Month: July 2025

• The Kia Connected Home™ is open at the Kia Forum July 28 through January 29
• Showcasing vehicle-to-home (V2H)¹ energy capabilities
• Further strengthening Kia’s presence in Los Angeles as title sponsor of the Forum since 2022

IRVINE, Calif., July 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Kia America is ready to showcase the future at the historic center of entertainment in Los Angeles, the world-renowned Kia Forum. Beginning Monday, July 28th, the Kia Connected Home™ will invite Forum guests to explore a new world where everyday living can be powered by Kia.

The Kia Connected Home™ presents a sophisticated showcase of how Kia’s flagship EV9 can power and connect with residential spaces through innovative energy capabilities. The EV9 features vehicle-to-home (V2H)¹ functionality, which can, for properly equipped homes, enable energy transfer from vehicle to home, keeping lightwalks on and appliances running during outages or peak energy times².

Bringing the Connected Home to Life

First unveiled at CES 2024, Kia Connected Home™ exemplifies the brand’s commitment to sustainable innovation and future mobility. The installation is designed within Kia’s “Opposites United” design framework, merging advanced technology with thoughtful design to envision how electric vehicles can support integrated and efficient living environments.

“We see our vehicles not just as transportation, but as an extension of your home,” said Russell Wager, VP of Marketing, Kia America. “Bringing the Kia Connected Home™ to the Kia Forum lets us show the community how Kia’s vision for the future fits into everyday life.”

As the title sponsor of the Kia Forum since 2022 Kia continues to expand its presence and investment within the Los Angeles community. The introduction of Kia Connected Home™ at the Forum reflects Kia’s broader strategic objective to redefine the role of mobility in daily life through sustainable and connected solutions.

Experience the Future of Driving with the EV9 Simulator

In addition to showcasing energy capabilities, the Kia Connected Home™ at the Forum features an interactive EV9 driving simulation, inspired by Kia’s award-winning Unplugged Ground experience in Seoul. This immersive simulator places guests behind the wheel of an actual EV9, enhanced with a first-person 3D perspective and responsive turntable technology that replicated the sensation of driving through diverse environments.

Participants can experience a range of Kia’s advanced in-vehicle technologies, including Highway Driving Assist 2 (HDA2)³ and Remote Smart Parking Assist (RSPA-2)⁴. These systems demonstrate how Kia’s cutting-edge features assist with lane centering, adaptive cruise control, and remote parking capabilities, further reinforcing the brand’s commitment to driver convenience in real-world applications.

Kia America – about us

Headquartered in Irvine, California, Kia America continues to top automotive quality surveys. Kia is recognized as one of the TIME World’s Most Sustainable Companies of 2024. Kia serves as the “Official Automotive Partner” of the NBA and WNBA and offers a range of gasoline, hybrid, plug-in hybrid, and electric vehicles sold through a network of nearly 800 dealers in the U.S., including several cars and SUVs proudly assembled in America*.

For media information, including photography, visit www.kiamedia.com. To receive custom email notifications for press releases the moment they are published, subscribe at www.kiamedia.com/us/en/newsalert 

* Select trims of the 2025 all-electric EV6 and EV9 all-electric three-row SUV, Sportage (excludes HEV and PHEV models), Sorento (excludes HEV and PHEV models), and Telluride are assembled in the United States from U.S. and globally sourced parts.

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SOURCE Kia America

The Government of Canada has awarded $10M in Federal Support to Help Scale the Carbon 1 Mississauga Facility for Low-Carbon Cement Production

MISSISSAUGA, ON, July 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ – Carbon Upcycling Technologies (“Carbon Upcycling”), a leader in carbon and resource utilization, and Ash Grove, a CRH Company and one of North America’s leading cement manufacturers, today broke ground on Carbon 1 Mississauga – a Canadian first-of-its-kind commercial carbon capture and utilization facility at Ash Grove’s cement plant in Mississauga, Ontario.

The project will use Carbon Upcycling’s patented technology to permanently sequester CO₂ from the cement kiln and utilize it to transform locally produced industrial byproducts into high-quality, low-carbon supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs). Once operational in 2026, the facility will have the capacity to produce up to 30,000 tonnes of SCMs annually, directly contributing to Canada’s climate and clean manufacturing goals.

In recognition of its innovation and environmental potential, the Carbon 1 Mississauga project has been awarded up to $10 million in federal funding through three key Canadian programs. Carbon 1 Mississauga is supported by Next Generation Manufacturing’s Sustainable Manufacturing Program, the Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Low-Carbon Economy Fund and is receiving advisory services and funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP).

