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Jonathan Stempel, Reuters
In a “defeat to the Trump administration”, a federal appeals court says the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) cannot “terminate” around $20bn in clean-energy grants from non-profit groups, reports Reuters. The newswire says the ruling “restored an April 2025 injunction against EPA administrator Lee Zeldin's decision to terminate the grants”. It adds that the grants had been awarded under the administration of president Joe Biden “with a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions”. Non-profits such as the Climate United Fund will not receive the grants immediately to allow the EPA an opportunity to appeal to the Supreme Court, reports the Associated Press.
MORE ON US
Reuters: “US weighs polysilicon price floor, tariffs to counter China in solar and chips.” Al Jazeera reports that a man has been arrested on suspicion of arson in connection with one of the wildfires in Washington state, which forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate. The Financial Times: “US stocks jump after Bessent says deal to reopen Hormuz is imminent.”
Jillian Ambrose and Damian Carrington, The Guardian
The Guardian reports on its frontpage that eight of the world’s biggest oil companies reported profits of more than £67bn ($90bn) in the first financial quarter after the US and Israel waged war on Iran. Analysing profits from the three months to the end of June, the newspaper says the firms “used the biggest disruption of fossil fuel supplies in the market’s history to almost double their combined profits from just under $50bn in the same period last year”. It adds: “While their market valuations were swelling by about $600bn to above $3tn, temperatures built towards a run of deadly heatwaves, all made more likely and more severe by burning fossil fuels.” The New York Times also reports that Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, saw profits increase 33% this spring.
Global Times
A “strong to super” El Niño is expected to develop in the eastern Pacific during summer-autumn, bringing “more frequent heatwaves and increased typhoon activity” across China in August, according to the China Meteorological Administration (CMA), reports state-supporting newspaper Global Times. It adds that the event is likely to “peak in autumn-winter before gradually weakening through spring-summer 2027”. The impact of a strong El Niño on the climate typically peaks the following year, says state broadcaster CCTV. Jia Xiaolong, with the National Climate Centre, said that northern China has seen extreme rainfall in July, with daily precipitation records broken at 15 national weather stations, reports state news agency Xinhua. The average July temperature was the second-highest on record, with high temperatures persisting for an extended period, says another Xinhua report. A third Xinhua report says China will see two to three typhoons making landfall in August, in line with historical averages, but the overall intensity being “stronger than usual”. In August, China is expected to experience above-average rainfall, high temperatures and typhoons, with the risk of flooding and drought, says Xinhua.
MORE ON CHINA
Reuters: “China seeks to prevent, mitigate impact of landslides and floods.” A Reuters comment by Gavin Maguire says the global EV transition is “accelerating across a much broader swath of the global economy”. Chinese EV makers are taking advantage of rising consumer demand in Europe as high oil prices “drive buyers away from traditional models”, says the South China Morning Post. An article by Xinhua says China ensures energy supplies and security through regulating oil prices, securing electricity supply and building a low-carbon energy system. China is making possible the “energy trilemma” of “achieving energy security, low-carbon development and economic efficiency at the same time”, according to CCTV. A BJX News article discusses how China has forged a development path towards an “electricity powerhouse”.
Le Monde with Agence France-Presse
Le Monde reports that July was the hottest month in France since records began in 1900. It was also the country’s third-driest July on record, adds the newspaper, with rainfall almost 70% below average. Another Le Monde article notes that more than 90,000 hectares of forest and vegetation have burned since the beginning of spring. The outlet says this summer is “no accident”, adding: “As climate scientists have warned for decades, what was once unusual is now becoming the norm.”
MORE ON EUROPE
The Financial Times reports that the amount of “green bonds” issued in Europe this year is due to “rebound to record levels”. The Associated Press: “Firefighters scramble to contain fires outside Athens before winds and high temperatures return.” All major cities in Italy have been placed under the highest heat alert as a heatwave intensifies, reports Reuters. Inside Climate News reports on the drought-hit rivers in Europe.
Rituraj Baruah, Mint
On Friday, India’s cabinet approved an “ambitious ₹84,000 crore ($10bn) Samudra Manthan scheme for offshore deepwater hydrocarbon exploration” amid “global uncertainty” over oil supplies, explains Mint. Given that India “imports 90%” of its crude oil, the scheme aims to increase the country’s “largely stagnant” domestic oil and gas production by providing financial support of “up to 50% of the cost of drilling exploration wells” in “deepwater and ultra-deepwater” basins. The Times of India quotes an unnamed government official saying: “This [is] perhaps the first time that any government in the world is funding risk exploration from the budget.” A Mint editorial compares the move to a policy that enabled “Guyana’s mega discovery” of oil. The editorial notes: “Hydrocarbon hunting also happens to be a long-gestation game, with commercial strikes typically taking a decade to reach fuel tanks. How attractive the new deal proves, however, should be clear within a year.”
MORE ON SOUTH ASIA
Sri Lanka has shut down schools after “torrential rains triggered deadly mudslides and flash floods, killing at least seven people”, reports Al Jazeera. The death toll from flooding in India’s north-eastern state of Assam has gone up to 87, per another Al Jazeera story. A News Laundry comment calls the ongoing Assam floods “manufactured”, driven by “the political economy of disasters.” The Guardian reports from Murrah, among the “worst-hit places” after a series of cloudbursts, flash floods and landslides “swept” through Jammu and Kashmir this month, killing 28 people. Heatwaves and lightning have been included in the list of “natural calamities” that Indian states can use disaster funds for, reports the Hindustan Times. India's power consumption grew nearly 11% year-on-year in July as “high humidity levels pushed up” use of cooling appliances, reports the Economic Times. The Economic Times: “India's solar problem isn't generation anymore. It's what to do with all that power.”
Lucy Fisher, Financial Times
The UK government plans to “scrap” certain demands for companies under public procurement rules, “including net-zero criteria”, reports the Financial Times. First secretary of state, Louise Haigh, tells the newspaper that “for too long, [public] procurement has tried to tick too many boxes”. The Guardian says the new rules will remove the “requirement for companies to prove their green and progressive values before they are awarded government contracts”. It adds that they will need to instead “prove they will help young people back into work”. The newspaper reports: “The plans were criticised by environmental and green campaign groups, which said that job creation should not be a trade-off with protecting the environment.”
MORE ON UK
Gatwick Airport can progress with plans for a second runway after an unsuccessful legal challenge on issues including climate impacts, reports the Times. The Press Association says analysis indicates the UK’s 2026 harvest “could be the worst on record due to extreme summer weather”. The Daily Telegraph reports on advice from the Royal College of GPs suggesting that doctors should consider closing up when temperatures reach 30C. The Press Association reports that firefighters continue to put out a "significant mountain blaze” in Wales.
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