The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has released its Renewable Capacity Statistics 2025 detailing a significant increase in renewable power capacity during 2024, reaching 4.5TW. The 585 GW addition last year indicates a 92.5 per cent share of the total capacity expansion, and a record rate of annual growth (15.1 per cent).

The Chancellor’s Spring Statement had little for renewables, but one winner was the announcement on green hydrogen and the reduction of electricity costs on its production.

UN Climate Change executive secretary Simon Stiell made a speech in at the Europe 2025 Conference calling on Europe to move faster on renewables.

Drax Group is buying battery energy storage investor Harmony Energy Income Trust (HEIT) for £199.9m in a move that not only builds on the company’s renewable opportunities but also could help provide greater balancing of loads.

The EU Commission has presented its list of strategic projects under the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, but concerns have been expressed regarding over its ability to create a ‘just transition’ by virtue of its lack of transparency in the selection, raising issues related to accountability, human rights, Indigenous rights, and public participation.

It’s been a long time in coming, but BYD has reportedly caught Tesla in annual sales revenue for 2024.

Just Stop Oil’s demand to end new oil and gas is now Government policy, somewhat erasing the group’s core reason for existing. As a result the group is calling for a final action in Parliament Square on 26 April, after which it will stop protesting, but it is unlikely this is the end of the story.

Scottish Ministers have granted consent for Vattenfall’s Ourack wind farm in the Scottish Highlands.

A new voluntary carbon market standard by Hyphen Global and Social Carbon can recognise carbon credits measured through on the ground carbon fluctuation data, as opposed to predictive satellite measurements that currently make up much of today’s highly volatile carbon market.

Shell has announced that it will halve investment in low-carbon energy from 20 per cent of capital spending to 10 per cent.

The Department for Transport has issued its strategy for decarbonising shipping that will see vessels using ‘future fuels’ and plug into shipping ‘chargeports’ as part of a goals for shipping operators to reach net-zero by 2050.

The start to the year has seen a rise in heat pump installations according to data from Project Ambient.