“Clean technology, including carbon capture, will play an integral role in our efforts to decarbonize. Projects such as this one present significant economic opportunity for Canadian industry in clean technology, clean energy and decarbonization. We will continue to work with partners across sectors to accelerate the adoption of this kind of technology and ensure Canada is a global leader in carbon capture investments.” – The Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada

“Harnessing advanced digital technologies is key to making manufacturing more sustainable and efficient. The Advanced Manufacturing Cluster, one of Canada’s global innovation clusters, is helping to accelerate environmentally responsible manufacturing processes from coast to coast to coast. These collaborative projects highlight the power of innovation to drive real progress—helping Canada’s manufacturers thrive while supporting our climate goals and enhancing our global competitiveness.” – The Honourable Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation.

“Carbon 1 Mississauga is a milestone in our journey to build world-leading, domestic supply chains in North America. It will stand as a testament to the shared commitment of our team, our partners at CRH and Ash Grove, and the local community who share our vision for a resilient, clean tomorrow. With this project we’re setting the precedent for a new way forward. One that aligns community, industry and climate, so that we can build local, build better, and most importantly, build today.” – Apoorv Sinha, CEO of Carbon Upcycling

“What we’re launching is more than a new system – it’s a new way forward. This project signals a breakthrough in how we decarbonize one of the world’s most essential industries. We’re proud to build it in Canada, using homegrown talent, partnerships and purpose-driven innovation.” –Serge Schmidt, President of Ash Grove.

The Carbon 1 Mississauga project is being delivered through a multi-stakeholder collaboration. CRH Ventures, the venture capital unit of CRH, has invested in Carbon Upcycling and is playing a key role in scaling the company’s technology.

“This groundbreaking project is a powerful example of what happens when innovators, industry leaders and governments come together with a shared vision. We’re proud to support Carbon Upcycling in bringing scalable, carbon-smart cement solutions to market and to accelerate innovation that drives our industry forward.” – Eduardo Gomez, Head of CRH Ventures.

This initiative will create several permanent skilled jobs in the Ontario region and support additional employment during the construction phase.

About Carbon Upcycling

Carbon Upcycling is a carbon and resource utilization company, strengthening critical cement supply chains for the infrastructure of tomorrow. Its technology offers a productive solution for CO₂ emissions and industrial waste materials by upcycling them into low-carbon supplementary cement products. The patented system captures and reduces emissions through carbon capture and abatement while fostering localized, circular supply chains.

Carbon Upcycling is backed by a syndicate of strategic investors, including Builders Vision, the Business Development Bank of Canada, Climate Investment, Oxy Low-Carbon Ventures, and Clean Energy Ventures, as well as three of the world’s leading cement manufacturers: CRH Ventures, Cemex Ventures, and TITAN Group. Learn more at carbonupcycling.com.

About Ash Grove

Ash Grove, a CRH Company, is one of North America’s leading cement manufacturers, with a legacy of innovation and excellence dating back to 1882. The Company operates 12 world-class cement plants and a vast network of 41 terminals across the United States and Canada. Renowned for its forward-thinking approach, Ash Grove combines technical expertise, robust safety standards, and empowered talent to deliver high performance and better serve our customers.

At Ash Grove, we stand together to reinvent the way our world is built. To learn more about us go to www.ashgrove.com.

About CRH Ventures
CRH Ventures is the venture capital unit of CRH, a leading provider of building materials solutions. With access to CRH’s Venturing and Innovation Fund, CRH Ventures partners with and invests ambitiously and strategically in ConTech and ClimateTech start-ups across the entire construction value chain. For more information visit www.crhventures.com.

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SOURCE Carbon Upcycling Technologies Inc.

MORTON GROVE, Ill., July 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Lifeway Foods, Inc. (NASDAQ: LWAY), a leading U.S. supplier of kefir and fermented probiotic products, today announced that Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. (ISS), a leading independent proxy advisory firm, has recommended that shareholders “DO NOT VOTE” in connection with the ongoing dissident-led consent solicitation.

In its report, ISS concluded that “the dissident has not presented a compelling case for change” and advised shareholders to “DO NOT VOTE” on all proposals put forth by Ludmila and Edward Smolyansky and their aligned group.

