Microgrids are becoming an increasingly attractive means of supplying rural areas with energy, particularly as renewable energy sources can be used to power small grids in unconventional energy-producing regions. These small grids can be developed alongside a comprehensive transmission network or in parts of the world where electricity access is limited, to boost access. A microgrid is a group of interconnected loads and distributed energy resources within clearly defined electrical boundaries that acts as a single controllable entity with respect…

For years, I have followed the rise of heat pumps as one of the central technologies for decarbonising heating. The numbers have been impressive, the policy support has been strong, and the narrative has been almost unstoppable. But as with so many technologies that capture political and public imagination, there comes a moment when promises have to turn into results. For heat pumps, that moment is now. After several years of double-digit growth, the global market is showing signs of fatigue. Sales have dropped sharply in some of the key European…

China’s incredible pace of clean energy spending has made the world’s second-largest economy the single-largest producer of clean energy by a long shot. This dominant position in global energy markets doesn’t just stem from domestic production capacity, but from increasingly significant control of global supply chains for clean energy technologies and materials, as well as investing in the production potential of emerging economies from Latin America to Southeast Asia to Africa and beyond.  Since the inception of China’s…

Citigroup’s latest call for Brent crude to tumble toward $50 on a Russia-Ukraine de-escalation feels more like an echo chamber than a fresh forecast. Senior commodities strategist Eric Lee told Bloomberg Friday that easing geopolitical tensions could “precipitate a faster move” toward the bank’s bear-case scenario — never mind that Brent is already down roughly 18% this year to near $61, thanks to what some call a slow-building supply glut. But Citi’s tone has swung wildly over the past ten months. Back in January,…

Citigroup’s latest call for Brent crude to tumble toward $50 on a Russia-Ukraine de-escalation feels more like an echo chamber than a fresh forecast. Senior commodities strategist Eric Lee told Bloomberg Friday that easing geopolitical tensions could “precipitate a faster move” toward the bank’s bear-case scenario — never mind that Brent is already down roughly 18% this year to near $61, thanks to what some call a slow-building supply glut. But Citi’s tone has swung wildly over the past ten months. Back in January,…

Citigroup’s latest call for Brent crude to tumble toward $50 on a Russia-Ukraine de-escalation feels more like an echo chamber than a fresh forecast. Senior commodities strategist Eric Lee told Bloomberg Friday that easing geopolitical tensions could “precipitate a faster move” toward the bank’s bear-case scenario — never mind that Brent is already down roughly 18% this year to near $61, thanks to what some call a slow-building supply glut. But Citi’s tone has swung wildly over the past ten months. Back in January,…

Citigroup’s latest call for Brent crude to tumble toward $50 on a Russia-Ukraine de-escalation feels more like an echo chamber than a fresh forecast. Senior commodities strategist Eric Lee told Bloomberg Friday that easing geopolitical tensions could “precipitate a faster move” toward the bank’s bear-case scenario — never mind that Brent is already down roughly 18% this year to near $61, thanks to what some call a slow-building supply glut. But Citi’s tone has swung wildly over the past ten months. Back in January,…

The recent increase in gold prices in the United States and around the world has been driven by a confluence of economic, financial, and political factors.  This environment, where gold has outperformed U.S. GDP and the four major U.S. stock markets, began in 2000 and has continued to date (see Exhibits 1, 2, 3).  We outline 13 reasons why gold has outperformed most major investments and why it is likely to continue attracting individual and institutional investors.  1. A haven during uncertain times. Throughout history, people —…

Central Asian neutrality in the Russia-Ukraine war is undergoing a not-so-subtle shift. Neutrality for Central Asian states during the first three-plus years of the conflict meant keeping Russia happy by keeping Kyiv at arm’s length. But now, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are showing greater willingness to openly engage with Ukrainian leaders. On September 23 at the UN General Assembly, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev became the first Central Asian leader since the start of the war in 2022 to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. …

A decade-long effort to make the shipping industry the first to adopt binding international emissions targets has fallen apart—this time not over science or technology, but timing and cost. The breakdown leaves oil demand from marine fuels largely untouched for now, a relief to refiners and traders watching for signs of a forced pivot toward costly biofuels or ammonia blends. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) meeting in London this week was meant to finalize a framework first agreed in April, setting out how shipowners would transition…

