BHP will suspend its domestic nickel operations, including the country's only nickel smelter. A global oversupply has crashed nickel prices, driven by Chinese projects in Indonesia. A review of the suspension is scheduled for February 2027. Since 2020, BHP has invested $3 bln in Western Australia Nickel to service the electric vehicle market.

Countries in eastern Europe plan to build a dozen new nuclear reactors, with a value of €130 bln, but the question is, who will pay for them. Governments need to step in. EU will likely approve state aid for the next budget cycle 2028-34 by June 2025. But inadequate supply chain, and a shortage of experts and contractors will also slow down the projects.

Concerns over Trump presidency and high interest rates caused a clean energy sell-off in the US. Clean energy stocks have tumbled 28% since July last year. Low valuations have prompted takeovers by buyout groups. New equity raised by energy transition companies in the public markets has also fallen, from $68 bln in 2022 to $33 bln in 2023.

The biofuel sector is battling cost overruns, engineering shortcomings, and a glut of biofuels. They are up to six times as expensive as fossil fuels. The oversupply in China has depressed prices elsewhere. Many biofuel companies have already declared bankruptcy. Demand for biofuels remains low, while oil consumption is rising.

Chinese solar industry is grappling with a deepening glut after production outstripped demand in recent years. Major firms reported losses as they were forced to sell below costs. An oversupply of products is unlikely to ease for up to two years. Fierce competition at home has pushed many Chinese solar companies to seek higher premiums overseas.

A government decree will require installations of at least 2.1 metres above ground on land zoned for agriculture, to allow cultivation underneath. This will be 20-40% more expensive than normal ground-mounted installations. The decree also bars farmers from leasing their land to solar developers and instead requires them to invest in projects themselves.

In May 2023, the contract for the power station was signed with the US consortium Westinghouse-Bechtel. The capacity of the three reactors will be 3750 MWe. Geological surveys are expected to last until the end of the year. The commissioning of the first unit is planned for 2040. By 2045, nuclear will account for 20% of Poland's electricity generation.

US wind power slipped in 2023 due to weaker-than-normal Midwest breezes despite the 6.2 GW added capacity, showing the challenge of integrating volatile renewable energy sources into the grid. The capacity factor for the country’s wind fleet (how much energy it’s generating versus its nominally possible output) declined to an eight-year low of 33.5%.

Sustainability-linked bonds (SLBs) impose penalties on borrowers when they fail green goals, but they don't need to invest the money into green projects. Enel missed its 2023 GHG emissions target and will pay €83 mln more on the €10 bln worth of SLBs. It’s the most significant penalty yet in a market whose first bond was issued by Enel in 2019.

The project called “Green Volt” off the coast of Scotland will include 35 floating turbines with the nominal output of 560 MW and will provide electricity primarily to offshore oil and gas platforms. The project owners are Flotation Energy and Vargronn. The current biggest development, off the coast of Norway, has only 11 turbines and 88 MW nominal output.

New York State ended talks with developers for three offshore wind power projects after GE Vernova offered smaller turbines, because its 18 MW units are not available. Authorities said this "materially altered" the plans. Supply chain problems and rising interest rates are forcing project cancellations and billions in writedowns by developers.

US-backed company Verde will invest $1 bln in a disused Romanian mine and new processing facilities. It intends to start production in2027 and reach 90,000 tonnes a year, half of EU's needs and 9% of global production. Over 90% of EU’s magnesium (crucial for making lightweight aluminium alloys used in cars and packaging) is imported from China.