“We appreciate ISS’s thorough review and are pleased that their recommendation supports our belief that this consent solicitation is unwarranted, disruptive and not in the best interest of Lifeway shareholders,” said Julie Smolyansky, CEO and Chair of Lifeway Foods.

The ISS analysis noted that:

• Lifeway’s “financial performance has been directionally positive” and its “share price [has] rallied over the preceding year on multiple positive earnings announcements,” with total shareholder return significantly outperforming peers in the Russell 3000 Food Producers Index.
• The dissident group’s critiques “are generally presented without adequate context,” and the dissident group “does not clearly establish how various developments have actually impacted shareholder returns.”
• The dissident group “has not presented a plan should it successfully secure a majority of board seats” for governance or operational improvement.
• The dissident nominees include individuals who previously contributed to governance concerns during their past tenures at the Company.
• “The Lifeway Board and management team remain focused on maximizing shareholder value and will continue to pursue all opportunities to drive additional value,” added Smolyansky. “We encourage shareholders to follow ISS’s guidance and take no action on the consent solicitation.”

About Lifeway Foods, Inc.

Lifeway Foods, Inc., which has been recognized as one of Forbes’ Best Small Companies, is America’s leading supplier of the probiotic, fermented beverage known as Kefir. In addition to its line of drinkable Kefir, the company also produces a variety of cheeses and a ProBugs line for kids. Lifeway’s tart and tangy fermented dairy products are now sold across the United States, Mexico, Ireland, South Africa, United Arab Emirates and France. Learn how Lifeway is good for more than just you at lifewayfoods.com.

Important Additional Information

The Company intends to file a proxy statement on Schedule 14A, an accompanying BLUE proxy card and other relevant documents with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) in connection with the solicitation of proxies from the Company’s shareholders for the Company’s 2025 annual meeting of shareholders. THE COMPANY’S SHAREHOLDERS ARE STRONGLY ENCOURAGED TO READ THE COMPANY’S DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT (INCLUDING ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS THERETO), THE ACCOMPANYING BLUE PROXY CARD AND ALL OTHER DOCUMENTS FILED WITH THE SEC CAREFULLY AND IN THEIR ENTIRETY WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BECAUSE THEY WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and shareholders may obtain a copy of the definitive proxy statement, an accompanying BLUE proxy card, any amendments or supplements to the definitive proxy statement and other documents filed by the Company with the SEC at no charge at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Copies will also be available at no charge by visiting the “Investor Relations” tab of the Company’s website at http://lifewaykefir.com/investor-relations/. The Company may file a consent revocation statement, in which case all references to a proxy statement, proxies, proxy cards and solicitation of proxies referenced in this “Important Additional Information” section and the “Participants in the Solicitation” section below shall be deemed to refer to such consent revocation statement, consent revocations, revocation cards and solicitation of consent revocations.

Participants in the Solicitation

The Company, each of its independent directors (Juan Carlos Dalto, Jody Levy, Dorri McWhorter, Perfecto Sanchez, Jason Scher and Pol Sikar) and certain of its executive officers (Julie Smolyansky, Chief Executive Officer, President and Secretary, and Eric Hanson, Chief Financial and Accounting Officer and Treasurer) are deemed to be “participants” (as defined in Schedule 14A under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) in the solicitation of proxies from the Company’s shareholders in connection with matters to be considered at the Company’s 2025 annual meeting of shareholders. Information about the names of the Company’s directors and officers, their respective interests in the Company by security holdings or otherwise and their respective compensation is set forth in the “Information About Our Directors and Executive Officers” section in Part III, Item 10 – Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance of Amendment No. 1 to the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on April 29, 2025 (the “Form 10-K Amendment”), in Part III, Item 11 – Executive Compensation of the Form 10-K Amendment and in the “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” section in Part III, Item 12 – Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters of the Form 10-K Amendment. Supplemental information regarding the participants’ holdings of the Company’s securities can be found in SEC filings on Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 filed with the SEC on June 18, 2025 for Julie Smolyansky (available here) and Eric Hanson (available here) and on July 1, 2025 for each of Pol Sikar (available here), Juan Carlos Dalto (available here), Jason Scott Scher (available here), Dorri McWhorter (available here), Perfecto Sanchez (available here), and Jody Levy (available here).

Contact:

Perceptual Advisors
Dan Tarman
Email: dtarman@perceptualadvisors.com

Derek Miller 
Vice President of Communications, Lifeway Foods
Email: derekm@lifeway.net 

General inquiries:
Lifeway Foods, Inc.
Phone: 847-967-1010
Email: info@lifeway.net

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SOURCE Lifeway Foods, Inc.

