Danish clean energy giant Orsted plans to invest DK475bn ($68.2bn) by 2030. In a statement announcing the news on June 7, the group said over the past two years “unprecedented political tailwinds” such as the US Inflation Reduction Act and the EU’s Net Zero Industry Act mean the “growth potential for the renewables industry has never been higher”.

The investment plans are part of Orsted’s “self-funded ambition” to reach 50 gigawatts (GW) of installed renewable capacity by the end of the decade. Today Orsted operates 15.5 GW of renewables capacity, has 4.9 GW under construction, and has been awarded an additional 10.6 GW. It has 114GW-worth of projects in its renewables pipeline. 

Swiss-Chinese JV signs $3.2bn chips deal

Europe’s STMicroelectronics is teaming up with Sanan Optoelectronics to invest $3.2bn in a semiconductor facility in China. The fab, which will be located in Chongqing, will manufacture silicon carbide devices to support “rising demand in China for car electrification”, the Swiss-headquartered joint venture partner said in a statement on June 7.

Production is slated to begin in the fourth quarter of 2025. The project will be financed by the two parties plus loans and local government support.

EU to strengthen trade ties with Latin America

On June 7 the European Commission set out a new strategy to rekindle trade and investment with Latin America and the Caribbean. In a statement, the commission’s executive vice president, Valdis Dombrovskis, said “the EU has strong ambitions to conclude and ratify [trade] deals with a number of partners in the region” and “upgrade existing [trade] deals”.

He added that the updated EU-Chile trade agreement is due to be signed by the end of the year, and “we also want to make decisive progress on the EU-Mexico and EU-Mercosur agreements”. The commission also wants to upgrade its agreements with Central America, Colombia, Peru and Ecuador.

The commission’s renewed strategy comes ahead of the EU-CELAC [Community of Latin American and Caribbean states] summit starting July 17.

And finally: Uber has opened a new office in Amsterdam as it looks to double its headcount at its international headquarters from 1000 to 2000, according to Reuters.