EDB and EnterpriseSG updated SRG application deadlines to support preparation.

CAREC Institute study on the Irtysh River Basin finds 0.65°C average warming since 2000 and downstream water scarcity, and recommends data-sharing, water-saving technologies, green energy investment, and deeper PRC–Kazakhstan cooperation to improve transboundary climate adaptation.

The World Bank issued a report on the Egypt Country Partnership Framework (CPF) 2023–2027, noting World Bank financing of 201 projects worth USD 27.5 billion since 1959, a current portfolio of 13 ongoing projects with USD 6.5 billion, support for Benban Solar Park (1,465 MW) and social programs like Takaful and Karama reaching 5.2 million households (June 2025).