The Climate Tech Podcast with Fexingo: Energy, Sustainability, and Decarbonization Companies

Data centers are guzzling water to keep servers from melting — a single facility can use as much as a small town. Lucas and Luna look at a startup called LiquidStack that replaces water-based cooling with a two-phase immersion system. The process: servers are submerged in a non-conductive dielectric fluid that boils at a low temperature, carrying away heat without evaporation. LiquidStack claims its systems cut water use to nearly zero and reduce energy consumption for cooling by up to 90 percent. The hosts also discuss the broader context: data center power demand is projected to double by 2030, and water scarcity is already forcing operators to rethink cooling in regions like the American Southwest and Northern Virginia. The episode dives into the engineering trade-offs, the economics versus traditional air and water cooling, and why hyperscalers like Microsoft and Google are experimenting with immersion. Plus, a look at the startup's recently completed Series B round and its commercial deployments in Chile and Arizona.

#ClimateTech #DataCenters #Cooling #LiquidStack #ImmersionCooling #WaterScarcity #Sustainability #EnergyEfficiency #Decarbonization #Microsoft #Google #Hyperscale #Business #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ClimateTechPodcast #Fexingo

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Lucas and Luna explore the weird and promising world of enteric methane capture. They dig into how a California-based startup called Mootral is developing a feed supplement that reduces methane emissions from cattle by up to 30 percent. The episode covers the chemistry of methanogens, the economics of carbon credits from burping cows, and the challenges of scaling in a low-margin industry. Lucas breaks down the numbers: if adopted by just 10 percent of US dairy herds, the reduction would equal taking 2 million cars off the road. Luna questions whether farmers will actually pay for it, and they discuss how voluntary carbon markets could make the math work. No fluff, just a deep dive on a single concrete solution to one of agriculture's biggest climate problems.

#Mootral #MethaneCapture #FeedSupplements #EntericFermentation #ClimateTech #AgTech #CarbonCredits #Biofuel #CattleEmissions #VoluntaryCarbonMarket #DairyFarming #Methanogens #Sustainability #Decarbonization #Business #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Lucas and Luna dive into the world of direct air capture with a focus on Climeworks, a Swiss startup that has built the world's largest plant to pull CO2 straight from the atmosphere. They break down how the technology works, why it costs $600 per ton today, and the path to $100 per ton. Lucas explains the chemical process using solid sorbent filters, while Luna questions the energy footprint and scalability. They discuss the role of tax credits like 45Q, the importance of permanent storage, and the debate around carbon removal versus emissions reduction. The episode also touches on why investors like Microsoft are buying these credits, and what it means for the climate tech landscape in June 2026. A clear, grounded look at a technology that is both promising and contentious.

#Climeworks #DirectAirCapture #CarbonRemoval #ClimateTech #CO2 #MammothPlant #Iceland #Carbfix #45Q #Microsoft #NetZero #CarbonCredits #Decarbonization #Sustainability #Business #Technology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Episode 63 of The Climate Tech Podcast explores a surprising solution to renewable energy storage: abandoned mine shafts repurposed as gravity batteries. Lucas and Luna break down how one UK startup, Gravitricity, is using decommissioned mine shafts to lift and lower massive weights, storing energy as potential power and releasing it when needed. They walk through the physics, the cost economics compared to lithium-ion, and why a single shaft can deliver megawatt-hours of storage for decades. They also discuss the larger landscape of gravity storage players, including Energy Vault and their tower-based system, and why mining regions with thousands of vertical shafts could be the hidden infrastructure for grid-scale storage. Specific figures covered: Gravitricity's 250-kilowatt demonstrator in Scotland, their planned 4-megawatt commercial unit, and levelized cost estimates under $100 per megawatt-hour. The conversation ends on a forward-looking note about co-locating data centers with gravity batteries. No fluff, just the engineering and business case.

#GravityBattery #GridStorage #RenewableEnergy #MineShafts #Gravitricity #EnergyVault #ClimateTech #LongDurationStorage #CleanEnergy #Decarbonization #SustainableInfrastructure #BusinessAndTechnology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #EnergyStorage #MiningReuse #NetZero #GreenTech

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Lucas and Luna explore a new approach to clean hydrogen: methane pyrolysis. Instead of splitting water with renewable electricity, this startup heats methane in an oxygen-free reactor, producing hydrogen gas and solid carbon — not CO2. They break down the chemistry, the economics, and the challenge of finding markets for the carbon byproduct. With a $45 million Series B in early 2026 and a pilot plant in Texas, the technology is scaling. But can it compete with green hydrogen from electrolysis? And who buys carbon black from a reactor? A deep dive into one of the most intriguing decarbonization plays in energy today.

