BRISBANE, Australia, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Quinbrook’s Supernode battery energy storage project has completed Stage 2 commercial operation and reached financial close on A$469 million financing for Stage 3, marking a further milestone in the phased development of Australia’s largest operational BESS campus.

With planned capacity expected to exceed 3 GWh, Supernode is supported by CATL as its core energy storage system supplier for all three stages, providing advanced storage solutions and lifecycle support to enable reliable long-term operation.

Located at Brendale, north of Brisbane, Supernode is adjacent to the South Pine substation, a key hub in the Queensland power system and the regional reference node for marginal loss factors (MLFs). This location provides a favourable MLF position and approximately 4,000MW of available connection capacity for phased expansion. The project’s development coincides with Queensland’s accelerating energy transition and the infrastructure investment cycle.

Stage 3 has reached financial close on A$469 million in debt financing, bringing total project financing across Supernode Stages 1, 2 and 3 to approximately A$1.2 billion. Across its first three stages, Supernode is set to reach 780MW / 3,074MWh. Capacity across the three stages has been contracted under long-term offtake arrangements. 

The long-term value of such assets depends on the continued availability, operational efficiency, safety and reliability of their energy storage systems. CATL has provided EnerC Plus systems for Stages 1 and 2 and will supply TENER S systems for Stage 3, establishing a consistent technology platform across the campus.

In close collaboration with Quinbrook, CATL has supported project-specific design optimisation to enable high-density deployment within the constraints of available industrial land. EnerC Plus supports back-to-back installation, reducing the required site footprint by approximately 20% compared with EnerC. Its integrated liquid-cooling system maintains an internal container temperature differential within 5°C and is designed to deliver reliable operation over a 20-year lifecycle.

CATL’s contribution extends beyond equipment supply. Under a Long-Term Service Agreement (LTSA), CATL will further support the full lifecycle of the energy storage asset through condition monitoring, performance tracking, fault response and preventive maintenance to help ensure reliable long-term operation. CATL’s proven product performance, scalable delivery capabilities and lifecycle service model provide greater confidence in the long-term reliability and performance of the energy storage asset.

Tim Hornemand, Managing Director and Regional Lead, Australia, at Quinbrook, said:
“Achieving commercial operations for Stage 2 means we’ve successfully delivered both Origin-contracted stages on schedule, an outcome we’re incredibly proud of given the complexity of commissioning utility-scale battery storage projects in Australia. With Stage 3 now fully financed, we’ve reached another important milestone in Supernode’s continuing development. The ongoing support of our banking partners also reflects confidence in the Supernode project, our delivery track record and the long-term outlook for battery storage in Australia.”

Tan Libin, CCO and Co-President of Sales & Marketing at CATL, said:
“Energy storage is evolving from a standalone technology deployment into a strategic energy asset. The next stage of industry development will depend not only on technological advancement, but also on the ability to create long-term value through collaboration, innovation and scalable deployment. At CATL, we are committed to working with partners to unlock the full potential of energy storage assets and support the transition toward a more flexible and resilient energy system.”

CATL and Quinbrook are also working together on EnerQB, an eight-hour battery storage solution being considered for future stages of the Supernode development. The initiative builds on CATL’s role as energy storage system supplier across Supernode’s first three stages. CATL will continue to work with partners worldwide to deliver reliable technologies, scalable solutions and lifecycle support.

HONG KONG, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — A spokesperson for Lingnan University welcomed the results of the 2026 ShanghaiRanking’s Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). Lingnan rose significantly from the 901st to 1,000th band globally last year to the 601st to 700th band this year, representing an advancement of 300 places and the biggest rise among Hong Kong SAR’s eight UGC-funded universities. The university has also risen to joint 6th place within this group. The encouraging improvement is consistent with Lingnan’s upward trend in other international university rankings in recent months, reflecting the phased results of the University’s continued strategic transformation in recent years and recognition from the international academic community.

