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In 2025, global coal capacity increased by 3.5% while generation fell by 0.6%, driven largely by record additions in China and India. These countries are building coal plants for system reliability and energy security, even as renewables displace coal's role in meeting demand. The report notes a geographic narrowing of coal expansion, with only 32 countries proposing or building new plants, and highlights the specific challenges facing Ukraine's energy recovery following Russian attacks on its infrastructure.

The report warns that the surge in demand for critical minerals—such as lithium, cobalt, and copper—to support the energy transition and digital economy may exacerbate gender inequalities and human rights challenges. It identifies three key risk drivers: specific environmental impacts of critical mineral processing, the location of projects on Indigenous or agricultural lands, and the use of accelerated permitting. To mitigate these, the report recommends implementing intersectional gender analyses, ensuring inclusive consultation and consent, and establishing gender-responsive benefit-sharing mechanisms.

The document provides a technical annex detailing how the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) calculated the energy, economic, and emissions profiles of nine major Indian state-owned enterprises for FY 2024–25. It specifies the PSUs covered—including Coal India Limited, NTPC, and ONGC—and explains the methodology for estimating Scope 3 emissions, energy flows, and progress toward net-zero and renewable energy targets.

The report examines the ESG frameworks of Chinese mining and processing companies, contrasting domestic voluntary standards with international benchmarks like IRMA 2.0 and RRA 3.0. It finds that while Chinese standards are increasingly aligned with international environmental norms, significant gaps remain in social dimensions, particularly regarding Indigenous Peoples' rights and community engagement. Using Indonesia's nickel sector as a case study, the study highlights challenges such as duplicative audits, tensions between transparency and Chinese data security laws, and the transfer of ESG risks from downstream buyers to suppliers. The report recommends aligning Chinese standards with global benchmarks, introducing financial incentives for ESG performance, and establishing bilateral technical cooperation with mineral-rich countries.

The report argues that the surge in demand for critical minerals essential for the energy transition and digital economy risks amplifying existing gender inequalities. It identifies three compounding risk factors: specific environmental impacts (such as water scarcity and pollution), the high concentration of mineral reserves on Indigenous and agricultural lands, and the trend toward accelerated permitting processes. To mitigate these, the report recommends that stakeholders apply intersectional gender analysis in impact assessments, ensure inclusive consultation and free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC), and establish gender-equitable benefit-sharing mechanisms, including fair land compensation and inclusive employment practices.

The report identifies 47 unchallenged cases of climate misinformation across six German TV channels (Sat.1, ZDF, ProSieben, RTL, Das Erste, and Kabel Eins) from April 2025 to April 2026. It finds that misinformation is often reactive, peaking around political events like the 2025 federal elections and the 2026 Climate Action Programme. The most dominant narratives target the economic and technical reliability of the Energiewende, while others focus on nuclear energy inaccuracies and the deflection of national responsibility. Politicians and guests are the primary vectors, accounting for 70% of cases, though journalists and commentators also contribute nearly 30%. Both public (ZDF) and private (Sat.1) broadcasters show vulnerability, with ZDF's risk linked to political talk shows and Sat.1's to the loosely structured format of morning shows. The report recommends journalist training on obstruction mechanisms, real-time fact-checking for live panels, and the creation of an independent media observatory.

The report argues that the TotalEnergies-EPH joint venture (TTEP) locks Europe into fossil gas dependency, increases energy bill volatility through LNG imports, and relies on public subsidies that should be redirected toward clean energy. It highlights that the venture's 12.5 GW gas capacity will produce emissions comparable to entire countries like Ireland or Denmark over five years, while challenging the companies' claims that such assets are necessary for grid flexibility.

The document argues that the energy transition within the expanded BRICS bloc is a contest of power between incumbent fossil-industrial interests and emerging green regimes. It identifies a 'grey space' of hybrid compromise where ambitious climate rhetoric masks continued fossil fuel expansion. To navigate this, the authors introduce the BRICS Climate and Energy Compass and a strategic action plan focusing on financial architecture reform, investment in hard-to-abate sectors, and the localisation of climate finance.

In 2025, global coal capacity increased by 3.5% while production fell by 0.6%, as coal is increasingly used as 'system insurance' rather than a primary energy source. While the number of countries pursuing new coal projects dropped to 32, China and India continue massive expansions. In Indonesia, the growth of captive coal plants for nickel and aluminium processing contradicts national climate commitments, with the RUPTL 2025-2034 continuing to plan for on-grid coal investment despite a formal moratorium.

