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Lightstar Continues Advancing Detroit’s Vision for Clean Energy

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Mayor Announces Houston-Whittier/Hayes and Greenfield Park as Detroit’s Phase 2 Solar Neighborhoods

BOSTON, Jan. 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The City of Detroit continues its commitment to renewable energy and community revitalization with Mayor Mike Duggan’s announcement of Houston-Whittier/Hayes and Greenfield Park as the next two neighborhoods selected for the city’s Solar Neighborhoods Initiative. This milestone Phase 2 expansion will introduce 61 acres of solar fields, bringing Detroit’s total solar infrastructure to an impressive 165 acres. These efforts support the bold goal of producing 31 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy, sufficient to power 127 municipal buildings throughout Detroit.

“The work we’re doing with Solar Neighborhoods is about more than renewable energy—it’s about creating opportunities”

Detroit is taking real action to fight climate change, while removing blight and investing in long-neglected areas,” Mayor Duggan said. “Now, two more neighborhoods in our city know that they have not been forgotten.”

Lightstar, one of the nation’s leading solar developers, has been selected to build 63 acres of solar fields in the Gratiot/Findlay and State Fair neighborhoods in Phase 1 and 19 acres of solar fields in the Houston-Witter/Hayes neighborhood in Phase 2. 

Phase 2 Highlights at a Glance

Houston-Whittier/Hayes Neighborhood:

18.7 acres of solar2 relocation homeowners within the Solar Array70 Community Benefit homeowners who will receive $15,000 each in energy efficiency upgrades

Lightstar Renewables brings its groundbreaking commitment to community-focused solar innovations, including agrivoltaics, which combines solar arrays with agricultural opportunities.

Both neighborhoods were selected through a competitive process with the aim of the initiative to take vacant, blighted land and put it to use generating enough clean energy to power 127 City municipal buildings as part of the City’s efforts to address climate change. These include all police and fire stations, transit centers, City administrative buildings, recreation centers, health clinics, City Airport, and more.

Why Solar Neighborhoods Matter

Advancing Detroit’s Vision for Clean Energy: This expansion builds on the success of Phase 1, which delivered solar fields to Gratiot-Findlay, Van Dyke-Lynch, and State Fair neighborhoods, collectively adding 104 acres of renewable energy infrastructure. With Phase 2, Detroit continues its leadership in renewable energy innovation, designed to enhance municipal energy systems and improve the quality of life for its residents.

“Lightstar is proud to partner with the City of Detroit in creating solutions that benefit the environment while uplifting local communities,” said Owen Deitcher, of Lightstar Renewables. “Innovative methods like agrivoltaics prove that solar energy can simultaneously support urban agriculture and neighborhood transformation.”

Empowering Communities with Renewable Energy

Community-Centered Benefits: The initiative places Detroit residents at its center by ensuring meaningful community benefits, including the following key improvements:

Energy Efficiency Upgrades for over 106 adjacent homes.Comprehensive Relocation Assistance for residents affected.Support for Urban Farmers through Lightstar’s agrivoltaic design.

A Sustainable Vision for Detroit’s Future

Sustainability Beyond Clean Energy: Detroit Solar Neighborhoods go beyond clean energy creation; they redefine sustainable urban development. Key program features include:

35 Years of Renewable Energy: Solar arrays will operate for decades, after which the land will be restored to greenfields.Urban Farming Innovation: Agrivoltaics offers urban farmers designated land, enabling them to grow crops with up to 50% less water usage and protection against frost.Boosting Local Livelihoods: By combining agriculture with energy, the initiative supports farmers with meaningful stipends, operational training, and resources for scalable growth.

“The work we’re doing with Solar Neighborhoods is about more than renewable energy—it’s about creating opportunities,” said Brianna Fiorillo, Policy & Strategy Manager, Midwest at Lightstar. “We’re energizing communities, empowering farmers, and showing the world that solar can build resilient cities.”

Innovation That Grows with the Community

Empowering Detroit Farmers with Agrivoltaics: Lightstar Renewables is dedicated to urban farmers finding a path to agrivoltaics. In this environment, farmers will have the opportunity to manage 1-4 acres of farmland at no cost, operating in tandem with solar installations. Benefits include farming stipends, reduced water usage and frost protection due to the microclimate of the arrays, and training programs to scale operations.

To learn more about opportunities to farm within the sited areas, farmers are encouraged to contact Owen Deitcher at owen.deitcher@lightstar.com

Moving Toward Detroit’s Green Energy Future

Lightstar and Detroit’s Solar Neighborhoods Initiative show how renewable energy can go hand in hand with community revitalization. Phase 2 continues to remove blight, grow sustainable energy infrastructure, and create meaningful opportunities for Detroit residents—all while cementing Detroit’s leadership in urban sustainability.