#ClimateTechPodcast #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #Business #Technology #CleanEnergy #GreenHydrogen #MethanePyrolysis #Decarbonization #CarbonBlack #HydrogenEconomy #Startup #ClimateTech #SustainableEnergy #IndustrialDecarbonization #NaturalGas #EmissionsReduction #CarbonCapture

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Episode 61 of The Climate Tech Podcast breaks down a new wave of startups producing green hydrogen directly from sunlight, bypassing electrolysis entirely. Lucas and Luna examine the technology behind photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, the key players like SunHydrogen and H2U Technologies, and the challenge of scaling from lab to gigawatt. They discuss why this matters for industries like steel and shipping that can't easily electrify, and whether the efficiency gains justify the cost. With real numbers on solar-to-hydrogen efficiency and a look at a pilot plant in Texas, this episode offers a concrete understanding of an emerging frontier in decarbonization.

#GreenHydrogen #SolarFuel #PECWaterSplitting #Photoelectrochemical #SunHydrogen #H2UTechnologies #HydrogenEconomy #Decarbonization #ClimateTech #RenewableEnergy #SolarEnergy #CleanEnergy #BusinessAndTechnology #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ClimateTechPodcast #Startup #HydrogenProduction

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Episode 60 of The Climate Tech Podcast dives into the surprising link between green hydrogen and the $70 billion ammonia fertilizer industry. Lucas and Luna explore how a single plant in Varennes, Canada, built by a startup called H2 Green Steel, is using electrolyzers to produce carbon-free hydrogen that replaces natural gas in ammonia synthesis. They break down the numbers: traditional ammonia production emits about 2.6 tons of CO2 per ton of ammonia; green hydrogen can cut that to near zero. The hosts also discuss the economics — how the Inflation Reduction Act's tax credits are closing the cost gap — and what this means for global food security. No fluff, just the concrete case of one facility rethinking the Haber-Bosch process that has fed the world for over a century.

#GreenHydrogen #AmmoniaFertilizer #HaberBosch #Decarbonization #ClimateTech #H2GreenSteel #Varennes #InflationReductionAct #Electrolyzers #CarbonFree #SustainableAgriculture #FoodSecurity #Business #Technology #CleanEnergy #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ClimateSolutions

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Episode 59 of The Climate Tech Podcast explores a new frontier in critical mineral extraction: direct lithium extraction from geothermal brine. Lucas and Luna dive into how one startup is using advanced filtration technology to pull lithium — the key ingredient in EV and grid batteries — from hot, mineral-rich water deep underground. They discuss the specific chemistry, the energy economics, and why this approach avoids the environmental headaches of traditional hard-rock mining and evaporation ponds. The episode also touches on the scale challenge: can this process move from pilot plants to supplying millions of battery-grade tons per year? With lithium demand projected to grow sixfold by 2030, this technology could reshape supply chains and decarbonize an otherwise dirty industry.

#Lithium #Geothermal #DirectLithiumExtraction #BatterySupplyChain #CriticalMinerals #CleanTech #ClimateTech #EVBatteries #GridStorage #Startup #DeepUnderground #FiltrationTechnology #Sustainability #Decarbonization #EnergyTransition #Business #Technology #FexingoBusiness

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

Concrete is the second-most-used substance on Earth after water, and its production generates roughly 8 percent of global CO2 emissions. In this episode, Lucas and Luna look at a California startup that is replacing the clinker—the emissions-heavy binder at the heart of Portland cement—with finely ground volcanic rock. The company claims its process cuts embodied carbon by up to 70 percent while matching standard performance specs. Lucas walks through the chemistry: how volcanic ash reacts with lime to form calcium silicate hydrates, the same glue that gives concrete its strength. Luna asks about scalability—can quarries source enough reactive rock? And what does the cost look like versus traditional cement, which is already cheap? They also discuss a pilot project in Reno where the material was used in a six-story building foundation, and why the US Department of Energy recently awarded the startup a $12 million grant. The episode ends with a question about whether geology can be decarbonized fast enough to meet mid-century climate targets.

#Cement #Concrete #VolcanicRock #Clinker #EmbodiedCarbon #Decarbonization #CleanTech #Startup #Construction #Materials #DOE #Grant #PilotProject #PortlandCement #CarbonEmissions #Business #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

The steel industry generates about 7% of global CO2 emissions. A Swedish startup called Stegra, backed by over one point eight billion dollars, is building a fossil-free steel plant using green hydrogen instead of coal. Lucas and Luna explore how hydrogen-based direct reduction works, the staggering energy requirements, and whether this process can scale beyond Sweden. They also discuss the economics: green steel currently costs twenty to thirty percent more than conventional steel, but automakers like Volvo and BMW are already signing offtake agreements. This episode dives into one of the hardest-to-abate sectors and a concrete plan to decarbonize it.

#Stegra #GreenSteel #Hydrogen #Decarbonization #HardToAbate #ClimateTech #Sweden #Volvo #BMW #DirectReduction #FossilFree #IndustrialDecarbonization #SteelIndustry #GreenHydrogen #CleanEnergy #Business #Technology #FexingoBusiness

Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo