Are renewables prepared for the COP30 discussion on fossil fuels?
At the climate summit, it may be premature to declare the end to the fossil fuel age. But up to 80 nations are calling for a concrete plan that will move us away from polluting energy. The 195 countries at the COP30, including the oil producers, will have to agree on a plan to reduce oil and gas consumption. There are also practical challenges to overcome, as the demand for electricity is expected to rise due to the increase in artificial intelligence, and the population growth. The world has not reached the target of triple clean energy in 2030 set by the COP28 conference held two years ago in Dubai…
Shell UK sells its 50% stake in Tobermory Gas to UK-based Ithaca Energy
Ithaca Energy, a North Sea oil-and-gas producer, announced on Wednesday that it had agreed to purchase a 50% stake from Shell UK in the Tobermory Gas discovery located in the West of Shetland Basin off Scotland. Shell's Tobermory interest will be part of Adura. This joint venture between Equinor and Shell is expected to launch later this year. This partnership will be announced in December 2024 and combine Shell and Equinor’s UK offshore oil and natural gas assets. Shell spokesperson stated that the announcement made with Ithaca on Wednesday supports Shell's West of Shetland Gas Growth Strategy.
South Korea joins Stargate AI Data Centre Project in UAE
Seoul announced on Tuesday that South Korea had agreed to collaborate with the United Arab Emirates to build an artificial intelligence data campus, a project backed by the United States. South Korea announced that it would help build the computing power and energy infrastructure of the largest AI data centre outside the United States after South Korean president Lee Jae Myung met with UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. South Korea, the home of chipmakers Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and SK Hynix aims to be…
Sierra Club takes on fossil fuels in the US electricity grid
The Sierra Club announced on Tuesday that it is challenging the decision of a U.S. Federal Energy regulator to expedite connecting fossil fuel power stations to major electrical grids, at the expense renewable energy. The environmental group submitted a petition to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals will review the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)'s decision to allow the Southwest Power Pool to accelerate the interconnection of mostly coal fuel generation. SPP is a 14-state region that stretches from North Dakota all the way to Louisiana.
PowerChina focuses on renewables for growth in Africa
A company executive revealed that China's Power Construction Corp. (PowerChina), a state-owned corporation, is targeting significant growth in Africa by focusing on renewable projects as part its overseas expansion strategy. Chinese lending to African countries has dropped sharply since a peak in 2016 of around $28 billion per year, as Beijing becomes more cautious about the debt risk. However, state-backed companies like PowerChina continue to push forward with new projects. PowerChina executive Chen Guanfu stated that Africa was its second home at a Bloomberg event held on Tuesday.
Freeport will restore large-scale production at Indonesia's Grasberg Mine in 2026
Freeport-McMoRan, a copper miner in Indonesia's Grasberg district, said Tuesday that it will resume large-scale production there from the second quarter 2026. This follows a fatal accident earlier this year which forced operations to be halted. On September 8, around 800,000 metric tonnes of wet materials flooded the Grasberg Block Cave at the complex. Seven workers died. The company estimates that PT Freeport Indonesia will produce roughly the same amount of copper and gold in 2026 as it did in 2025, which is about 1.0 billion ounces of copper and 0.9 millions ounces gold. Freeport's shares rose 3.6% on the premarket.
Bousso: TotalEnergies' ROI-TotalEnergies power play shows Big Oil how to make energy transition work
TotalEnergies of France is betting heavily on renewables and power, positioning itself as a leader in the global energy demand wave. It also offers investors an alternative to its rivals who are doubling down on gas and oil. Since 2022, the strategies of European oil companies have been in a constant state of flux. The sanctions and full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine created a shock to the energy system that shifted the focus from long-term energy transformation to near-term security. Shell and BP shifted their focus from investing billions in renewables to focusing on legacy operations and aligning themselves with Exxon Mobil…
Prices fall quickly on French nuclear and wind supply
The European spot power price fell on Tuesday. However, the German day-ahead rate remained at an enormous premium to France. LSEG analyst Xiulan he said that a pronounced increase is expected in French wind energy generation in a short-term forecast. He added that the German outlook would be mildly positive due to higher consumption, and lower solar output. LSEG data shows that French baseload day-ahead was down 9.2% to 83.50 Euros ($96.79 per megawatt hour) at 0855 GMT. The German equivalent price dropped 1.5% to 102 Euros.
Bousso: TotalEnergies' ROI-TotalEnergies power play shows Big Oil how to make energy transition work
TotalEnergies of France is betting heavily on renewables and power, positioning itself as a leader in the global energy demand wave. It also offers investors an alternative to its rivals who are doubling down on gas and oil. Since 2022, the strategies of European oil companies have been in a constant state of flux. The sanctions and full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine created an energy shock which prompted governments to focus on the near-term security rather than the long-term transition. Shell and BP refocused on their legacy businesses, instead of investing billions in renewables. They aligned with Exxon Mobil and Chevron.
Enkraft, an activist fund, urges ABO Energy in a letter to develop a fair M&A procedure.
Enkraft, an activist fund, has written to ABO Energy in Germany to ask them to make sure that all shareholders benefit from the sales process initiated by renewable energy firm. They were concerned that smaller investors would lose out if there was a change of management. ABO Energy announced in late September that it had asked Metzler, a private bank, to provide advice on a potential deal where the founders of ABO Energy -- whose families collectively hold 52% -- could cede control to a third party investor. The German…
Enkraft, an activist fund, urges ABO Energy in a letter to develop a fair M&A procedure.