About Lightstar Renewables

Founded in 2019 and headquartered in Boston, Lightstar Renewables is a trailblazer in the development of community solar solutions. With over 1 gigawatt (GW) of projects completed or in development, Lightstar remains committed to providing clean energy solutions that benefit people, the land, and the planet. Learn more at www.lightstar.com

For further updates, or for press inquiries, contact Meghan Welborn, Director of Marketing and PR at Lightstar at meghan.welborn@lightstar.com or visit the website at lightstar.com

Together, we’re redefining what a cleaner, greener future looks like.

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SOURCE Lightstar Renewables, LLC

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ICEYE launches four new satellites, supporting additional customer missions

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The latest satellite deployment enhances Earth Observation capabilities for ICEYE and its customers, and marks the second mission ICEYE has executed for Space42.

HELSINKI, Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — ICEYE, the global leader in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite operations for high-fidelity Earth Observation, persistent monitoring, and natural catastrophe solutions, has successfully launched and deployed four new SAR satellites into orbit. The satellites were integrated via Exolaunch and successfully lifted off on January 14  aboard the Transporter-12 Rideshare mission with SpaceX from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, USA. Each spacecraft has established communication, and early routine operations are underway.

Including today’s launch, ICEYE has launched 44 satellites into orbit for the company and its customers since 2018. ICEYE now exclusively launches satellites that deliver 25 cm resolution, the highest fidelity in the industry. ICEYE plans to launch more than 20 new satellites annually in 2025 and beyond.

The new satellites serve both ICEYE’s commercial and dedicated customer missions and were manufactured by ICEYE in Finland and by ICEYE US in the United States. The satellites include the second ICEYE satellite for Space42, a UAE-based AI-powered SpaceTech company with a global reach, for the company’s previously announced Earth Observation Space Program.

“Through the continuous and reliable deployment of new satellites into the ICEYE constellation, we are reinforcing our leadership position in Earth Observation. ICEYE’s revolutionary satellites have a ground-breaking combination of capabilities – smaller size and high performance – which ICEYE as the only company in the market can deliver to customers. Our team is focused on our commitment to working as a trusted partner for governments and industries worldwide. With today’s announcement, we also celebrate the launch of the second ICEYE satellite for Space42, and we look forward to further successful collaboration on their missions and developing the UAE’s space capabilities,” said Rafal Modrzewski, CEO and Co-Founder of ICEYE.

Hasan Al Hosani, CEO of Bayanat Smart Solutions, Space42, said: “Foresight-2 has furthered the UAE’s position as a global leader in satellite-based Earth observation, while enabling us to strengthen our credentials as a multi-orbit satellite operator. Through the SAR constellation, we continue to drive the development of our local satellite manufacturing capabilities, while boosting nation-wide preparedness for emergency response; ensuring we deliver maximum value to our customers in the region and beyond.”

The new satellites further expand the world’s largest SAR constellation, owned and operated by ICEYE. SAR satellites can image any location on the Earth’s surface in any environmental condition, day or night. SAR data provides precise, near real-time insights for ICEYE’s government and commercial customers.

ICEYE’s previous launch in December 2024 successfully deployed two new satellites into the constellation. During 2024 ICEYE successfully launched nine new satellites.

About ICEYE

ICEYE delivers unparalleled persistent monitoring capabilities to detect and respond to changes in any location on Earth, faster and more accurately than ever before.

Owning the world’s largest synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite constellation, ICEYE provides objective, near real-time insights, ensuring that customers have unmatched access to actionable data, day or night, even in challenging environmental conditions. As a trusted partner to governments and commercial industries, ICEYE delivers intelligence in sectors such as insurance, natural catastrophe response and recovery, security, maritime monitoring, and finance, enabling decision-making that contributes to community resilience and sustainable development.

ICEYE operates internationally with offices in Finland, Poland, Spain, the UK, Australia, Japan, UAE, Greece, and the US. We have more than 700 employees, inspired by the shared vision of improving life on Earth by becoming the global source of truth in Earth Observation.

Media contact: press@iceye.com

Visit www.iceye.com and follow ICEYE on LinkedIn and X for the latest updates and insights.

About Space42

Space42 (ADX: SPACE42) is a UAE-based AI-powered SpaceTech company that integrates satellite communications, geospatial analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities to enlighten the Earth from space. Established in 2024 following the successful merger between Bayanat and Yahsat, Space42’s global reach allows it to address the rapidly evolving needs of its customers in governments, enterprises, and communities. Space42 comprises of two business units: Yahsat Space Services and Bayanat Smart Solutions. The Yahsat Space Services unit focuses on upstream satellite operations for both fixed and mobility satellite solutions. The Bayanat Smart Solutions unit integrates geospatial data acquisition and processing with AI to inform decision-making, enhance situational awareness, and improve operational efficiency. Space42’s major shareholders include G42, Mubadala and IHC.