Lingnan’s rise in the ARWU is driven by improvements across a range of indicators, including the number of Highly Cited Researchers, papers published in Nature and Science, papers indexed in major citation databases, and per-capita academic performance. A key factor behind this progress is the University’s growing number of Highly Cited Researchers, a metric that accounts for 20 per cent of the ranking and reflects Lingnan’s strategy of building a critical mass of high-impact researchers. Lingnan has also launched the Lingnan-60 Global Talent Recruitment scheme, which aims to bring in over 60 outstanding scholars from around the globe, strengthening the University’s research capacity across disciplines.

In recent years, Lingnan University has been committed to developing into a leading research-oriented liberal arts university comprehensive in arts and sciences in the digital era, while contributing to the development of Hong Kong SAR as an international education hub. In response to the transformation of higher education brought about by the rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies, the University has actively pursued its strategic transformation through “Liberal Arts + Technology” and “AI+”, recruited talent from around the world, promoted campus internationalisation, and strengthened industry-academia-research collaboration, gradually establishing a distinctive and competitive development positioning.

Recently, Lingnan participated in the Times Higher Education (THE) Asia University Rankings for the first time, ranking 84th in Asia and placing among the top 100 universities in Asia. In the newly released QS World University Rankings 2027, Lingnan rose by more than 120 places from last year to 581st globally, marking its biggest rise in recent years.

In addition, in the latest THE Sustainability Impact Ratings 2026, Lingnan University rose from the 101st to 200th band globally last year to 63rd this year, entering the global top 100 for the first time. In the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4: Quality Education category, Lingnan retained its position as the world’s number one. The University also ranked first in Hong Kong for six SDGs and placed seven SDGs among the global top 100.

Looking ahead, Lingnan will continue to recruit top talent from around the world, promote campus internationalisation, and strengthen interdisciplinary industry-academia-research collaboration. The University will draw on the strengths of a liberal arts education in developing students’ critical thinking, interdisciplinary thinking and ability to address complex social issues, while combining the humanities with cutting-edge technologies in science, technology and artificial intelligence to equip students to respond to new challenges in the digital era and develop innovative solutions.

SYDNEY, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Yesterday, the Smart Energy Council and RKS Energy Solutions, an authorised retailer for Fox ESS, hosted a press conference in a local warehouse in Castle Hill. Government leaders joined the celebrations, marking Australia’s milestone of 500,000 home battery installations and reinforcing the impact of the Cheaper Home Batteries Program (the program) on household adoption of residential energy storage. Fox ESS’s brand ambassador, Ian Thorpe, also witnessed this achievement.

Targeting more than two million installations by 2030, the program is now tracking at around 25% of the goal midway through 2026, illustrating how targeted upfront support can rapidly reshape an energy market and strengthen consumer confidence.

Building on earlier success, the Government has expanded the program beyond its original $2.3 billion commitment, with funding of $7.2 billion over four years. For local households, solar and home storage mean permanently lower power bills and real control over their energy costs.

The Government’s policy direction continues to evolve, including a renewed focus on the “missing middle” for commercial and industrial (C&I) energy storage. This includes further regulatory work to support solar-plus-storage and additional state-based incentives designed to accelerate uptake.

“This has been an extraordinarily successful scheme. It’s creating jobs and generating economic activity, while also reducing power bills. And it’s making a genuine difference to climate change by cutting our emissions. Overall, this is a complete win-win,” said Hon Anthony Albanese MP, Prime Minister of Australia.

“This is a story of global significance! Australian households have delivered 14 gigawatt hours of storage. We’re installing around 2,000 batteries every single working day across the country. And for many households, that has brought their power bills down to zero,” said Hon Chris Bowen MP, Minister for Climate Change and Energy.

