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Fiona
Harvey and Jonathan Watts,
The Guardian
The
Guardian reports that nearly
60 countries have agreed to
back voluntary roadmaps to
“wean the world off coal, oil
and gas” at a conference
“prompted by frustration with
UN climate summits” in
Colombia. In a story trailed
on its frontpage,
the Financial Times
adds that the countries agreed
to work on trade measures
aimed at cutting demand for
fossil fuels, as well as
pledging to expose how much
participant nations each
support or subsidise fossil
fuels and work on financial
reforms to tackle subsidy
“traps”. Bloomberg
reports that the summit ended
on an “optimistic note”, with
the launch of new workstreams
to help countries phase out
fossil fuels and plans for a
second meeting next year. [Carbon Brief
has a full write-up of the
conference.]
Le Monde
reports that the event,
organised by Colombia and the
Netherlands, aimed to “address
this critical issue in the
fight against the climate
crisis without taboos”. Semafor
quotes a Colombian environment
minister, who said: “This may
be the first multilateral
meeting that I find not
frustrating.” Climate Home
News quotes Colombian
environment minister Irene
Vélez Torres, who said: “For
the first time, it
demonstrates that it is
possible to make a different
type of environmental
democracy,” she added that
further improvements would be
made to the methodology. The New York Times
notes that the US was not
invited to the meeting, given
the Trump administration’s
refusal to engage with
international climate talks,
as well as several other big
countries not attending.
A
separate story in the Guardian
looks at 10 of the big lessons
to be taken away from the
conference, including that
“hope is contagious and
science is king”. Scientific
American reports that
one of the first points at the
conference was to launch a
panel of scientists to advise
countries, hailing that
“scientists know how to phase
out fossil fuels. Some
countries are listening”.
Victoria
Seabrook, Sky News
Sky
News covers comments by the
head of the UN's climate body,
Simon Stiell, that the
conflict in Iran has
“supercharged” the “boom” in
renewable power. It quotes
Stiell, who was speaking at an
event in Paris to prepare for
the upcoming COP31 climate
talks, as saying that "from
this tragedy, an immense irony
is unfolding”. Bloomberg
quotes Stiell as saying:
“Those who’ve fought to keep
the world hooked on fossil
fuels are inadvertently
supercharging the global
renewables boom.” Reuters
adds that early signs suggest
that the Iran war is speeding
up the transition to
low-carbon energy in some
nations, pointing to surging
demand for rooftop solar in
Europe and a jump in EV sales
in Pakistan as examples. This
story was also covered by BusinessGreen,
Euractiv
and others.
Separately,
Reuters
reports that the International
Energy Agency’s Fatih Birol
reaffirmed that the world is
facing its biggest energy
crisis in history during his
speech in Paris. According to
the article, Birol told the
conference: “The oil markets
and gas markets are going
through big difficulties. When
I looked last time, the oil
price was over $120 [a
barrel], which is putting a
lot of pressure on many
countries." The Press
Association, BBC News, Reuters and
others report that oil prices
have “rocketed” to their
highest level since 2022,
following reports that the US
is preparing for an escalation
of the Iran war. Reuters
covers comments by Iran that
it would respond with "long
and painful strikes" if the US
starts renewed attacks and
restates its claim on the
strait of Hormuz.
MORE
ON IRAN WAR
-
The
Financial Times
looks at why surging oil
prices have not led to a
boom in Permian production
in the US, as producers
stay in “wait-and-see”
mode.
-
Reuters
reports that due to a US
naval blockage of Iranian
ports, shrinking Tehran’s
oil exports, a growing
stockpile of crude oil is
sitting on tankers as
storage sites run out of
space.
Adam
Vaughan, The Times
The
Times covers news that solar
panel installations in the
Iran war has caused a “rush”
in solar panel and heat pump
installations in March. It
adds that there were more than
27,000 solar installations in
March, the highest monthly
total in 14 years and the
equivalent of a rooftop being
fitted with solar every three
minutes. The Press
Association adds that
over the past year, Britain’s
solar capacity has increased
by 11.7%, adding 2.3 gigawatts
(GW) to the national energy
mix. BusinessGreen
reports that the surge in new
installations of large-scale
rooftop and ground-mounted
solar projects meant total
solar capacity surpassed 2m
installations for the first
time. Reuters
adds that April also saw a new
solar generation record, with
15GW of generation on
Britain’s electricity system
for the first time.
Relatedly,
the Times
covers challenges homeowners
face in installing rooftop
solar, including those under
shared ownership or facing
barriers based on their
mortgage. The Daily Telegraph
reports that a consultation
will be launched on the
potential of building floating
solar power plants, which
would sit on freshwater bodies
such as reservoirs, lakes and
industrial ponds.
MORE
ON UK
-
There
was widespread coverage of
energy efficiency
standards changes, which
will see traditional
condenser tumble dryers
phased out, including in
the Daily Telegraph,
Independent
and others.
-
BBC News
reports that heating oil
prices in Northern Ireland
rose by a record 92% in
Northern Ireland in March.
-
The
Times
reports that funding for
the UK’s “youngest
low-carbon and renewable
energy companies hit a
five-year low in 2025”.
