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European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's planned trip to the White House this week to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act took on new urgency as news broke that Volkswagen is putting its plans for a battery plant in eastern Europe on hold and prioritizing a similar facility in North America after estimating it could receive €10 billion in U.S. incentives.

VW's enticement by the U.S. government is the latest fallout from the IRA, a $369 billion package of subsidies and tax incentives for green technology, that is luring European companies to the U.S., reported the Financial Times.
Enel, Solvay, EDP and Northvolt are among other European companies that have expressed an interest in benefiting from U.S. subsidies and are therefore pressing ahead with expansion plans in the U.S. This could ultimately mean less innovation in Europe and fewer jobs for Europeans too.

The IRA has sparked concern among European policymakers as high-tech industries such as batteries, which they have spent years nurturing, look across the Atlantic as competition from China intensifies. The American government has argued that instead of expecting major concessions from the U.S., the EU needs to take urgent steps to make their own green investment conditions more attractive. Read on to learn more about this story and the week's most important technology news impacting business.

Srcful, which bills itself as the first blockchain powered Virtual Power Plant, plans to use digital ledger technology and the Internet of Things to aggregate renewable energy
generated by consumers to help balance power company grids.
The Swedish startup, which is currently testing its technology with a power company, offers a way for individuals to earn tokens which they can sell on the open market, trade against other crypto assets, or hold as an investment, by connecting their home solar panels or batteries to a Srcful energy gateway that is compatible with major inverter brands. The connection to the blockchain localizes the energy source and provides it with a digital identity to enable tracking of who contributes what.

To prevent spikes or dips and keep the grid balanced consumers will be asked to charge or discharge their batteries. Solar panels consumers can help balance the grid by shutting off their panels. By aggregating various solar panel and battery systems, Srcful intends to enable micro-producers to participate in restricted ecosystems that require sellers to power grids to have at least one megawatt of controllable power.
“We’re innovating to accelerate the transition to renewable energy,” says Johan Leitet, one of Srcful’s five founders (pictured here) .“We believe blockchain and distributed energy resources can help create a more efficient and sustainable model for energy production and consumption.”
It’s just one example of how blockchain can enable the creation of decentralized, efficient and secure systems for managing energy production, distribution and consumption, according to a March 10 report by the World Economic Forum’s Crypto Sustainability Coalition.

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Clearly, a UK-based startup, helps businesses and financial institutions transition ground transportation fleets to Net Zero emissions. It uses AI to blend operational and logistical data so companies know exactly where the most emissions are coming from; establishes whether the charging infrastructure and clean energy resources needed to transition specific routes are in place; and helps determine the real costs of going green by factoring in eligibility for tax incentives or rebates. Customers include one of the world’s largest fast moving consumer goods companies and an international parcel delivery service.

“We are offering an empowerment platform for decision-making based on data rather than guessing,” says Danielle Walsh, Clearly’s CEO.

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Number of years it will take the world to reach gender parity, according to United Nations Secretary General António Guterres, who spoke to the U.N. Commission on the Status of Women on March 6, ahead of International Women’s Day.

To achieve gender equality, Guterres called for “collective” and “urgent” action, from increasing education, income and employment for women and girls, especially in developing nations in the Global South, to promoting the participation of women and girls in science and technology.

“Centuries of patriarchy, discrimination and harmful stereotypes have created a huge gender gap in science and technology,” Guterres said. “Let’s be clear: global frameworks are not working for the world’s women and girls. They need to change.”