Global Scans · Energy Transition · Weekly Summary

• [New] The Department of Energy issued a report in July that raised concerns about grid reliability driven by increased risks from factors like rising demand for AI data centers, power plant retirements, and extreme weather. ColumbusFreePress.com
• [New] Inflation has been above the BoJ's target for more than three years, real wage growth is close to zero, Japan's population is smaller and older, the downside risks related to climate change are larger, public debt is higher and external economic and political conditions are less certain. OMFIF
• [New] Legions of central bankers, economists, insurers, and financial experts are sounding the alarm about the multiple threats that climate change poses to the global economy. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
• [New] Financial and economic experts have warned of the serious and systemic risks climate change poses to the global economy. U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
• [New] Whether carbon removal continues to bobble along or transforms into something big enough to make a dent in climate change will depend largely on whether governments around the world decide to pay for a whole, whole lot of it - or force polluters to. MIT Technology Review
• [New] Norway's sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, is giving artificial intelligence a key role in protecting its 2 trillion US dollar portfolio from climate risk. Clean Energy Wire
• [New] Climate change constitutes one of the most important threats to human health worldwide. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] By 2050, equity markets in countries in Oceania, North America, Asia and southern Europe, are projected to underperform by between 41% and 54% in a high warming scenario, largely due to exposure to extreme weather events and resource scarcity. Pensions Age
• [New] Climate change poses profound risks to global pension funds, but also a clear opportunity: an immediate and coordinated low-carbon transition offers the best long-term outcome. Pensions Age
• [New] In a high warming scenario, unaddressed climate change could push global GDP over 10% below current expectations by 2050, while projections beyond 2050 show further deterioration where developed economies risk GDP growth stalling completely between 2050 and 2075. Pensions Age
• [New] Climate change is set to reshape global growth expectations by disrupting the fundamental drivers of economic stability, with both transition and physical risks directly affecting growth, inflation, and long-term financial stability. Pensions Age
• [New] Vulnerable communities worldwide are shouldering mounting death tolls from extreme weather events, disaster-induced internal displacement, and the disruption of global supply chains leading to food insecurity and reduced healthcare access. World Resources Institute
• [New] While countries - including the most vulnerable - update their climate plans known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), the world is still collectively off track to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit). World Resources Institute
• [New] Deployment could theoretically cool global temperatures and help buy time to slash emissions to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. New Scientist
• [New] As the world confronts the growing threat of climate change, the United Kingdom is taking bold steps toward a cleaner, more sustainable energy future. The UK Times -
• [New] Several key climate hazards affect New York's energy system and are projected to change in the future, such as increasing temperatures; changes in precipitation distribution, including extreme precipitation events; and sea level rise. PubMed Central (PMC)
• [New] In recent years, extreme weather events and grid instability - exacerbated by the rapid expansion of renewable power capacity and surging electricity demand from data center and cryptocurrency mining in Texas - have created exceptional opportunities for both energy trading and ancillary services. Macquarie
• [New] Extreme weather events will escalate the more the planet warms. Yahoo News
• [New] Australia is heading into a summer shaped by warm oceans, a negative Indian Ocean Dipole and a likely weak La Nina, with insurers bracing for a cocktail of flood, cyclone, convective storm and heatwave risk that could pressure loss ratios, capital and reinsurance costs. Insurance Business
• [New] The AI explosion carries a hefty climate risk if it remains hooked to fossil fuels - the International Energy Agency has warned that the amount of planet-heating gases from power plants that run datacenters could double by 2035. The Guardian
• [New] CCS offers significant potential to reduce global CO2 emissions, thereby helping to mitigate climate change. The Press Pad
• [New] As the Earth continues to get hotter, climate change is likely to bring more hard-to-predict occurrences. NewsBreak
• [New] Future growth will be driven as increasing effects of climate change require engineers and environmental-services specialists to be involved much earlier in project lifecycles to shape long-term solutions. Engineering News-Record

Last updated: 01 November 2025