Fox ESS has been a key contributor to this momentum, supporting strong demand through its local footprint. The company has offices in Sydney and Melbourne, with a service team of more than 50 experts dedicated to the Australian market. In this June, Fox ESS also opened its second factory, further supporting the shift to clean energy, and strengthening its capacity to meet growing demand.

“Fox ESS is now No. 1 in the Australian market, and I’m proud to be their brand ambassador, helping Australians make the most of renewable energy at home. We’re backing a future where Australia can run on the abundant resources we have, especially our renewable ones,” said Ian Thorpe, Olympian and Fox ESS Brand Ambassador in Australia.

Moving forward, with sustained government support, Australia is poised to strengthen energy resilience, delivering lower bills, and cleaner power nationwide.

HONG KONG, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The exceptional research strengths of City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK) have once again received high international recognition. In the newly released 2026 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), CityUHK secured a place among the top 100 globally for the second consecutive year and rose four places from last year to rank 95th worldwide, firmly maintaining its 2nd position in Hong Kong.

CityUHK continued to deliver an impressive performance across several core evaluation indicators. Notably, in the key academic indicator of “Highly Cited Researchers by Clarivate”, the University entered the global top 25 for the first time, ranking 2nd in Hong Kong. This once again demonstrates the University’s leading international advantage in nurturing top scholars and producing high-quality research.

Professor Chun-Sing Lee, Acting President of CityUHK, was deeply encouraged by these outstanding results. “We are immensely proud that CityUHK has been ranked among the top 100 globally for two consecutive years and maintained its 2nd place ranking in Hong Kong,” he said. “This remarkable achievement reflects the continuous improvement in the University’s teaching and research strengths, as well as our leading edge in promoting internationalised education. Recognised by Times Higher Education (THE) as the ‘Most International University in the World’ for three consecutive years, CityUHK will continue to harness its powerful momentum in research and innovation, deepen cross-regional collaboration with top institutions locally and globally, actively promote the ‘Study in Hong Kong’ brand, and lead higher education towards new milestones.”

The ARWU, published by ShanghaiRanking, is widely regarded as one of the most influential and authoritative global university rankings. Inaugurated in 2003 by the Centre for World-Class Universities at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, it evaluates over 2,500 institutions worldwide annually, publishing the top 1,000 results. The evaluation is based predominantly on objective indicators of academic and research excellence, including the number of highly influential scholars, the volume of papers published and indexed in premier journals, and the per capita academic performance of the institution.

In recent years, CityUHK’s academic influence has continued to grow, earning widespread recognition and achieving outstanding results across various international rankings. In the 2027 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings, published in June this year, CityUHK achieved remarkable success by jumping 11 places to 52nd globally, solidifying its position among the top 3% of universities worldwide. Notably, in the core indicator of “Citations per Faculty”, the University achieved an exceptional result, ranking 2nd globally and 1st in Hong Kong. Together with the latest ARWU results, this demonstrates the top-tier academic standard of the University’s faculty and research teams, as well as the tangible contribution of their innovative research to global science and societal development.

Steven Lee, Communications and Institutional Research Office, CityUHK (Tel: 3442 9945)

New Category III AIF brings India’s 50+ AMCs and 1,600+ mutual fund schemes within one professionally managed investment structure

MUMBAI, India, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Wealth Company, the asset management arm of Pantomath Group, has launched The Wealth Company IFSC Fund of Fund (FoF), an open-ended Category III Alternative Investment Fund based in GIFT City IFSC, offering eligible non-resident investors, including NRIs, a single, US dollar denominated route to professionally managed exposure across India’s mutual fund and ETF universe.

Through the USD-denominated FoF, investors can have a single-point diversified exposure to equity-oriented funds, sectoral strategies, fixed income funds, hybrid funds, gold and silver ETFs, index strategies and SIFs, subject to the fund’s mandate. 

For an NRI in Dubai, Singapore, London, or any other global financial centre, the fund offers the ability to participate in India’s growth through a structure designed specifically for non-resident investors – eligible investors do not separately need to undertake the SEBI FPI registration process.