Enkraft, an activist fund, has written to ABO Energy in Germany to ask them to make sure that all shareholders benefit from the sales process initiated by renewable energy firm. They were concerned that smaller investors would lose out if there was a change of management. ABO Energy announced in late September that it had asked Metzler, a private bank, to provide advice on a potential deal where the founders of ABO Energy -- whose families collectively hold 52% -- could cede control to a third party investor. The German takeover law states that if a suitor crosses the threshold of 30% ownership, they must submit a full bid.
Kuwait's latest tender invites bids on a new 0.5-GW Solar Project
Kuwait invited pre-qualified consortiums to submit bids for a new solar power project of 0.5 gigawatts, which aims to expand clean energy generation in the Gulf State. Kuwait Authority for Partnership Projects announced in its official gazette on Sunday that the second tender of the year will cover the Al Dibdibah Power & Al Shagaya Renewable Energy Phase III - a Zone 2 Solar Power PV Independent Power Project. KAPP said that the company will provide power to the Ministry of Electricity through a 30-year agreement for purchase of electricity.
China finds bigger role as US sidesteps Brazil climate summit
China has stepped into the spotlight as a leader of the global warming fight, with the United States missing the U.N.'s annual climate summit in New York for the first three decades. The country's pavilion dominates the entrance of the sprawling COP30 grounds in Brazil’s Amazonian city of Belem. Executives from its largest clean energy companies present their visions of a greener future in English to large audiences, while its diplomats work behind the scenes to facilitate constructive discussions. Washington used to play these roles. Now, they are played by Beijing.
COP30: Brazil seeks biofuel boom, but critics query climate impact
Timothy Searchinger is a senior research scholar from Princeton University. He said that when land produces fuel instead of food someone else will have to clear more land or eat less. Biofuels are counted at zero, so countries believe that they have cut emissions. He said that in reality, the pressure is shifted onto food and land systems. India has already shown signs of this pressure. It has increased the percentage ethanol in petrol, and saved $12 billion on oil imports over the last decade. It has also led to the destruction of engines and arable land.
Adani Group invests $7.17 billion in power projects in India’s Assam State
Adani Group, an Indian company, announced on Friday that it would invest approximately 630 billion rupees (7.17 billion dollars) in two major projects in Assam in the state's north-eastern region. One of these will be the largest coal-fired plant in the region. Adani Power was reported as having been the lowest bidder in a state-issued tender for coal power of 3.2 gigawatts (GW). Adani announced on Friday that the coal power plant unit of its company will invest about 480 billion rupees (5.46 billion dollars) in building the facility. The company stated that the plant will be commissioned in phases starting December 2030.
Rio Tinto signs a 15-year renewable energy deal with U.S. based TerraGen
Rio Tinto announced on Friday that its Kennecott operation, located in Utah, U.S.A., had signed a virtual power purchase agreement for 15 years with TerraGen, to source renewable energy in Texas from a newly built wind farm. The deal will see Rio Tinto purchase 78.5 megawatts of electricity from TerraGen’s Monte Cristo I Windpower Project, which started commercial operations last week. The agreement was reached after the Trump Administration added copper to its list of critical minerals in the United States, and Washington…
TotalEnergies considers selling some Asian renewable energy assets
A spokesperson for TotalEnergies said that the company is considering selling some renewable energy assets located in Asia as a way to reduce its debt. Bloomberg first reported the news that the assets in question could be worth several hundred millions of dollars. The spokesperson confirmed this. Patrick Pouyanne, CEO of TotalEnergies, said at a presentation to investors earlier this year that the company was focusing its strategy on key markets such as Europe, U.S.A. and Brazil, while streamlining our efforts in renewables beyond these three markets.
ReNew, an Indian company, will invest $9.33 Billion in green energy projects across the southern state
ReNew Energy Global Plc, an Indian company, announced on Thursday that it would invest approximately 820 billion rupees (9.33 billion dollars) in Andhra Pradesh's southern state to expand its clean-energy portfolio. The company has signed agreements with the government of the state for projects that include solar manufacturing, pumped-hydro, battery storage, and green ammonia. ReNew plans to build a 6 GW photovoltaic ingot/wafer facility, a 2GW pumped-hydro project, 300,000 tonnes of green ammonia per annum, and 5 GW hybrid renewable projects, including solar-plus storage and wind-solar.
Made in Nigeria: Africa's drive to become a solar superpower
In pink overalls they pack the tested products to be shipped from the Salpha Energy solar assembly plant near Calabar, West Africa. It's not happening at home anymore. Salpha Energy, which began in 2017, has produced solar power systems for over two million Nigerian households and businesses. It aims to produce up to 300,000. Salpha Energy is part and parcel of the green leadership that Africans attending the U.N. COP30 Climate Summit in Brazil want to promote and showcase. Carlos Lopes is the special envoy of the COP30 Presidency for Africa.
French and Benelux stocks: Factors to watch
Here are some company news and stories that could impact the markets in France and Benelux or even individual stocks. The French parliament voted on Wednesday to suspend the controversial pension reform, as budget bills for next year are pushed through under constant threats to the survival of the government. Solvay announced on Wednesday that it has partnered with Noveon Forge to supply rare earth materials starting in 2026. It has also partnered up with Permag to supply rare earth materials. Carrefour, Europe's biggest food retailer…