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environmentSunday, October 4, 2026

Battery startups eye US manufacturing revival

The day's stories trace a quiet shift: battery startups are betting on US manufacturing, Alibaba is scouting solar-powered data centers in Spain, and a wildfire outside LA is forcing evacuations. It's a mix of industrial ambition and immediate climate risk.

Sources

Manufacturing moves

Two stories show companies trying to rewire supply chains for batteries and data centers.

#01www.bbc.co.ukOct 4

The start-ups hoping to return battery making to the US

Unigrid, a US battery startup, is seeing European demand spike as homeowners look for storage during heatwaves. The company has shipped its first 100 units and has orders for 1,000 more, mostly from Spain, France, Germany, and the Netherlands.

6 min readRead original

#02qz.comOct 4

Alibaba in early talks for Spanish solar-powered data center

Alibaba is in early talks with Solaria to use its solar plant in Puertollano, Spain, to power a potential data center. The move signals big tech's growing interest in colocating energy-intensive infrastructure with renewable generation.

3 min readRead original

On the ground

Wildfire and fuel costs are the tangible climate pressures of the day.

#03www.latimes.comOct 4

Evacuation orders issued for Bouquet fire outside Santa Clarita - Los Angeles Times

The Bouquet fire in Angeles National Forest has grown to 843 acres, triggering evacuation orders near Santa Clarita. It's a reminder that Southern California's wildfire season is active.

#04www.theguardian.comOct 4

Soaring diesel prices take their toll on US farmers in midwest corn belt

Midwest corn belt farmers are feeling the squeeze from diesel prices above $6 a gallon, driven by geopolitical tensions. Harvest season is underway, and fuel costs are cutting into margins.

Also today8

Autumn chill to arrive this week as temperatures set to dropwww.bbc.co.uk
After highs of 28C in the final week of September, cooler air will arrive this week with temperatures falling closer to the seasonal norm.
Probe launched into Philippine Eagle death in Misamis Orientalcontext.ph
Authorities are investigating the death of a critically endangered Philippine Eagle found near a power line in Salay, Misamis Oriental, following a discovery by a local farmer on October 1.

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