Major UK retailers like Currys, B&Q, Amazon, and Lidl met with the energy minister to discuss selling "balcony solar panels." These plug-in devices aim to help renters and flat dwellers generate their own electricity, cut bills, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
Enel Green Power Director Salvatore Bernabei stated that Italy's path to energy independence lies in accelerating renewable energy and storage systems. He highlighted the availability of 150 GW of renewable projects ready to start, contingent on faster authorization processes and strong local partnerships.
Italy faces significant energy costs due to high import dependence and slow renewable adoption. A study estimates a €17 billion annual loss, with authorization delays and infrastructure needs being key obstacles.
A study by Teha Group suggests Italy could save €17 billion annually on energy costs and create over 60,000 jobs by removing bottlenecks hindering renewable energy development. The report highlights Italy's high energy import dependency and the need to accelerate renewable capacity to meet national targets.
Global energy consumption, including fossil fuels and renewables, is increasing, challenging the notion of a rapid energy transition. Experts at Baku Energy Week discussed expanding renewable capacity while maintaining hydrocarbon use for energy security and export revenues.
Australia sees a 10% drop in electricity prices due to record renewables and battery use, transforming households into market producers. This shift offers lessons for other nations on energy market reform.
Baku Energy Week 2026 opened with Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev emphasizing the continued need for fossil fuels while advocating for parallel investment in renewables. Discussions focused on AI, gas geopolitics, and emissions reduction, highlighting the oil and gas sector's modernization efforts.
Outback Queensland councils are seeking guidance from Texas, a US state leading in wind energy, to develop their own renewable energy sector. Energy lawyers from Texas are visiting Queensland to share lessons on landholder negotiations and waste disposal from their state's wind boom.
Italy's GDP saw a significant boost from renewables and services, leading the EU. However, concerns about political corruption and its potential impact on economic stability remain.
The UK and Europe experience record-breaking May heatwaves, prompting concerns over the UK's preparedness for extreme heat, with potential solutions discussed.
Leaked documents reveal BHP has delayed decarbonization efforts despite public commitments, benefiting from $622m in diesel tax credits while paying only $9m under Australia's safeguard mechanism.
Leaked documents reveal mining giant BHP has scaled back climate action, delaying emission reduction projects and renewables. Minister Chris Bowen insists polluters like BHP must cut onsite emissions, while MP Kate Chaney calls for reforms to the diesel tax credit scheme.
Energy bills in parts of Australia will decrease by up to 10% for households and 20% for small businesses from July, driven by record renewable energy and battery storage. Despite this, investment in new wind and solar projects has declined.
Energy bills in South Australia, New South Wales, and southeast Queensland will decrease by up to 10.7% for households and 20.9% for small businesses from July. This follows a record increase in renewables and battery storage in the national grid.
US electricity demand grew only 1.5% in Q1 2026, with renewables like solar and wind surging 11% to offset demand and push fossil fuels down. Hydro generation spiked 22% due to early snowmelt, but may decline later. Coal use dropped over 10%.
Snowy Hydro executives received over $1 million in bonuses last year despite the Snowy 2.0 project's escalating costs. CEO Dennis Barnes earned $323,000 in bonus pay on top of his $1.69 million salary.
UK inflation dropped to 2.8% in April, down from 3.3% in March, driven by a lower household energy price cap. While welcome, the slowdown may be temporary as fuel costs rise due to the Middle East conflict.
Military alliance sees clean power as a logical replacement for fossil fuels.
Soaring crude oil prices, averaging $105.4 a barrel, are straining oil companies' finances as they sell fuel below cost. Despite government excise duty cuts, losses are unsustainable. Experts suggest gradual price hikes and innovative strategies to manage the transition to renewables while supporting companies' investments and the macroeconomy.
Soaring crude oil prices, averaging $105.4 a barrel, are straining oil companies' finances as they sell fuel below cost. Despite government excise duty cuts, losses are unsustainable. Experts suggest gradual price hikes and innovative strategies to manage the transition to renewables while supporting companies' investments and the macroeconomy.
There will still be a need to have gas in the wings to keep the lights on, so the financials stack up on Severn plant purchaseThe eye-catching non-Hormuz news in energy-land last month was that Great Britain is set for a record-breaking summer for wind and solar power generation. The national energy system operator even thought there could be periods – a sunny weekend or a bank holiday afternoon of low demand, for example – when more renewable power would be available than the electricity grid needed.So, on the face of it, it is an odd moment for Centrica, owner of British Gas, to fork out £370m to buy a 16-year-old combined-cycle gas turbine plant in south Wales. After all, the government’s clean power plan imagines that, come 2030, Great Britain’s entire fleet of gas plants will be used to generate only 5% of its electricity, down from 31.5% in 2025. Continue reading...
Decades of complacency cannot be magicked away by drilling in the North Sea – or even by hoping that renewables will quickly power everythingEwan Gibbs is a historian of energy at the University of GlasgowFirst it was Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, now it is the blockade of the world’s petroleum artery in the Gulf. For the second time in four years, Britain is facing an energy crisis that has been made much worse because of the absence of preparation by its political leaders.The fact is that our energy politics were conceived for a world where convulsive, global events were a thing of the past. The notion that it would be difficult to access supplies of oil or liquefied natural gas from the international markets did not figure in the understanding of the politicians and officials who shaped our perilous current moment. But even today, the advocates of energy sovereignty on the left and right appear to lack knowledge, understanding or power over this very foundational matter.Ewan Gibbs is a historian of energy, industry, work and protest at the University of Glasgow. He is the author of Coal Country: The Meaning and Memory of Deindustrialization in Postwar Scotland Continue reading...
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial newsClimate campaigners attack Shell over ‘windfall’ profits from Iran warDanny Gross, climate campaigner at Friends of the Earth, says Shell’s profits are ‘indefensible’, after the company doubled its quarterly earnings to $6.9bn this morning.Gross says:“Once again, fossil fuel giants are pocketing monstrous profits while drivers are being squeezed at the petrol pump and households are set to pay higher energy bills.“Our fossil fuel-reliant energy system siphons money away from ordinary people to the rich and powerful.“In the twenty-first century we have cheaper, cleaner alternatives that we can use to power Britain without anybody being bombed. We don’t need to let the fossil fuel industry hold us to ransom and pass on the costs of endless wars and limitless pollution.The cost of living crisis, the climate crisis, the middle-east crisis, these are all oil industry operating costs. We need to stop subsidising them, introduce new taxes to make them pay and start taxing their obscene profits properly.”Adjusted Earnings, compared with the fourth quarter 2025, reflected higher contributions from trading and optimisation mainly impacting our Downstream, Renewables and Energy Solutions businesses, higher realised prices, higher refining margins, lower operating expenses and higher Lubricants margins, partly offset by lower volumes.“While people around the world struggle with soaring energy costs, Shell is raking in billions in added profit. The same crisis that is driving these windfalls is pushing millions closer to hunger and hardship.“Governments must act now to tax these excess profits and use the money to protect vulnerable households and expand affordable, homegrown renewable energy. Continue reading...
TSMC backs renewables during record demand for energy-hungry chip manufacturing.