The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States rose this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday. The total rig count in the US rose this week to 548, according to Baker Hughes, down 37 from this same time last year. The number of active oil stayed the same in the reporting period, according to the data, at 418. Year over year, this represents a 64-rig decline. The number of gas rigs rose by 1 to 121 active rigs, which is 22 over this time last year. The miscellaneous rig count stayed the…

Governments and policy makers need to pay more attention to hydropower as a major source of low-emission flexible power generation in the age of booming electricity demand, Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said on Friday. Hydropower “remains the forgotten giant of electricity,” Birol wrote in a LinkedIn post, calling for greater role for the “forgotten” clean energy source in the global electricity systems. Hydropower accounted for about 14% of total global electricity supply…

Governments and policy makers need to pay more attention to hydropower as a major source of low-emission flexible power generation in the age of booming electricity demand, Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said on Friday. Hydropower “remains the forgotten giant of electricity,” Birol wrote in a LinkedIn post, calling for greater role for the “forgotten” clean energy source in the global electricity systems. Hydropower accounted for about 14% of total global electricity supply…

A growing glut of oil and fear of a global economic slowdown have pushed U.S. crude prices to their lowest point in five years. Friday, October 17, 2025The re-imposition of US import tariffs on China and the concurrent promise of a Trump-Putin summit in Budapest have further depressed oil sentiment, sending ICE Brent to 61 per barrel as most of the past years’ geopolitical risk premium has dissipated. Higher-than-expected US oil inventory builds have added to fears of there being more crude than 2025 levels of demand would require, implying…

The biggest refinery in the Midwest, BP’s Whiting facility, had multiple units offline on Friday, market sources told Reuters, quoting data from energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie.  The refinery was also actively flaring early on Friday, according to one of Reuters’ sources.  The Whiting, Indiana refinery “experienced a fire that was put out and was actively flaring with alarms heard in vicinity last night,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said on Friday.  The still unknown issue at…

The biggest refinery in the Midwest, BP’s Whiting facility, had multiple units offline on Friday, market sources told Reuters, quoting data from energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie.  The refinery was also actively flaring early on Friday, according to one of Reuters’ sources.  The Whiting, Indiana refinery “experienced a fire that was put out and was actively flaring with alarms heard in vicinity last night,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said on Friday.  The still unknown issue at…

The biggest refinery in the Midwest, BP’s Whiting facility, had multiple units offline on Friday, market sources told Reuters, quoting data from energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie.  The refinery was also actively flaring early on Friday, according to one of Reuters’ sources.  The Whiting, Indiana refinery “experienced a fire that was put out and was actively flaring with alarms heard in vicinity last night,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said on Friday.  The still unknown issue at…

Friedrich Merz has called for the creation of a pan-European stock exchange in a move that would help it compete with Asian and US counterparts and eclipse the liquidity offered on London’s ailing bourse. In an address to parliament in Berlin, the German Chancellor said European businesses need a “sufficiently broad and deep European capital market so they can finance themselves better and faster. “It is crucial for the future of our country and our countries in Europe that we fulfil these tasks with renewed vigour,” Merz…

India hasn’t requested refiners to cut imports of Russian crude oil and no cuts have been seen for the already placed nominations for loadings in November, Indian industry sources told Reuters on Friday, after the U.S. claimed refiners had stared to reduce Russian supply.  U.S.-Indian talks in Washington this week were productive and Indian refiners are already halving crude oil imports from Russia, a White House official told Reuters on Thursday. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that India had agreed to cut imports…

India hasn’t requested refiners to cut imports of Russian crude oil and no cuts have been seen for the already placed nominations for loadings in November, Indian industry sources told Reuters on Friday, after the U.S. claimed refiners had stared to reduce Russian supply.  U.S.-Indian talks in Washington this week were productive and Indian refiners are already halving crude oil imports from Russia, a White House official told Reuters on Thursday. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that India had agreed to cut imports…