Sustainable Finance Enters Its ‘Messy Middle’

Sustainable finance has entered what might be its “messy middle.” For years, governments leaned into reporting regulations and other policies in support of ESG-aligned financial activities. Then came 2025, with the European Union weakening flagship rules, the US rolling back federal guidance, and o…

How Climate Risk Flows From Insurance to City Budgets

Climate adaptation is increasingly a matter of financial resilience, not just physical protection. Across the US, climate risk is filtering into rising insurance costs, shifting property values and heavy reliance on property tax revenues, exposing some cities and counties to mounting fiscal strain …

Beyond the Chip: Rewiring Data Center Supply Chains

As AI drives a new wave of data center expansion, the focus is shifting from chips to the infrastructure that powers and cools them. Denser AI workloads are accelerating the move toward liquid cooling, higher-capacity electrical equipment and new power architectures, putting pressure on traditional…

How Co-Located Batteries Are Reshaping Solar’s Future

After years of rapid expansion, the buildout of solar power is starting to slow. Capacity additions are set to dip slightly in 2026, the first decline since BloombergNEF began tracking the market. At the same time, the way solar is built is changing, with developers increasingly pairing projects wi…

Power Grid Spending Surges But Capacity Still Lags

Investment in power grids is rising fast. Worldwide, spending on this critical piece of infrastructure rose 17% last year. Yet higher outlays are not necessarily translating into new capacity on the ground. Aging assets, supply-chain constraints and the rollout of new technologies are slowing deliv…

AI’s Tilt from Clean Power to Gas: Analyst Reaction

Data centers are expanding at an unprecedented rate, and their need for fast, reliable electricity is reshaping power generation plans across the US. Grid bottlenecks and delivery timelines are tipping the balance between gas and renewables. And while clean energy remains central to long-term strat…

Oil, Gas and Metals in 2026: What to Watch This Year

Commodity markets are in a period of upheaval. Wars, sanctions and political shifts have already rewired global trade, and a new wave of pressures is coming into focus. A liquefied natural gas glut is looming, China is rapidly expanding its biofuel production, the global copper market is facing a s…

Where Venezuela’s Oil Fits in the Global Market: React

What the recent US action in Venezuela means for global oil markets is still an open question. While the prospect of additional oil is drawing interest, high production costs, infrastructure constraints and political risk complicate any near-term jump in Venezuela’s oil output. As markets weigh the…

Progress Amid Fragmentation: Energy Transition to 2030

The push toward a lower-carbon global economy ran into strong headwinds last year, and 2026 offers little sense of a clean reset. Political uncertainty, uneven policy support and slower progress in some markets continue to complicate the outlook for climate-focused investors and companies. Yet bene…

LNG, Biofuels and the Future of Maritime Transport

Maritime shipping is a notoriously tricky sector to decarbonize, yet options for a greener industry are slowly emerging. Bio-LNG is helping clean up fuel tanks. New ship-building and navigational techniques, from advanced hull coatings to smarter routing, are making a dent in emissions. And new Eur…