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The CEO of Plug Power, the green hydrogen and fuel cell company, tells Axios that he believes the company is set to put its going concern warning behind it early next year.

Catch up quick: Earlier this month, Plug issued the warning in its third-quarter earnings, citing supply chain challenges. Shares plummeted.

CEO Andy Marsh tells Axios that he expects to come to final terms for a commitment from the Department of Energy loan program for a New York plant.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

On the lack of operating green hydrogen facilities in the U.S.:

I don't actually blast the government for not having the IRA PTC guidance out. I've become very sympathetic to the people in Washington trying to get this guidance right.

Without the guidance, though, it's hard for people to make financial investments.

Constellation Energy, for example, really wants to generate low-carbon hydrogen from nuclear power plants. They don't know if that'll count under the PTC guidance.

On when the PTC hydrogen guidance might come out:

I was in my favorite New York senator's office, and they think it's going to come out this year. So here's my bet: that'll come out Christmas week, because nobody's going to like the guidance.

On the U.S. green hydrogen market in 2024:

I think what you'll see is more final investment decisions made in '24. And the real build-out will be in '25.

On the challenging Q3 earnings earlier this month:

Plug is a company with a $5 billion balance sheet and no debt. I have a billion dollars in reserve cash. I have $500 million of cash on my balance sheet. I have a billion dollars of inventory.

We think that we won't be a going concern come February, because we think there's enough balance sheet activity that we can do that allows us to not have the auditor make that decision.

If I need to tap the equity market a bit to top off to make sure that we don't have that label going on, we will.

On the likelihood of raising capital before the quarterly earnings report:

I can always go to the pawn shop and get money. There's always bad money available, and I don't want the bad money.

If we do do it, there'll be more of a debt element to it than anything else, since I don't have any debt on the balance sheet.

On taking risks by pioneering green hydrogen projects:

If you're a big, big company, you have no reason to take any risk. That really wasn't a path open to Plug because we don't have that old industrial base.

The second path is, I could be a fuel cell and hydrogen company that sat back and waited.

We're the third type of company. We plan to be the Amazon of green hydrogen and fuel cells.

1 big thing: Plug Power's future

Plug Power's 3MW hydrogen-powered fuel cells at a site for Microsoft in New York

A hydrogen-powered 3MW fuel cell project developed for Microsoft by Plug Power in Latham, NY. Photo courtesy of Plug Power.

Climate tech venture investor Blue Bear Capital is nearing $200 million for a third fund, a person familiar with the raise tells Alan.

Why it matters: The fund is broadly focused on energy and climate but is especially interested in "capital light" startups working in software or machine intelligence.

Driving the news: Blue Bear in October disclosed that it had raised about $118.5 million for its third fund, per an SEC filing.

That amount has now surpassed $150 million, the person familiar tells Axios. "It's getting closer to $200 million," the person says.

The Jackson, Wyoming-based firm expects a final close on the fund by the end of Q1.

Zoom in: The fund will make initial investments of $2 million to $6 million, typically as lead investor.

It will focus on "early revenue-stage" startups, largely between seed and Series A.

The latest: The fund has invested in four startups: EV charger repair provider ChargerHelp, government funding startup Pioneer, energy rental marketplace Skoon, and wildfire insurance provider Delos.

Between the lines: Those four startups aren't exclusively in software.

"The value, the intellectual property, is in the software engineering and systems integration — the machine intelligence that allows it to work and is differentiating," the person familiar says.

2. The BFD: Blue Bear's $200M fund

a computer circuit board surrounded by circles and cutouts of money 

Regulators at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission reportedly told lobbyists and corporate chiefs that the agency plans to scale back its long-awaited climate disclosure rules, per a Reuters report this morning.

Why it matters: The agency is reportedly planning to exclude so-called Scope 3 emissions, which are the most complicated to measure but make up as much as 70% of an organization's greenhouse gas emissions.

Catch up fast: Emissions are generally divided into three categories: There's Scope 1 for emissions from sources directly owned or controlled by a company, and Scope 2 for emissions associated with buying energy, heating, and cooling. 

Scope 3 is often the largest:  they're the emissions associated with a company's activities more broadly, such as the carbon generated throughout its supply chains and use of its products in the economy.

Be smart: A range of corporate groups had heavily lobbied the SEC to exclude Scope 3 emissions from a rule it's drafting, which will require publicly listed companies to disclose certain climate risks.

The latest: SEC officials have apparently indicated that the agency plans to omit Scope 3, citing the potential of legal challenges.

"Those concerns were fueled by last year's Supreme Court decision curbing the Environmental Protection Agency's power to regulate greenhouse gas emissions," per Reuters.

Of note: The move, if finalized, would be a deviation from the European Union, which plans to mandate Scope 3 disclosures for large companies by 2024.

Yes, but: California last month passed a law that will require companies to begin disclosing Scope 3 emissions starting in 2027.

3. SEC blinks on climate

Illustration of the SEC logo eagle dropping a green cube.

😬 More turmoil at Cruise: Kyle Vogt, the CEO and co-founder of GM's robo-taxi unit, abruptly resigned as the company faces a safety review from regulators, per Reuters.

Vogt had apologized to staff the day before. California ordered Cruise vehicles from state roads after a crash last month.

Cruise's previous CEO, Dan Amman, was reportedly ousted in 2021 after disagreements with GM CEO Mary Barra over the self-driving division's strategic focus and IPO plans.

