EU
France set for ‘massive’ renewables boom under president Macron
Emmanuel Macron’s picks for prime minister and environment minister support rapid expansion of clean energy
Dutch university contracts gave Shell influence over curriculum, students
Report reveals Shell’s contracts with the Rotterdam School of Management that gave it power over the school’s core educational functions
Africa clean energy row continues in Bonn
African leaders are no-one’s “puppet”, says head of the African group of climate negotiators, after $10bn scheme was said to have been hijacked by the EU
Emmanuel Macron vows climate action as French president
Centrist candidate supports a coal phase-out by 2022, carbon price rise and trade sanctions on polluting countries, but needs a parliamentary mandate to deliver
EU countries have brought in $1bn of coal subsidies since Paris
In the shift to renewables, several member states are paying coal generators to be available for back-up power
EU must stop trying to dictate Africa’s clean energy future
Strong-arm tactics by the European Commission and France to bypass African leadership are unacceptable, writes Mohamed Adow
EU, France accused of hijacking ‘Africa-led’ clean energy scheme
African head of $10bn programme quits, saying French environment minister Ségolène Royal intervened to impose EU-preferred projects
UK foreign office cut climate staff in half under Tory government
Labour says the 46% reduction in foreign office climate jobs since it was in power is “staggering” and a sign the government is not serious about the issue
UK set for first coal-free work day since pre-industrial times
Britain is expected to be coal-free on Friday, reports National Grid, as the power sector shifts to cleaner sources of supply
Energy efficiency becomes breakthrough issue in French election
All five leading candidates in France’s presidential election have made prominent energy efficiency pledges, now UK Labour have followed suit
EU should block Nord Stream 2 on climate grounds
Planned gas pipeline from Russia undermines long-term EU energy security and climate goals, writes Marcin Stoczkiewicz
Balkans are gambling on coal as EU utilities opt out
Eurelectric members have pledged to build no new coal power stations from 2020. So why do firms in Serbia and Bosnia still think they can make coal pay?
Azerbaijan president: gas pipeline to EU will not be stopped
Environmental protests against the $46bn Southern Gas Corridor are baseless, says Ilham Aliyev, who expects to begin exporting gas through the pipeline by 2018
G7 fails to agree Paris climate statement as US turns spoiler
All G7 nations, except the US, expressed support for the Paris climate accord, but the Trump administration did back an end to fossil fuel subsidies
Indonesia calls EU palm oil fuel ban ‘discriminatory’, ‘protectionist’
Indonesia’s foreign ministry has slammed the EU’s proposed ban on palm oil in biofuels
Dutch coal plant lost €800m in value last year
Power stations opened in 2015 are losing value fast, amid falling EU electricity demand and surging renewable generation
UK is in no position to lecture Saudis on oil dependence
PM Theresa May has offered to help wean Saudi Arabia off oil, but her government’s subsidies to North Sea producers are a poor model for the Middle East petrostate
German coal plants burn on as EU carbon price stagnates
EU emissions trading data show €5 a tonne of carbon dioxide is not enough to drive dirty brown coal off the system
Brexit turmoil means UK government must lead on climate
Investors will be needed to shift hundreds of billions of pounds if the UK is to meet its climate goals. But they need clarity from a pre-occupied government
EU palm oil restrictions risk sparking trade spat
The European Parliament is set to back a ban on use of palm oil for biofuels, in a bid to protect rainforests, but exporters warn this would violate trade rules