The UK has been accused of “helping Russia pay for its war on Ukraine” by continuing to import record amounts of refined oil from countries processing Kremlin fossil fuels. Government data analysed by the environmental news site Desmog shows that imports of refined oil from India, China and Turkey amounted to £2.2bn in 2023, the same record value as the previous year, up from £434.2m in 2021. Russia is the largest crude oil supplier to India and China, while Turkey has become one of the biggest importers of Russian oil…
Tag: Energy industry
World’s largest solar manufacturer to cut one-third of workforce
The world’s largest solar manufacturer has slashed nearly a third of its workforce after a cost-cutting drive that included telling staff to only print in black and white fell short and as a chill ripples through the renewable energy sector. China’s Longi is to cut as much as 30% of its workforce, in an acceleration of cost reductions that began late last year, Bloomberg reported. It is unclear exactly how many jobs will be lost at the company, which employed 80,000 at its peak last year, as an internal function…
CATL, the little-known Chinese battery maker that has the US worried
The world’s two superpowers are so intricately linked that it’s hard to think of a pillar of the economy that hasn’t been strained by tensions between the US and China. And the next frontline in the economic conflict may be the most fundamental yet: a fight for power itself. A Chinese company that most people have never heard of is at the heart of the global race to store the clean energy needed to power the green transition in the US and the rest of the world. China’s Contemporary Amperex…
World’s renewable energy capacity grew at record pace in 2023
Global renewable energy capacity grew by the fastest pace recorded in the last 20 years in 2023, which could put the world within reach of meeting a key climate target by the end of the decade, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The world’s renewable energy grew by 50% last year to 510 gigawatts (GW) in 2023, the 22nd year in a row that renewable capacity additions set a new record, according to figures from the IEA. The “spectacular” growth offers a “real chance” of global governments meeting a…
‘Breakthrough battery’ from Sweden may cut dependency on China
Europe’s energy and electric vehicle industries could reduce their dependency on scarce raw materials from China after the launch of a “breakthrough” sodium-ion battery, according to its Swedish developer. Northvolt, Europe’s only large homegrown electric battery maker, has said it has made a lower cost, more sustainable battery designed to store electricity which does not use lithium, nickel, graphite and cobalt. Britain and Europe’s electric battery industry is reliant on raw materials, or completed batteries, sourced from China and other Asian nations. Northvolt said its new battery, which has an…
China’s carbon emissions set for structural decline from next year
China’s carbon emissions could peak this year before falling into a structural decline for the first time from next year after a record surge in clean energy investments, according to research. Emissions from the world’s most polluting country have rebounded this year after the Chinese government dropped its Covid restrictions in January, according to analysis undertaken for Carbon Brief. However, this rebound in fossil fuel demand emerged alongside a historic expansion of the country’s low-carbon energy sources, which was far in excess of policymakers’ targets and expectations. Beijing’s solar and…
Finland recovers ship’s anchor close to damaged Baltic Sea pipeline
Finnish investigators have recovered a large ship’s anchor from near the spot where a Baltic Sea gas pipeline was extensively damaged and are seeking to establish whether it came from a Chinese container vessel. Finland’s central criminal police (KRP) said on Tuesday that the anchor, weighing 6 tonnes and missing one of its prongs, had been lifted from the seabed using a navy crane. Deep drag marks were found on both sides of the fractured pipeline. The country’s National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), which last week said inquiries were focused…
Chinese ship is focus of investigation into damaged pipeline, Finland says
Finnish police have said a Chinese ship whose movement coincided with the time and place of the suspected sabotage of a pipeline between Finland and Estonia that was damaged this month is now the focus of their investigation. After a leak led to the shutdown of the Balticconnector pipeline on 8 October, Finnish authorities have been investigating the damage they say was caused by “external” activity. On Friday, they said their focus was on the Newnew Polar Bear, a cargo ship that reportedly came under Chinese ownership this year. Between…
China’s sudden economic slowdown is worrying. But it doesn’t have to be all bad news for Australia | John Quiggin
After two decades of stunning economic growth, evidence of a slowdown in China is naturally a cause for concern. The evidence, unfortunately, is not hard to find. China’s estimated annual rate of GDP growth is slowing and looks to be stabilising at around 4%, only a couple of percentage points higher than that of rich countries in the OECD. At this rate it will take many decades before income per person in China catches up with that of other leading economies. High youth unemployment is another symptom of a slowdown,…
Economic ‘headwinds’ lead IEA to cut global oil demand forecast
Global oil demand will reach an all-time high this year, but “persistent macroeconomic headwinds” mean it will not grow as quickly as had previously been expected, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has said. The Paris-based global energy watchdog said that demand was expected to rise by 2.2m barrels a day in 2023, leading to an average of 102.1m barrels a day. But that prediction is 220,000 barrels a day lower than its previous expectations – the first time the agency has lowered its forecast for growth this year. China, boosted…