For more information, visit: space42.ai

Media Contact: Media@space42.ai

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SOURCE ICEYE

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Network People Services Technologies Applauded by Frost & Sullivan for Providing Cutting-edge Digital Payment Technology and for Its Market-leading Position

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NPST’s innovative technology underscores its commitment to advancing digital payment adoption to meet diverse user needs, and its strategic adaptability establishes it as a pivotal player in India’s financial ecosystem.

SAN ANTONIO, Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Frost & Sullivan recently researched the payment technology industry and, based on its findings, recognizes Network People Services Technologies Ltd. (NPST) with the 2024 Indian Company of the Year Award. 

Its core mission is to provide cutting-edge digital technology to all entities in the financial value chain, ensuring robust support at every stage of the payment process. The company provides banking solutions and payment processing infrastructure that interconnect financial entities within the broader banking and fintech sectors. 

Listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) SME platform, NPST has significantly shaped India’s digital payments landscape. Its solutions span digital banking, payment switching and processing, merchant acquiring, and RegTech offerings, catering to banks, payment aggregators, merchants, and TPAPs. 

With a forward-looking vision encapsulated in its NPST 2.0 strategy—Innovate, Transform, and Grow—the company is driving technological advancements in areas like fraud detection, real-time lending, and embedded payments, enabling transactions through ERP and smart devices such as vehicles, smartwatches, and meters. 

NPST is making significant investments in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to enhance its payment solutions. NPST’s Risk Intelligence Decisioning Platform, a cutting-edge AI-driven operations engine, is supported by a comprehensive data lake that consolidates transaction data. This advanced system allows for the real-time identification of high-risk transactions and merchants. It includes tools designed to enhance compliance and mitigate fraud, such as a merchant trust score, a customer transaction score, and chargeback fraud prevention.  

Additionally, the company’s flagship EVOK 3.0 Payments Platform as a Service provides a comprehensive solution for aggregators, gateway providers, and merchants. Covering the entire payment life cycle—from transaction processing to risk management—EVOK 3.0 integrates AI and ML to offer advanced capabilities like multi-bank intelligent routing and predictive fraud intelligence, ensuring efficient management of high transaction volumes.  

Other groundbreaking innovations include: 

PayJoy:  Seamless access to real-time UPI credit in a country with low credit card penetration. 

Bill Direct:  Bill Aggregation engine for deeper penetration in payment collections. 

TimePay Cash:  Enabling cash withdrawals using QR codes at local stores. 

UPI Circle:  Expanded digital payment access through shared accounts.

Contextual Payments: Enhanced customer checkout experience.

UPI Lite Auto-Top Up: Automatically replenishing UPI Lite accounts, ensuring users have sufficient transaction funds.  

Rahul Agarwal, Associate director for growth advisory at Frost & Sullivan, observed, “NPST’s achievements, including pioneering online merchant dispute resolution in India and expanding its platform to offer value-added services like AI-powered fraud detection and real-time lending, set it apart in the industry. Its diversification into non-banking financial companies and third-party application providers highlights a well-rounded growth strategy.  

NPST consistently prioritizes customer experience, fostering long-term relationships and demonstrating its commitment to client satisfaction and growth. The company’s focus on exceptional service is reflected in the loyalty of some of its clients, with critical partnerships spanning over a decade.   

The company is also working to improve payment acceptance infrastructure via access to affordable devices, (QR and SoundBoxes) while integrating AI and ML capabilities to enhance, efficiency, and scalability. These investments support growing transaction volumes and help NPST maintain its competitive edge in facilitating wider digital payment adoption. The company’s emphasis on client relationships, digital literacy, and social responsibility underscores its role as a payment technology leader and its commitment to broader economic and social contributions.   

The company’s financial performance reflects strong growth, with revenues increasing from INR 41 crore in fiscal year (FY) 2023 to INR 130 crore in FY 2024, and EBITDA rising from INR 12 crore to INR 43 crore during the same period. NPST’s strategic adaptability establishes it as a pivotal player in India’s financial ecosystem, drives economic growth, and promotes financial inclusion across the country.  

“NPST’s advances towards international expansion and transitions to the National Stock Exchange of India main board with emphasis on transparency, governance, and continual innovation, cementing its position as a leader in the global payment technology industry. The company’s exceptional performance, forward-thinking strategies, and commitment to customers and societal impact make it a deserving recipient in India’s payment technology sector,” added Norazah Bachok, best practices research analyst at Frost & Sullivan. With its strong overall performance, NPST earns Frost & Sullivan’s 2024 India Company of the Year Award in the payment technology industry.” 

