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The
Guardian
The
UN General Assembly has
adopted a non-binding
resolution “backing a world
court opinion that countries
have a legal obligation to
address climate change”,
reports the Guardian. It says
the US was among the “small
group” to oppose the
resolution, which passed by
141 voters to eight. The Associated
Press says the assembly
voted “overwhelmingly” to
endorse the 2025 opinion
from the International Court
of Justice “despite recent
diplomatic efforts by the US
to have the measure
withdrawn”. It adds that the
adopted resolution removed
earlier wording “that called
for establishing an
‘International Register of
Damage’ to record evidence and
claims”. Agence
France-Presse says the
resolution reinforces states’
obligations to combat climate
change. Reuters
reports: “UN secretary general
António Guterres said the
vote, in which 28 countries
abstained, underscored that
governments are responsible
for protecting citizens from
the ‘escalating climate
crisis’.” Inside Climate
News and others also
cover the vote.
Joe
Lo, Climate Home News
Climate
Home News covers comments by
COP31 president-elect Murat
Kurum, who said that
governments should be
"decarbonising the way we
generate electricity, but also
expanding electrification into
every sphere of life". It adds
that Kurum was speaking at the
Copenhagen climate
ministerial, where he said the
percentage of final energy
consumption met by electricity
– the key metric of
electrification – should be
"as much as we possibly can".
BusinessGreen
says that Kurum highlighted
the benefits of shifting to
electricity-powered
technologies for heating,
cooling, transport and
industrial processes, arguing
that it has huge potential to
cut fossil fuels in final
energy consumption. It quotes
Kurum saying: "To achieve this
mission, decarbonising power
generation is essential.
However, it is not enough. We
also need to electrify
processes throughout our
lives."
Susanna
Twidale, Reuters
Reuters
covers new figures from
thinktank Ember, which found
that wind and solar combined
generated more electricity
than gas globally in April for
the first month ever. It says
that the move was part of a
wider trend, rather than being
driven by soaring fossil-fuel
prices due to the Iran war,
but adds that the technologies
are helping to reduce reliance
on gas imports for many
countries hit by the crisis.
The article adds that wind and
solar generated 22% of global
electricity in April, compared
to 20% from gas. Relatedly, Bloomberg
covers a report from Global
Energy Monitor that found the
amount of coal-fired power
plants grew in 2025, despite a
“drop in use of the dirty
fossil fuel as nations turn
increasingly to renewables to
meet new demand for
electricity”. Carbon Brief
also covered this report.
Malcolm
Moore, Financial Times
In
a story trailed on its frontpage,
the Financial Times reports
that two supertankers carrying
Iraqi oil have passed through
the strait of Hormuz and are
heading for China, “raising
hopes of a partial opening of
the vital chokepoint for
Middle Eastern energy and
sending crude prices
tumbling”. It adds that
shipping data shows that a
third supertanker transporting
Kuwaiti oil to South Korea was
also travelling through the
strait, however, it had its
transponder switched off. The
article notes that
collectively, these three
ships are carrying 6m barrels
of oil, potentially the most
to exit the Gulf in a single
day since February. The FT
adds that Brent crude prices
fell 5.2% to $105.02 in
response.
MORE
ON OIL
-
Bloomberg
reports that Nigerian oil
companies are “ploughing
windfall gains from the
Iran-war crude rally into
near-term extraction
projects”, with the
nation's production set to
double within four years.
-
Axios
reports that in the US,
all 50 states now have
average petrol prices
above $4 a gallon, due to
the Iran war’s impact on
global oil and gas prices.
Oliver
Wright and Steven Swinford,
The Times
There
is widespread frontpage
coverage of UK government
measures to tackle the cost of
living, with the Times saying
that chancellor Rachel Reeves
will freeze fuel duty for a
further four months. BBC News
adds that the 5p cut will be
extended to the end of the
year, instead of being phased
out from September. The Financial Times
reports that prime minister
Keir Starmer also confirmed a
12-month tax holiday for
hauliers and that “red diesel”
users would see their fuel
duty cut by more than a third.
The Guardian
notes that the temporary 5p
cut to fuel duty was first
announced by former prime
minister Rishi Sunak in 2022.
Another Financial Times
article reports that Reeves
will formally announce the
measures today, including
“cut-price baked beans, free
summer bus travel for children
and £400m of help for
motorists and hauliers”. The Guardian
reports that Reeves will wait
until autumn before deciding
on any support for higher
energy bills.
