Energy in Demand News, September 20-21, 2026

Multilateral development banks are under pressure from the United States to scrap climate finance targets. “The UN agreement to provide $1.3tn in climate finance is under threat, as multilateral lenders are expected to follow the World Bank in dumping green targets after intense US pressure,” the Financial Times reports. “At least two multilateral development banks, … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, September 20-21, 2026 →

Data centre heat is too valuable to waste

Dorota Derlicka and Tomasz Chabrzyk write on the Bird & Bird website that data-centre waste heat is shifting from being an interesting sustainability opportunity to something developers may actually have to plan for and justify under EU law. Poland provides a particularly useful example of what that change could mean in practice. Waste heat … Continue reading Data centre heat is too valuable to waste →

Europe’s climate insurance gap is becoming impossible to ignore

Kate Abnett writes on the Reuters website that Europe is beginning to confront the financial consequences of climate change, not simply the physical ones. With only about a quarter of climate-related economic losses insured, governments increasingly risk becoming the insurer of last resort. EU to launch climate insurance scheme after summer of extreme weather … Continue reading Europe’s climate insurance gap is becoming impossible to ignore →

Trump clears the way for a new US coal boom

Mahima Kapoor writes on the Deutsche Welle website about how the EPA has repealed most of the 2024 power-plant carbon standards and is proposing to eliminate the remaining greenhouse-gas standards for the sector. The Environmental Protection Agency said it was repealing Biden-era limits on emissions made by power plants, in the "largest power sector deregulation … Continue reading Trump clears the way for a new US coal boom →

Who pays the climate cost of Heathrow expansion?

In an article on the BBC News website, Matt McGrath discusses Heathrow airport expansion and the credibility of the UK’s net-zero commitment. The Climate Change Committee is not saying Heathrow expansion is impossible; it is saying the economics must include the full cost of dealing with aviation’s emissions—and that some of the technology being relied … Continue reading Who pays the climate cost of Heathrow expansion? →

COP31: The EU says climate promises are no longer enough

Marta Pacheco writes on the Euronews website that the draft EU position for COP31 says that current implementation is insufficient and calls for concrete progress on renewables, energy efficiency, electrification and moving away from fossil fuels. EU heads to COP31 with a blunt message: climate pledges are no longer enough EU ambassadors want COP31 … Continue reading COP31: The EU says climate promises are no longer enough →

Energy in Demand News, September 13-14, 2026

For once there was some truly encouraging news this week. Matthew Pearce writes in the Guardian about a new study that shows that a global shift towards clean electricity could trigger a ‘cascade’ of progress, helping reduce air pollution, cut waste and revive oceans. “The analysis focuses on “positive tipping points” – thresholds beyond which … Continue reading Energy in Demand News, September 13-14, 2026 →

First gas, now coal: Australia’s battery revolution accelerates

David Leitch writes on the Renew Economy website about how Australia’s battery build-out is moving from merely reducing gas generation and peak prices to directly undermining the economics of coal. The “second wave” of batteries is the real story. Second wave of big batteries will eat the dinner of fossil fuels, forcing some coal … Continue reading First gas, now coal: Australia’s battery revolution accelerates →

Canada’s climate has already changed — is the country ready?

This is a question that all countries should be asking. Nick Murray writes on the National Newswatch website that Canada is no longer talking only about preventing future climate change; it is confronting changes that are already locked in and for which the country is inadequately prepared. The science says substantial further warming and impacts … Continue reading Canada’s climate has already changed — is the country ready? →

Are climate plans betting too much on carbon capture?

Josh Axelrod writes on the Deutsche Welle website about the enormous role climate scenarios assign to carbon capture and the very small scale at which it actually operates today. It is not arguing that CCS is useless, but that expectations may be running far ahead of what has been demonstrated commercially. Europe just opened a … Continue reading Are climate plans betting too much on carbon capture? →