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Energy secretary says countries must work together during conference at which US delegate called net zero ‘dangerous’

Britain will find “common ground” with the US on energy and the economy including on nuclear power, despite differences over climate policy, the UK energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has pledged.

He was speaking at the close of a two-day, 60-country conference in London on energy security, hosted by the government and the International Energy Agency (IEA), at which the US delegate Tommy Joyce attacked net zero policies as “dangerous” and “damaging”, and said it was in the interests of “our adversaries”.

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Developing sector transition pathways and providing attractive risk return is key to delivering finance that can support the UK deliver its net zero goal whilst also driving economic growth, experts told a webinar Friday.

Northern Ireland has unveiled its inaugural Blue Carbon Action Plan, covering 2025–30, as it positions marine and coastal ecosystems at the heart of its climate action and biodiversity conservation, also raising finance for their protection via carbon credits.

Talks on the EU's Green Claims Directive closed with progress on some topics but little on climate-related claims that could impact the voluntary carbon market, with discussions on credits postponed to the next round of negotiation in June, EU sources said.

Carbon allowance prices under the new EU Emissions Trading System, ETS2 could be almost four times higher if national policymakers don't implement robust clean energy and efficiency policies across the bloc's 27 countries, new research has found.

A Swedish project to finance 48,000 electric motorcycles in Ghana via Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement has sparked debate in Europe, with one EU lawmaker calling it “a rare, catastrophically bad idea”, while others highlight the project’s potential to drive the transition to e-mobility in the West African country.

Dutch industrial emissions covered by a national CO2 levy exceeded the number of free emissions permits under the levy for the first time in 2024, according to new data, and the levy could add 30% to the EU ETS cost on emissions for Dutch industrial installations in 2025.

The EU’s growing use of forest biomass for energy is eroding the bloc’s carbon sink, while planned reliance on bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) risks locking in net emissions, a recent study has warned.

European carbon prices moved higher on Friday amid sporadic bursts of aggressive buying, as participants eyed a holiday-shortened auction programme next week, while natural gas prices fell back for a fourth straight session and neared long-term lows as the LNG supply remained comfortable, damping demand for storage.

The spot price in China's national emissions market over the past week fell below the RMB 80 ($10.98) mark for the first time since Feb. 2024 amid bearish sentiment, while the country's voluntary carbon credits continued to trade at relatively high levels.

A major shipping firm on Friday signed a multi-year agreement to purchase 10,000 credits from a carbon removal (CDR) developer, in what is claimed to be the first ever direct offtake deal between Japanese and Indian companies.

The US president speeds up permits for a practice opposed by many countries and environmentalists.

The olive oil sector, a significant contributor to Mediterranean agriculture, faces mounting pressure to reduce its environmental footprint. Recognising the potential of olive groves as carbon sinks could significantly scale nature-based removals in Europe, a new paper has found.

US President Donald Trump on Thursday ordered the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to expedite the process for reviewing and issuing seabed mining permits, seeking to set the nation up as a global leader even as scientists warn of potential disastrous consequences for the ocean.

A Brazilian reforestation venture has unveiled its first project with an aim to restore 1,200 hectares of rainforest in the country’s Atlantic Forest with over 70 native tree species, its CEO told Reuters in an interview.

Japan's environment ministry has decided to subsidise four international emissions reduction projects under the bilateral Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM).

Japan saw its greenhouse gas emissions drop to a record low in the fiscal year ended Mar. 2024 due to wider adoption of non-thermal energy and slower manufacturing activities, according to government data published Friday.

Adding to its string of carbon removal deals, tech giant Microsoft on Friday signed a five-year offtake agreement with a US-based carbon removal company for 44,000 CO2 removal credits.

An Indonesian enhanced rock weathering (ERW) startup has signed a carbon dioxide removal (CDR) offtake agreement with a US-based asset management firm for 4,400 removal credits.

The best of this week’s wildlife photographs from around the world

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