In 2024, Select treated or recycled 20.0 billion gallons of water, a 9% increase from 2023 while also increasing our environmentally-responsible disposal volumes by 41% from 2023, reflecting our continued progress in expanding our Water Infrastructure segment

Select meaningfully exceeded the annual water recycling and employee safety targets embedded in the Company’s sustainability-linked credit facility for 2024 by 324% and 49%, respectively

Select’s focus on reducing greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions resulted in a 8% year-over-year reduction in combined Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions during 2024

GAINESVILLE, Texas, July 29, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Select Water Solutions (NYSE: WTTR), a leading provider of sustainable water management and chemical solutions, proudly announces the publication of its 2024 Sustainability Report. This report underscores Select’s unwavering commitment to environmental stewardship, operational excellence, and innovative practices that drive sustainable growth in the energy sector.

John Schmitz, Chairman of the Board, President and CEO, stated, “At Select, sustainability is at the core of what we do, and 2024 marked a year of strong growth and milestones for our business. We significantly expanded our recycling operations and infrastructure asset portfolio in 2024 and signed multiple long-term contracts for the development of additional facilities over the course of 2025 and 2026. Additionally, we continued to make strong progress on our beneficial reuse solutions throughout the year, completing several pilot projects and commencing larger scale reuse pilots to further our efforts to commercially repurpose produced water and reduce the energy industry’s environmental footprint.

“As we reflect on Select’s 2024 achievements, and how these relate to sustainability and environmental performance, we are very encouraged by the progress we continue to make and we are on pace to further advance our stated goals and sustainability endeavors during 2025. We meaningfully exceeded the produced water recycling and safety performance targets associated with our prior sustainability-linked credit facility in 2024, thereby continuing to benefit from an improved cost of capital with our strategic financing partners. Importantly, we have reset the bar for these targets much higher in our new sustainability-linked credit facility, which closed in January 2025, as we continue to prioritize sustainability and safety in our everyday operations. We remain committed to setting the benchmark in sustainable water management solutions, optimizing operations to exceed environmental standards and reinforce our industry leadership. We would like to express great gratitude to our talented and dedicated employees for their relentless commitment to safe and sustainable operations, and to our shareholders and other community stakeholders for their ongoing support,” concluded Mr. Schmitz.

Select’s 2024 Sustainability Report outlines the policies, processes, procedures, and performance by which Select Water Solutions sets and advances its environmental, social, and governance objectives. The report highlights the Company’s dedication to environmental stewardship and its efforts to foster sustainable development within the communities where it operates.

Highlights of Select’s 2024 sustainability report include:

• Select reduced total scope 1 & 2 emissions by 8% from last year’s performance, supported by continued investment in pipeline infrastructure, fleet replacements, Tier-4 upgrades, and other efforts to further reduce emissions.
• Select treated or recycled 477 million barrels (20 billion gallons) of produced water across its operations during 2024, a 9% year-over-year increase.
• Select increased recycled water volumes as a percentage of total water volumes sold by 20% during 2024, thereby reducing the consumption of freshwater resources.
• Select increased environmentally-responsible wastewater disposal volumes by 41% in 2024.
• Select meaningfully surpassed the annual threshold and target levels for both TRIR (49% outperformance) and recycled produced water via fixed facilities (324% outperformance) as outlined in Select’s prior sustainability-linked credit facility.
• Select achieved a lost time incident rate and total recordable incident rate (“TRIR”) of 0.25 and 0.54 respectively.
• In conjunction with its new sustainability-linked credit facility, Select reevaluated and increased its sustainability-linked goals to display further dedication to environmental stewardship.
  • Established a 14% target increase in our recycled produced water volumes at our fixed facilities during 2025, further increasing by 17.5% annually until reaching a 403 million barrel per year target in 2029.
  • Additionally, our TRIR target reduces by approximately 1.5% each year, requiring Select to outperform the industry average TRIR by 35% by 2029.
• Select reduced spill incidents across the board, decreasing chemical spill incidents by 60% and water spills by 18% since 2023.
• Deployed more than 200 miles of the Company’s proprietary TideLine™ lay-flat water transfer hose in order to enhance fluid transfer efficiency, reduce environmental impacts, and decrease operational risks, particularly when transporting produced or treated produced water.
• Efforts to reduce GHG emissions resulted in a 33 thousand metric ton reduction in Scope 1 emissions, while limiting the increase in Scope 2 emissions to 9 thousand metric tons. This increase in Scope 2 emissions is attributed to the Company’s ongoing growth and efforts to electrify operations associated with its additional water infrastructure buildout.