🚚 Nikola's CFO departs: The electric truck maker said Friday that CFO Anastasiya Pasterick would resign to "pursue other opportunities," barely eight months after taking on the role.

Pasterick was named CFO after the departure of Kim Brady, who had spearheaded Nikola's SPAC merger in 2020.

His exit comes roughly three months after Nikola named its fourth CEO in four years.

🔥 Heat pumps pumped up: The Energy Department plans to provide nine companies a combined $169 million for manufacturing heat pumps, Ben Geman writes in Generate.

The announcement marks the first awards under White House use of the Cold War-era Defense Production Act to spur domestic clean energy manufacturing.

The companies are Armstrong International, Bard Manufacturing, Copeland, Honeywell, Hydro Temp, Ice Air, Mitsubishi Electric U.S., Treau, and York International.

4. Temperature check

a box of matches that pictures a small outline of the earth and text that reads "Temperature Check"

• Munich-based Acton Capital raised €225m for its sixth fund, focused on early-growth-stage startups, including those in climate. https://axios.link/3QKZIfU

• The EU's European Investment Fund invested €125m in Sustainable Development Capital's €650m Green Energy Solutions Fund, focused on reducing energy waste. https://axios.link/3G9qQjC

• Le Fourgon, a French sustainable packaging startup focused on reusing food and drink containers, raised a €10m Series A from Id4, Teampact, and La Poste Ventures. https://axios.link/40NLrDz

• Kenya-based Bio-Logical raised $1m led by Steyn Group to build what it's calling the largest biochar production facility in Africa, converting waste into a sustainable fertilizer ingredient. https://axios.link/3G6Su0J

• Leap, the SF-based virtual power plant provider, announced an undisclosed equity investment from Presidio Ventures. https://axios.link/3szKhPI

• Basis Climate, a New York City-based marketplace for tax credits, closed a $60 million transfer of investment tax credits from California-based independent power producer W Power for a utility-scale electricity storage facility in California. https://axios.link/49DJFct

• Canada's government is expected to introduce legislation this month that would introduce $20b in subsidies over five years for carbon capture and net-zero energy projects, per Reuters. https://axios.link/47oxwqm

• The U.S. Department of Energy is awarding $100k to nine semifinalists for its Heliostat Prize, aimed at developing components for concentrated solar and similar tech. https://axios.link/40JMPHy

• Canoo, the Justin, Texas-based EV maker, signed a contract with LA-based Prime Time Shuttle for the purchase of up to 550 EVs. https://axios.link/3SLoqiH

• Gulfstream Aerospace, the Savannah, Ga.-based jet maker, completed what it's calling the first trans-Atlantic flight using SAF, flying nearly seven hours from Savannah to England. https://axios.link/3sGQqJP

• Utility Dominion Energy Virginia is working with Virginia State University to develop a backup battery storage project for the university's multipurpose center. https://axios.link/3R8glmU

5. Hot deals

• Rick Wilmer was named president and CEO of ChargePoint, the Campbell, Calif.-based EV charging network operator and charger supplier. Wilmer was previously COO. https://axios.link/47mpmyH

• Lawrence Coben was named interim president and CEO of NRG Energy, succeeding Mauricio Gutierrez under a reported agreement with activist investor Elliott Investment Management. Coben is board chair. https://axios.link/3SPJDrV

• Carl Gupton was named CEO of Greenswell Growers, a Richmond, Va.-based sustainable produce supplier. Gupton is the company's president. https://axios.link/47I1Pbk

• Ted Wilke was promoted to president of Spoc, a Birmingham, Ala.-based power conversion technology developer. Wilke was previously VP. https://axios.link/3SKdEJJ

• Jamie Leifker was named president of Truterra, an Arden Hills, Minn.-based sustainable agriculture consulting and tech company. Leifker was previously a VP at WinField United. https://axios.link/3MQpI8s

• Tobias Hüppe has joined Estonian super capacitor company Skeleton Technologies as Chief Operations Officer. Hüppe was previously Senior Director of Manufacturing for Northvolt. https://axios.link/47CxGtN

• Cynthia Lima has been promoted to senior vice president, chief external affairs and communications officer for Charlotte, NC-based lithium company Albemarle. Lima was previously chief communications officer. https://axios.link/3SN8H2E

6. It's personnel

"I am sorry we have veered off course under my leadership and that this has affected many Cruisers in a deeply personal way." 

One day before resigning, the head of GM's robotaxi unit, Cruise, apologized to employees in a letter after a crash involving one of the company's self-driving cars spurred California regulators to order the electric vehicles from state roads.

"I am sorry we have veered off course under my leadership and that this has affected many Cruisers in a deeply personal way," Kyle Vogt wrote in the email obtained by Reuters.

The company said it will allow employees to sell shares, two days after it canceled an earlier tender offer.

7. Quote of the day: Robot regret

Welcome back! Here's hoping you had a better weekend than OpenAI's board. 

🦃 Katie noticed two blow-up Thanksgiving decorations in her neighborhood. Is this a thing now?

⚛️ Alan is headed to central Massachusetts today for an event at Commonwealth Fusion Systems. Got questions? Send 'em our way!

Thank you to Michael Flaherty and Chris Speckhard for today's edits.

And thank you for reading Climate Deals! Please share with your friends, family and green hydrogen fans.

November 20, 2023

1 big thing: Plug Power's future