Reforming Ontario's carbon market may be the key to sustaining its cornerstone steel industry, according to analysis by a Canadian think tank.

On the move – Spanish multinational energy company Moeve has partnered with Accenture to decarbonise the value chain of the former’s industrial customers, they announced Monday. Moeve will offer a portfolio of energy solutions, while Accenture will use digital tools to analyse data and plan a transition to clean energy.

Heads up RGGI – Commercial electricity sales have soared in Virginia, driven by data centers, the US EIA said on Wednesday. The increase of 30 mln MWh between 2019-25 was faster than any other state except Texas.

Throw everything including the kitchen sink – Microsoft is reportedly in discussions to lift its 2030 target of matching 100% of its hourly electricity use with renewable energy purchases. Data center build outs are affecting the feasibility of climate commitments, sources said. A Microsoft spokesperson said the company continues to look for opportunities to maintain an annual matching goal. (Bloomberg)

Crop collaboration - Bayer, a global life sciences company, and energy major BP have formed a long-term strategic alliance to commercialise camelina under Bayer’s newgold seed brand, starting in North America, to supply oilseeds for biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production. The companies said BP will contribute fuels and refining expertise, while Bayer will use its seed technology and farmer customer base to develop a market for camelina, which can be grown as an intermediate crop, within rotations, or on marginal and underutilised land. Bayer has introduced newgold camelina in the Northern Plains of the US and in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta, with testing of long- and short-season biotypes underway as it prepares for a full-scale launch.

Jet set fuel - California-based Captura, a carbon removal startup, and Quebec-based SAF+ International Group, a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) developer, are planning a commercial electro-SAF plant at the Port of Port-La Nouvelle in France. The facility is targeting 75,000 tonnes of annual eSAF production by combining green hydrogen with captured CO2, with project partners including BBA Consultants and Schneider Electric. SAF+ said the project is intended to help meet ReFuelEU requirements from 2030, while producing fuel that can reduce emissions by up to 90% compared with kerosene or conventional diesel and jet fuels. The companies said eSAF is compatible with existing aviation and transport infrastructure, offering a liquid fuel pathway for sectors such as aviation and shipping.

Alberta has launched a C$50 million ($36.68 mln) call for emissions reduction technologies, specifying eligibility for carbon removal (CDR) for the first time.

Steam reduction – Canadian oil and gas firm CanAsia Energy and the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources (KIGAM) have agreed to develop a pilot intended to lower CO2 emissions at the Sawn Lake heavy oil project in Alberta using solvent-assisted recovery, it was announced on Wednesday. KIGAM will commit up to C$26 mln to restart the project and install modular SAGD systems at the Sawn Lake site. The pilot will test solvent recycling technologies under field conditions aimed at reducing steam-oil ratios, lowering GHG emissions, improving resource recovery, and enhancing water reuse, while also assessing partial upgrading to support future scalable developments.

Deployment drive – MaRS Discovery District has launched a new programme aimed at helping Canadian cleantech companies finance and deliver their first commercial-scale projects, with backing from Natural Resources Canada and two private foundations, it was announced on Wednesday. The nine-month First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) Lab will support five ventures developing technologies spanning carbon nanofibres, low-carbon critical minerals, battery-grade graphite, carbon recycling, and ocean alkalinity enhancement. The selected companies are expected to complete development of their first-of-a-kind projects by early 2029.

Regen ag - UK-Brazilian developer NaturAll Carbon has partnered with Nova Piratininga Farm - said to be the largest farm in Latin America - for a new carbon project, the companies announced on Tuesday. Located in the states of Goias and Tocantins, Brazil, the farm will host a carbon project applying regenerative agriculture practices across an initial area of 12,300 ha. The partners estimate a potential issuance of 30,000 carbon credits, according to the press release. They did not disclose the financial terms of deal.

Global airline trade body International Air Transport Association (IATA) has launched a deferred payment facility on its Aviation Carbon Exchange (ACE), aiming to ease liquidity constraints for carriers facing mounting compliance demand under CORSIA.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has submitted a proposed rule to rescind its climate-related disclosure regulations to the White House budget office, marking the first formal step toward unwinding the agency’s 2024 corporate climate reporting rule.

