Energy in Demand News, December 7-8, 2025

A World Meteorological Organization study finds that the Arab region is warming at twice the global average, reports the Financial Times. “The study found extreme events last year affected 3.8mn people and led to more than 300 deaths, mainly from heatwaves and floods. . . . The region covering 22 countries — stretching from the Arabian peninsula and the Levant to north Africa and Somalia in the south — experienced an average near-surface temperature rise of 1.08C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.94C above the 1961-1990 baseline.” The FT notes: “The research comes weeks after fierce resistance by the Arab group of 22 countries led by Saudi Arabia to climate action, including plans to wean economies off fossil fuels, at the UN COP30 climate summit.” So, should we expect these petrostates to change their position on climate change at COP31?

The Financial Times also reported this week that Donald Trump proposes slashing fuel effciency goals for cars. Ford chief executive Jim Farley described the measures as “a win for customers and common sense.” The proposals “were also welcomed by the American Petroleum Institute, whose president Mike Sommers commended Trump “for restoring commonsense fuel-economy standards that recognise the realities of today’s marketplace and the need to preserve affordable choices for families and businesses”. But Katherine Garcia of the Sierra Club, an environmental group, said gutting the standards “will make cars burn more gas and American families burn more cash.” There is no mention of the global impact, but we can guess.

We don’t hear a lot about district heating in France but Le Monde reports that Paris has just awarded Dalkia, in partnership with Eiffage and RATP, the contract to manage one of the most extensive DH systems in Europe. The contract is for €15 billion over 25 years and covers more than 500 kilometers of underground pipes heating for about a quarter of the capital’s buildings – including condominiums, businesses, hospitals, and monuments – and supplying networks in 16 neighbouring cities in the Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne departments.

Mark your calendar. The eceee bi-annual summer study will be held next June 1-6, in Center Parcs Lac d’Ailette, in Haute-de-France, about an hour north-east of Paris. Just like in 2024, the 2026 Summer Study will continue to cover the broad range of topics from energy consumption and behaviour, over policy & evaluation, to local energy planning, transportation, buildings, appliance and product policy, and industry. The abstract submission deadline is December 17th. eceee will accept both peer-reviewed papers and extended abstracts. Details are available here.

There are two upcoming industrial energy efficiency events not to miss:

• The next eceee Zero Carbon Industry 3–5 February 2026 in Rome offers three days of discussions on industrial decarbonisation, competitiveness and industrial renewal. Information is available here.
• The Industrial Energy Transition Conference, part of World Sustainable Energy Days (WSED) in Wels, Austria on February 26, 2026, presents up-to-date information on policies and funding programmes, especially on the Clean Industrial Deal, the European roadmap for competitiveness and decarbonisation.

In planning travel over the upcoming weeks, here are some useful ideas to help you along:

• Country Living Magazine provides 3 European train routes set to transform travel in 2025.
• Check out the Good Night Train website for the unique way to travel through Europe while you sleep.
• World Walks provides us with walking holidays in Europe.
• For those who want to combine hiking with food and wine in Europe and Australia, check out the Hedonistic Hiking website.
• Cycling for Softies provides us with the 15 Best Cycling Holidays in Europe 2025.

Alexei Maximovich Peshkov (1868-1936), popularly known as Maxim Gorky, was a Russian and Soviet writer and proponent of socialism who was nominated five times for the Nobel Prize in Literature, makes us reflect on happiness: “Happiness always looks small while you hold it in your hands, but let it go, and you learn at once how big and precious it is.”

EiD welcomes your views about this week’s selection of posts on the zero-carbon energy transition:

• President Donald Trump’s Department of Energy has stripped the words “renewable energy” from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
• New EEA briefing on air quality health impact in the EU
• New report from one woman’s mission to make the world more bike-friendly
• Climate change endangers public health: the evidence, the risks, and the policy failure
• Blog by Jane Marsh – Keeping it cool: Europe’s next-gen green data centers
• New report from Siemens: From Pilots to Performance – Scaling Sustainability Impact with AI
• A sea of potential, a mountain of obstacles: the real future of offshore renewables
• Reframing climate change as security policy: The water–fire challenge for Canada”
• Saving Germany’s Riesling: solar solutions for a changing climate
• New UN ECE publication on energy efficiency

Please send your comments on any of the posts. Please recommend EiD to your friends and colleagues.

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