Each year, Frost & Sullivan presents a Company of the Year award to the organization that demonstrates excellence in terms of growth strategy and implementation in its field. The award recognizes a high degree of innovation with products and technologies, and the resulting leadership in terms of customer value and market penetration. 

Frost & Sullivan Best Practices awards recognize companies in various regional and global markets for demonstrating outstanding achievement and superior performance in leadership, technological innovation, customer service, and strategic product development. Industry analysts compare market participants and measure performance through in-depth interviews, analyses, and extensive secondary research to identify best practices in the industry.  

About Frost & Sullivan 

For six decades, Frost & Sullivan has been world-renowned for its role in helping investors, corporate leaders, and governments navigate economic changes and identify disruptive technologies, megatrends, new business models, and companies to action, resulting in a continuous flow of growth opportunities to drive future success. Contact us: Start the discussion. Contact us: Start the discussion

Contact: Tarini Singh 
E: tarini.singh@frost.com 

About NPST
Founded in 2013, NPST is a PayTech firm listed on the NSE Small and Medium Exchange. A leader in digital banking and payment processing solutions, NPST is dedicated to advancing the digital payments ecosystem by delivering cutting-edge technology solutions to banks, fintechs, and other industry players. The company’s offerings include online and offline transaction processing, banking super apps, fraud prevention, dispute management, and compliance technology.

NPST’s mission is to drive the growth of businesses, individuals, communities, and economies. With over 100 clients and processing more than 60 million transactions daily, NPST continues to make a significant impact on the digital payments ecosystem. To learn more about NPST and its award-winning solutions, please visit www.npstx.com

Contact: Vanita D’souza
E: vanita.dsouza@npstx.com

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2593622/NPST_Award.jpg

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SFA Saniflo USA announces website URL update to reflect global alignment with parent company, SFA Group

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Transitioning from Saniflo.com to SFASaniflo.com, starting January 13, 2025, the new website URL will enhance the brand experience for visitors.

EDISON, N.J., Jan. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — SFA SANIFLO USA, a division of SFA Group and a global leader in above-the-floor macerators, grinders, drain pumps, and lift stations, today announced an upgrade to its digital footprint. Effective January 13, 2024, the company will transition its website URL from http://www.saniflo.com to http://www.sfasaniflo.com. This strategic change highlights SFA Saniflo’s alignment with the global SFA Group, a trusted name in plumbing innovation for more than six decades.

Why This Change?

This update emphasizes SFA Saniflo’s connection to the SFA Group’s broader global brand family, refining the digital experience for its users while fortifying its position within the international framework. The new domain brings several advantages:

Global consistency: By incorporating “SFA” into the domain, the updated URL underscores SFA Saniflo’s integration within the internationally recognized SFA Group, enhancing brand clarity and identity.Streamlined accessibility: The new URL provides a direct connection to resources and products across the entire SFA portfolio, simplifying access for customers and partners.Future growth opportunities: The transition paves the way for future innovations, reflecting the company’s forward-thinking approach and dedication to excellence.

“The update to our website URL reflects our dedication to fostering a unified global identity while continuing to deliver the high-quality products and service that SFA Saniflo customers have trusted for decades,” says Regis Saragosti, CEO of SFA Saniflo North America. “This change opens the door to exciting possibilities as we expand and evolve.”

What to Expect During the Transition

The transition has been carefully planned to ensure uninterrupted access for all visitors:

Seamless migration: Visitors will continue to access SFA Saniflo’s products and services without disruption, as http://www.saniflo.com will automatically redirect to sfasaniflo.com.Ongoing support: SFA Saniflo’s commitment to customer service and product excellence remains unchanged.

ABOUT SANIFLO

SFA SANIFLO NORTH AMERICA — whose France-based parent company, SFA Group, originated macerating plumbing technology — offers a complete line of waste and drainage pumping systems for residential, commercial and industrial applications. SFA Saniflo developed its innovative “above-floor plumbing” technology 65 years ago and has led its commercialization worldwide. Today, the company markets macerating technology through 27 subsidiaries doing business in more than 70 countries and has sold more than eight million units worldwide since 1958. SFA Saniflo markets through independent sales agents throughout North America, and the product line is currently available at distributor and dealer locations throughout the continent.

For more information, contact SFA Saniflo USA at 1-800-571-8191, or visit the website at sfasaniflo.com. To contact SFA Saniflo Canada, dial 1-800-363-5874, or visit sfasaniflo.ca.
For editorial assistance, including photography, contact Helen Tran (helen@greenhousedigitalpr.com) c/o GreenHouse Digital + PR: 708-428-6385.

Media Contact

Helen Tran, Saniflo, 708-428-6385, helen@greenhousedigitalpr.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prweb.com/releases/sfa-saniflo-usa-announces-website-url-update-to-reflect-global-alignment-with-parent-company-sfa-group-302351209.html

SOURCE Saniflo

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