A mixed picture emerged for voluntary carbon market (VCM) participants in April, with lower overall supply and demand figures but positive data for units with either a CORSIA or Core Carbon Principles (CCP) label, while benchmark indices showed healthy price increases across the most popular projects.

Voluntary carbon market (VCM) standard body Verra has launched a month-long consultation on a proposed forestry methodology designed to improve measurement of sequestration gains through experimental controls.

The California Energy Commission (CEC) has opened up $11 million in funding for pre-commercial direct air capture (DAC) projects, aiming to help scale technologies in the emerging carbon removal (CDR) field.

Connecticut’s environmental regulator released a draft review of state nature-based solutions (NbS) programmes for public comment on Tuesday, laying out options to advance the work through resilience financing, municipal funding tools, and improved carbon sequestration accounting.

Coal continuation - Colorado lawmakers advanced re-engrossed legislation on Monday that would allow Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) to submit an updated clean energy plan by Dec. 31, delaying the deadline to achieve an 80% cut in GHG emissions from Colorado retail electricity sales, relative to 2005 levels, until the earliest date possible after Dec. 31, 2029 and no later than Dec. 31, 2032. The bill would require the CSU to file a detailed generation and transmission plan, report annually from 2028-33 on progress, emissions reductions, and demand forecasts, and stop burning coal at any coal-fired generating unit it owns or operates by Dec. 31, 2032. The measure would also direct CSU to seek a 95% emissions reduction by the end of 2039, while maintaining regional transmission organisation reliability standards.

Not so fast - The US DOJ and EPA said intervenor-defendants in the federal challenge to Vermont’s Climate Superfund Act had cited irrelevant supplemental authority, arguing that the US Supreme Court's (SCOTUS) decision in Hencely v. Fluor Corporation did not affect binding precedent on interstate pollution claims. In a Tuesday filing, the plaintiffs said Hencely concerned state law claims against a military contractor over conduct in a war zone, not interstate pollution, and argued that the Second Circuit’s decision in City of New York v. Chevron still controls because it held that state-imposed damages for emissions originating outside a state conflict with uniquely federal interests. The plaintiffs said the intervenors’ notice reads as if City of New York – and the line of SCOTUS cases it relied on – did not exist, and argued that Hencely did not cast doubt on that precedent or implicitly overrule it.

Homeward bound - Orsted is refocusing on developing and building offshore wind farms in Europe following its costly expansion into the US whereupon projects were cancelled and losses incurred. CEO Rasum Errboe said that the case for renewables and electrification in Europe is stronger than ever, due to the energy crisis accelerated by the Iran war. The Danish utility expects EBITDA, excluding new partnerships and cancellation fees, to exceed DKK 28 bln (€3.7 bln), it said in an earnings call Wednesday. However, Orsted does still continue to progress two major US projects previously delayed by legal challenges, with both on track to complete this year and next. But the completion of a German offshore wind farm has been delayed this year due to grid issue and a UK project was also delayed slightly. (Bloomberg)

If deforestation in the Amazon rainforest increases, around two-thirds of the biome could shift into degraded forests or savannah-like ecosystems, a new study published on Wednesday showed.

In regions with the best sun and wind, solar PV alongside onshore wind and batteries can already deliver round-the-clock electricity at costs competitive with, and often below, new fossil fuel generation, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said.

An Anglo-American consortium plans to build the first commercially viable fusion plant in the UK, it was announced Wednesday, following the government’s announcement in March that it would invest $2.5 billion over five years to simulate an ecosystem of companies to develop the transformative energy.

The quality of issued credits in the voluntary carbon market (VCM) has continued to weaken in the second quarter of 2026, with both issuance and retirement integrity declining sharply, according to indices provided by a rating agency.

Cities risk missing out on the benefits of nature-based solutions (NBS) due to a lack of practical tools to guide investment decisions, but a new study proposes an integrated framework combining spatial analysis and economic evaluation to help prioritise projects and allocate scarce public funds more efficiently.