Serve Robotics’ fleet of autonomous robots makes short-distance deliveries for a $2.99 fee. ALEXANDRIA, Va.—7-Eleven is testing self-driving robots to deliver orders in Los Angeles through a partnership with Serve Robotics, reports Business Insider. The tests have been happening for weeks, according to Serve. 7-Eleven’s venture arm, 7-Ventures, was one of several investors in Serve Robotics’ $13 million seed funding round. Serve said it plans to expand its robot fleet nationally this year through partnerships with brands like 7-Eleven. “Our vision at 7-Eleven is to be the first choice for convenience—anytime, anywhere. We are redefining convenience by delivering innovative shopping solutions to our customers,” said Raghu Mahadevan, 7-Eleven senior vice president and chief digital officer, in a press release announcing the seed funding. “This collaboration will allow us to continue our 94-year legacy of innovation and expand our last mile delivery capabilities to make 7NOW more affordable, sustainable and accessible…

The solar arm of global oil giant BP is cementing its position as one of the biggest utility-scale PV project developers in Australia, as it moves ahead on plans to build a 550MW solar farm with a 260MW/520MWh big battery in the Upper Hunter region of New South Wales. The Goulburn River solar farm is proposed for construction by Lightsource bp on private farmland south of the town of Merriwa, and will be designed to accommodate ongoing sheep grazing among the panels. Lightsource – BP’s joint venture with UK solar company Lightsource – expects to lodge formal planning applications for the project later this year after completing preliminary assessments, site design and community consultation. The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) referral for the project was opened to public comment earlier this month. According to project documents, the solar farm would comprise around 950,000 bifacial solar modules in an east-west…

Viva Energy is a step closer to creating the nation’s largest fuel and convenience store network after it announced on Friday that two of Australia’s key regulators had given the green light to its acquisition of Coles Express. The $300m deal, announced in September last year, will create a group with 710 sites nationally, with Viva to phase out the Coles Express branding over the next three and a half years. Viva told the ASX on Friday that both the Foreign Investment Review Board and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission had signed off on the deal. The new sites being acquired turned over more than $1.1bn in convenience store sales in FY21, and Viva said at the time the deal was announced that it was expected to add between 11 and 18 per cent to earnings per share, or $45-$70m in EBITDA. Transaction and integration costs were expected to…

They were lifesavers during lockdown – but these Aussie start-ups are now dying off one by one, leaving workers high and dry. As Australia suffered through seemingly endless Covid lockdowns, grocery delivery start-ups suddenly exploded. It’s no surprise these companies were such a hit, with Aussies avoiding physical stores like never before.But these days, it’s a very different story and those delivery darlings are fast becoming a dying breed. In March 2022, news broke that Quicko, which promised deliveries within two hours, had gone under.Just two months later, Send — which promised to deliver groceries in under 15 minutes — had collapsed, putting 300 jobs across Sydney and Melbourne at risk. Send was one of the first victims. Picture: Supplied In July, Delivr — a Victorian food delivery company that styled itself as a rival to UberEats and Deliveroo — also folded, with 200 jobs lost. Then, in November, fellow…

Ampol has launched its ‘Glampol’ campaign to help raise awareness of LGBTQIA+ inclusion and drive donations for it’s Foundation Charity Minus18. The campaign will take place throughout February with Ampol Coogee and North Bondi getting a rainbow makeover and playing host to key Glampol activities, including a ‘Drag Baes Window Wash’ in which Ampol employees will be joined by drag queens to wash customers’ windows. Matt Halliday, Managing Director and CEO of Ampol, said Ampol is dedicated to inclusion across their workforce, operations, and broader community as part of its established diversity strategy. “I would like thank members of our Rainbow Alliance employee networking group for their ongoing support of our work in this space, including supporting our brand and retail teams to bring this campaign to life. “We encourage all of our loyal customers to get involved and experience the fun at our Glampol activations and to help us…