The structure is intended for eligible global family offices, institutional allocators, accredited investors and HNI/UHNI non-residents.

“India’s growth has stopped being a story that Indians only watch from abroad. We want an Indian living overseas to think about India as part of their long-term wealth portfolio and not as a market that is difficult to access from where they live,” said Ms. Madhu Lunawat, Founder, The Wealth Company.

“There are more than 1,600 schemes to choose from, different market cycles and very different investment styles. Our job is to do that selection and rebalancing within a structure that makes sense for an overseas investor,” said Unmesh Kulkarni, Managing Director, Group Product Head, The Wealth Company.

The tax question: potentially significant, but not one-size-fits-all

Tax is another consideration for overseas investors. The Fund is structured as an IFSC-based Category III AIF and is expected to qualify as a “Specified Fund” under the applicable provisions of the Income-tax Act, 2025, subject to satisfaction of the prescribed conditions.

For eligible non-resident investors, distributions by the Fund and capital gains arising on transfer or redemption of Fund units may be exempt from Indian income tax, subject to the applicable statutory conditions.

Further, eligible non-resident investors who satisfy the prescribed conditions may also benefit from relaxations relating to PAN and filing of an Indian income-tax return, including where they have no other income chargeable to tax in India and the prescribed investor information and tax-deduction requirements are complied with.

The availability of these benefits is subject to the Fund satisfying the conditions applicable to a specified fund and to the individual circumstances of each investor.

The Fund may be of particular interest to investors based in jurisdictions such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Uganda and Mauritius; however, the tax treatment in each investor’s home jurisdiction is subject to the investor’s individual circumstances and should be evaluated with the investor’s own tax advisor.

DUBAI, UAE, Aug. 15, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — 7 Wonders of Future Cities today marks 77 days until global voting begins on www.7wondersfc.com on 31 October 2026. The day, also known as World Cities Day, will be when the public can start choosing amongst the participating cities and developments, to become historically recognised as the leading representatives of the future of urban life.

According to Jean-Paul de la Fuente, Chairman of the 7 Wonders of Future Cities campaign, “Public participation, global visibility and the status of our recognised brand can transform urban vision into a shared cause, and we are seeing this already with motivating engagement from participating cities and developments from all over the world.”

Chie Kobayashi, Global Initiatives Manager for Minato Mirai 21 in Yokohama, Japan, says “We are proud to contribute our experience and vision for creating sustainable, people-focused cities of the future through the 7 Wonders of Future Cities initiative.”

Sabine Müller, Chairwoman of aspern Seestadt in Vienna, Austria, says: “We joined the 7 Wonders of Future cities initiative to stand alongside world-leading urban developments, to share our vision of an innovative, sustainable and liveable city for many future generations.”

Jeremy Fasser, Mayor of Stellenbosch, South Africa, considers that the future city vision for Adam Tas Corridor “is about creating walkable, connected, mixed-use and mixed-income neighbourhoods where homes, schools, workplaces, public spaces and opportunities are within easy reach – about building a city that connects rather than divides.”

Eduardo Pimentel, Mayor of Curitiba, Brazil, says participating “is an opportunity to show the world a city that combines planning, innovation, sustainability and, above all, care for people.”

Służewiec, in Warsaw, Poland, believes that “participating in the competition will highlight the work put into the transformation process and allow other cities around the world to learn from our example.”

For participant Konza Technopolis, southeast of Nairobi, Kenya, its CEO John Paul Okwiri believes that participation in the campaign provides an opportunity to share Kenya’s experience in developing a purpose-built smart city with a global audience.

7 Wonders of Future Cities campaign Chairman Jean-Paul de la Fuente summarises the growing momentum: “With 77 days remaining to voting, now is the time that participating cities and developments can build strong foundations of awareness and support locally, nationally and internationally, and that will for sure become valuable assets for when the competition gets underway.”