In
other UK news, the Guardian
reports that Reeves is “poised
to fast-track clean-energy
projects in England and Wales
with planning reforms to curb
the use of judicial reviews
against new infrastructure”. BusinessGreen
adds that the Treasury will
set out “sweeping reforms”
that would give MPs authority
to approve critical energy
schemes and curb legal
challenges to major grid
infrastructure. The Daily Telegraph
adds that the reforms would
help prevent “spurious” legal
challenges stopping new
projects such as pylons and
wind and solar projects,
according to the Treasury.
MORE
ON UK
-
In
the Independent,
there is continued
coverage of the UK
government’s decision to
ease sanctions on certain
Russian oil products, a
move senior Labour figures
have condemned and
opposition Tory leader
Kemi Badenoch branded
“insane”.
-
The
Guardian
covers a warning from the
House of Lords that,
without intervention,
England will face water
shortages of 5bn litres a
day by 2055 due to climate
change, pollution and data
centres.
-
Reuters
reports that the
Competition and Markets
Authority is to get
"further teeth" to tackle
suspected price gouging
amidst rising energy costs
triggered by the Iran war.
-
BBC News
reports that a wildfire
that burned for four days
across the Highlands and
Moray in Scotland was the
UK’s first “megafire”.
Reuters
According
to the Kremlin, Russia and
China have reached a “general
understanding” on the Power of
Siberia 2 gas pipeline,
reports Reuters, adding that
“key details and a timetable”
remain to be confirmed. Reuters
also reports that Russia has
“downgraded” estimates for the
price of gas sales to China
from next year. Chinese
president Xi Jinping said
China and Russia should
“upgrade practical
cooperation” in energy and
resources, reports state news
agency Xinhua. Xi
also said ending the Iran war
as soon as possible would help
“reduce disruptions to energy
supply stability”, according
to Xinhua. The
Hong Kong-based South China
Morning Post reports the
value of China’s oil imports
from Russia rose 16.2%
month-on-month in April,
despite a 10.8% drop in
volume. The ongoing energy
crisis could “inject new
urgency” into the long-planned
pipeline project, says Bloomberg.
Chinese major state refiners
have “slashed” oil throughput
by more than 1m barrels per
day since the Iran war
started, reports Reuters.
Meanwhile,
Reuters
says that after the meeting
between Xi and Trump in
Beijing, four liquified
natural gas (LNG) vessels were
on their way to China from the
US and expected to arrive in
June. It marks the first US
gas cargoes to leave the US
and “go directly to China”
during Trump’s second term in
office, adds the newswire.
China’s commerce ministry said
on Wednesday that its export
restrictions on rare earths
are “legitimate and lawful”
and that it will work with the
US on “reasonable” concerns,
according to Reuters.
State-supporting newspaper Global Times
also covers the story.
MORE
ON CHINA
-
China
has issued a notice on
supplying “green”
electricity dedicated
transmission lines rather
than the public grid,
reports CEPN. Economic Daily
reports on efforts to
overcome grid issues,
including standardised
connection rules for
distributed solar.
-
Bloomberg
reports that China is
looking to raise up to 6bn
yuan ($882m) in a “green
sovereign bond” sale in
Hong Kong next week.
-
Xinhua
publishes an article
analysing why the current
rainfall in China has been
so intense, though it does
not list climate change as
a cause. Xinhua
reports China has
allocated 50m yuan to
support recovery after
severe floods in Hunan
province.
-
Reuters
reports “China will
accelerate the
construction of strategic
mineral reserve sites”.
-
China’s
first geothermal
supercritical CO2 heat
extraction project has
officially begun
operation, reports BJX News.
-
Hu
Jun, director of the
Research Centre for Xi
Jinping Thought on
Ecological Civilisation,
writes in China Daily
that China offers
“practical solutions” for
global sustainability.
Reuters
Reuters
reports that the European
Commission thinks the bloc can
reduce its gas consumption by
15bn cubic metres this year.
It adds that speaking at a
conference in Amsterdam, Ruud
Kempener, deputy head of unit
for energy security and
safety of the commission’s
energy directorate said that
European countries are better
prepared to face the
disruption caused by the Iran
war, given the regulations put
in place following the Russian
invasion of Ukraine.
MORE
ON EUROPE
-
Reuters
reports that the European
Commission has approved
€1.3bn in German state aid
for the production of
renewable hydrogen.
-
The
EU has shortlisted
tungsten, rare earths and
gallium for its first
joint stockpile of
critical minerals, in an
effort to reduce reliance
on China, sources tell Reuters.
-
Bloomberg
reports that Polish
lawmakers are calling for
deep carbon-market reform.
-
Reuters
reports that Poland is
planning to propose a
windfall tax on oil and
gas companies’ profits
next week, to help cover
the cost of national
fuel-tax cuts.
-
A
piece in Reuters
looks at how Italy is
“paying the price of
[prime minister Georgia]
Meloni's stalled
green-energy transition”.
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