-
BBC News
reports that the
temperature in England’s
largest lake, Windermere,
has risen by 1.5C in less
than 80 years.
-
The
National
reports that “BBC News has
come under fire for
downgrading the climate
section on its website.”
The story is based on
social media posts by Carbon Brief
editor Leo Hickman, which
were picked up by
Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo.
-
An
“exclusive” in the
climate-sceptic Daily Mail,
quoting various unnamed
sources, reports that
“dozens of Labour MPs” are
calling for energy
minister Ed Miliband to be
sacked because of his
“net-zero lunacy”.
The
Associated Press
In
a congressional hearing,
Senate Democrats have accused
the Trump administration of
abandoning the Environmental
Protection Agency’s (EPA) goal
to protect human health and
the environment, reports the
Associated Press. The article
continues that Democrats
“slammed” the EPA leadership
over a proposal to cut its
budget in half. It adds: “Lee
Zeldin’s appearance before the
Senate environment committee
was the EPA administrator’s
last of three budget hearings
this week where he argued for
sharply reduced funding for
the agency, which already has
seen its staffing reduced to
its lowest level in decades
under his leadership.”
MORE
ON US
-
Reuters
reports that the Trump
administration is in talks
with oil companies and
considering measures to
increase production in the
US “really soon” to ease
the impact of the Iran
war.
-
The
Associated
Press looks at Ohio,
where county-level bans on
solar farms have become a
key election argument.
-
Politico
looks at experts'
predictions of “prolonged
pain and rising costs” due
to the energy crisis, even
as Trump “bets on [a]
quick Iran oil crunch”.
-
Inside Climate
News covers moves be
western lawmakers to
weaken the Clean Air Act
and shield fossil fuel
companies from lawsuits.
-
South China
Morning Post
interviews
Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change chair Jim
Skea about how the
organisation is pressing
on following the US's
withdrawal.
Susanna
Twidale, Reuters
Reuters
reports that analysts have
significantly cut their
forecasts for prices in the
EU’s carbon market over the
next few years. It continues
that uncertainty over proposed
policy changes and future
supply levels has hampered
forecasts for the EU's
emissions trading system
(ETS), the bloc's “main tool
for curbing emissions”. It
adds: “According to a survey
of 10 analysts, EU allowances
are forecast to average
€80.61 ($94.24) per metric
tonne in 2026 and €93.29 in
2027, down from the €92.65 and
€107.29 respectively for
forecasts made in January. The
market has had a volatile
start to 2026, with the
benchmark EU carbon contract
currently trading around 74
euros/tonne, some 15% lower
than the beginning of the
year.”
MORE
ON EUROPE
-
The
Financial Times
reports that both the
European Central Bank and
the Bank of England have
warned they may need to
increase interest rates to
manage the energy shock
triggered by the Iran war.
-
Bloomberg
covers record negative
power prices in Europe, as
solar power pushed hourly
prices near minus €500 per
megawatt hour.
-
Reuters
reports that the European
Commission is planning to
exclude imports of leather
from its
anti-deforestation law.
-
The
Daily Telegraph
reports that Britain is
the most exposed European
country to jet fuel
shortages.
-
The
Financial Times
reports that Belgium is in
talks with Engie to
nationalise its nuclear
assets.
Bloomberg
Zhong
Baoshen, chairman of China’s
largest solar equipment maker,
Longi Green, has said the
company aims to match the
scale of its energy storage
business with that of solar,
reports Bloomberg. However,
the outlet adds that the rapid
buildout of capacity has
stoked concerns that energy
storage could face the same
crisis that has beset solar,
according to the outlet.
Meanwhile, JinkoSolar chairman
and CEO Li Xiande said that
the world outside China is
seeing a 10% increase in
demand for solar panels in
2026 amid the war in Iran, but
it will be offset by a 20%
drop in China, resulting in a
5-10% overall decrease
year-on-year, according to Reuters.
Financial news outlet Caixin
reports that China’s wind
turbine maker Ming Yang
“nearly doubled its net
profit” in 2025, as increasing
wind turbine prices and
surging delivery helped ease
“years-long domestic price
wars”. The outlet adds that
the strong earnings “reflect a
broader stabilisation in
China’s wind power sector”.
MORE
ON CHINA
-
Chinese
president Xi Jinping
called for the country to
deepen international
cooperation in tackling
major scientific issues,
including climate change
and energy, reports Xinhua. In
an article published in Qiushi, Xi
called for local
authorities to adhere to
the direction of “green
development” and leverage
their “comparative
advantages”.
-
A
People’s Daily
article says in the face
of global climate
challenges, China has
focused on and is now
leading new energy
industries.
-
Profits
at China’s major steel
mills fell in the first
quarter partly due to the
EU’s newly implemented
carbon border tax, reports
Caixin.
-
The
State Council said it will
strengthen the “momentum
for green development” in
2026, advancing the
construction of the national carbon
market, reports BJX News.
-
Beijing Daily
reports that China’s first
zero-carbon industrial
park evaluated under
national standards has
been completed in the
Xiong’an New Area.
-
China
has allocated 91.5bn yuan
to fund projects in areas,
including energy, power
and carbon reduction,
reports International
Energy Net.
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