The document examines the surge in data center demand in California, driven by generative AI, and warns that without new statewide policies, this growth could increase electricity costs for ratepayers, delay the clean energy transition, and threaten grid reliability. It highlights the risks of fossil-fueled backup generators on local air quality and recommends that data centers pay for their own clean energy generation and grid connection costs.

RMI analysis indicates that wind and solar revenues in some US agricultural states are approaching the scale of major commodities, providing farmers with predictable income and counties with tax revenue for public services. While wind projects typically maintain agricultural land use, solar arrays have a larger footprint, leading to the exploration of agrivoltaics. In 2024, nine states generated over $1 billion each in wind and solar revenue, totaling $23 billion.

The document outlines the environmental risks associated with the EU-Mercosur trade agreement, specifically regarding deforestation in the Amazon and other biomes, the extraction of critical minerals, and the potential conflict between the trade deal and the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).

Coal mine methane (CMM) emissions remained steady at approximately 34.7 million tonnes in 2023 despite rising coal production, indicating a failure to align with the Global Methane Pledge. The report highlights a critical data gap, estimating that 89% of emissions were unreported to the UNFCCC in 2023 and that 87% of global production relies on generic emission factors rather than direct measurement. While satellite monitoring is increasing, it currently captures only 10% of hard coal production. Technically, 54-63% of CMM emissions could be mitigated by 2030 using proven technologies, with drainage station capture offering significant potential at negative net cost and ventilation air methane (VAM) oxidation capable of cutting nearly a quarter of emissions.

This report by Energy Innovation analyzes the economic and environmental potential of electrifying industrial heat in India, arguing that solar-powered electrification is often the cheapest energy option and can significantly reduce pollution and energy use.

In 2024, global public financial support for fossil fuels reached USD 1.2 trillion, nearly five times the USD 254 billion provided to clean energy. The analysis highlights a cycle where energy price shocks lead to regressive blanket subsidies that entrench fossil fuel dependency. While international public finance is trending toward clean energy, G20 state-owned enterprises (SOEs) remain heavily invested in fossil fuels, with 81% of their 2024 capital expenditure funding fossil infrastructure. The authors advocate for replacing blanket subsidies with targeted social protection and aligning SOE investments with transition goals to build resilient, low-carbon energy systems.

The author contends that raising interest rates to curb inflation caused by the war on Iran would disproportionately hinder renewable energy investments compared to fossil fuels, thereby prolonging Europe's energy vulnerability. To maintain price stability and support the energy transition, the document proposes that the ECB introduce 'Green TLTROs'—Targeted Longer Term Refinancing Operations—to provide lower interest rates for lending dedicated to renewable deployment, electrification, and grid upgrades.

The document warns that the European Central Bank's potential interest rate hikes, prompted by inflation from the war against Iran, could disproportionately hinder renewable energy deployment compared to fossil fuels. It argues that reducing fossil fuel dependence is essential for long-term price stability and proposes the use of 'green' targeted longer term refinancing operations (TLTRO) to support the energy transition.

The US government has shifted toward taking equity stakes in private critical mineral projects to diversify supply chains and reduce dependence on China, which dominates the mining and refining of minerals like gallium and rare earth elements. While seven such projects were announced in 2025, the document argues that equity alone is insufficient for long-term stability. It highlights the MP Materials deal—which included a price floor and offtake commitment—as a model for providing demand safeguards. The author recommends establishing a centralized, congressionally authorized program to coordinate these investments and pair them with demand-side policies to ensure a sustainable domestic industry.

The First Conference for the Transition beyond Fossil Fuels, held in Santa Marta, Colombia, from April 24 to 29, aims to establish practical solutions for phasing out coal, oil, and gas. Co-sponsored by Colombia and the Netherlands, the event brings together at least 45 countries, including major exporters like Canada and Australia, though the largest producers—the US, China, Russia, and Saudi Arabia—are absent. The conference seeks to bypass the consensus-based delays of UN COPs to produce a report for COP30 and COP31, focusing on eliminating fossil fuel subsidies, planning production decline, and increasing renewable energy demand within a just transition framework.

In 2025, global electricity generation reached a historic milestone as renewables overtook coal power for the first time in 100 years, accounting for 33.8% of the global mix. This shift was driven by a record increase in solar power generation (636 TWh), which alone met 75% of the global electricity demand growth. Consequently, global fossil generation saw a slight decline of 38 TWh, marking the first such decrease since 2020 outside of a global recession or exceptionally mild year. This trend was most prominent in China and India, where fossil generation fell for the first time simultaneously in the 21st century. While Asia remains the only region where coal still exceeds renewables, the global emissions intensity of electricity fell to 458 gCO2e per kilowatt hour in 2025.