The 2024 Sustainability Report reviews the application of Select’s business principles and supporting policies across its operations. It includes comprehensive discussions with internal and external stakeholders, supplemented by consultations with third-party experts. This report follows the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB), Sustainable Industry Classification System (SICS) for the Oil & Gas Services, Water Utilities, and Chemicals industries, and the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) standards. Select is committed to regularly reporting on our ESG policies, procedures, and performance through our website and annual Sustainability Report. Readers are encouraged to view the complete Sustainability Report at https://www.selectwater.com/sustainability/.

About Select Water Solutions, Inc.

Select is a leading provider of sustainable water and chemical solutions to the energy industry. These solutions are supported by the Company’s critical water infrastructure assets, chemical manufacturing and water treatment and recycling capabilities. As a leader in sustainable water and chemical solutions, Select places the utmost importance on safe, environmentally responsible management of water throughout the lifecycle of a well. Additionally, Select believes that responsibly managing water resources throughout its operations to help conserve and protect the environment is paramount to the Company’s continued success.  For more information, please visit Select’s website, https://www.selectwater.com.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

All statements in this communication other than statements of historical facts are forward-looking statements which contain our current expectations about our future results. We have attempted to identify any forward-looking statements by using words such as “could,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “intend,” “project,” “will,” “estimates,” “preliminary,” “forecast” and other similar expressions. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, the expectations of plans, business strategies, objectives and growth, projected financial results and future financial and operational performance, expected capital expenditures, our share repurchase program and future dividends. Although we believe that the expectations reflected, and the assumptions or bases underlying our forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results, events or financial positions to differ materially from those included within or implied by such forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include the risks that the benefits contemplated from our recent acquisitions may not be realized, the ability of Select to successfully integrate the acquired businesses’ operations, including employees, and realize anticipated synergies and cost savings and the potential impact of the consummation of the acquisitions on relationships, including with employees, suppliers, customers, competitors and creditors. Factors that could materially impact such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to: the global macroeconomic uncertainty related to the Russia–Ukraine war and related economic sanctions; the conflict in the Israel–Gaza region and related hostilities in the Middle East, including heightened tensions with Iran; the ability to source certain raw materials and other critical components or manufactured products globally on a timely basis from economically advantaged sources, including any delays and/or supply chain disruptions due to increased hostilities in the Middle East; actions by the members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (“OPEC”) and Russia (together with OPEC and other allied producing countries, “OPEC+”) with respect to oil production levels and announcements of potential changes in such levels, including the ability of the OPEC+ countries to agree on and comply with supply limitations, which may be exacerbated by the recent Middle East conflicts; the severity and duration of world health events, and any resulting impact on commodity prices and supply and demand considerations; the impact of central bank policy actions, such as sustained, elevated  interest rates in response to, among other things, high rates of inflation, and disruptions in the bank and capital markets; the degree to which consolidation among our customers may affect spending on U.S. drilling and completions activity; changing U.S. and foreign trade policies, including increased trade restrictions or tariffs, the impact of changes in diplomatic and trade relations, and the results of countermeasures and any tariff mitigation initiatives; the level of capital spending and access to capital markets by oil and gas companies, trends and volatility in oil and gas prices, and our ability to manage through such volatility; the impact of current and future laws, rulings and governmental regulations, including those related to hydraulic fracturing, accessing water, disposing of wastewater, transferring produced water, interstate freshwater transfer, chemicals, carbon pricing, pipeline construction, taxation or emissions, leasing, permitting or drilling on federal lands and various other environmental matters; the impact of regulatory and related policy actions by federal, state and/or local governments, such as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022,  that may negatively impact the future production of oil and gas in the U.S., thereby reducing demand for our services; the impact of advances or changes in well-completion technologies or practices that result in reduced demand for our services, either on a volumetric or time basis; changes in global political or economic conditions, generally, and in the markets we serve, including the rate of inflation and potential economic recession; and other factors discussed or referenced in the “Risk Factors” section of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and those set forth from time to time in our other filings with the SEC. Investors should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement is made, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, changed circumstances or otherwise, unless required by law.

 

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SOURCE Select Water Solutions, Inc.