China Briefing 20 August 2026: Oil and gas plan | Xi on climate change | Coal five-year plan
In this issue, Carbon Brief examines China’s five-year plan for coal.
Global energy markets are in flux, from the rapid growth in renewable energy production and falling technology costs to talk of peak demand and calls for urgent action on climate change. At the same time, greenhouse gas emissions went up last year at the fastest rate they have since 2011, and we saw growth in coal, oil and gas production and consumption. When it comes to energy and climate issues, there’s tension between the rhetoric, our ambition, and the reality of the facts on the ground.
In this edition of Columbia Energy Exchange, host Jason Bordoff is joined by Dr. Christof Rühl, an internationally renowned economist specializing in macroeconomics and energy economics. Christof served as Chief Economist at BP for nearly a decade, and most recently, was the Head of Research at the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.
Jason and Christof discuss how energy markets are impacting geopolitical risk and the global economy — from sanctions to trade wars and the escalating tensions in the Straits of Hormuz. They discuss the shale revolution, and its global implications as the U.S. becomes a major exporter of both natural gas and crude oil. They also discuss plastics, electric vehicles and new technologies from advanced nuclear to battery storage and hydrogen, and the role they might play in the energy transition.
Abundance and affordability have become buzzwords among policymakers, who often have sharply different interpretations of how to attain them. To some, an energy abundance agenda means fewer regulatory...
It started last year as a pressure campaign at sea, with the United States seizing tankers as part of what President Trump called a “total and complete blockade”...
Over the past five months, the Strait of Hormuz has been closed for extended stretches of time, disrupting roughly 10 to 15 million barrels of oil supply each...
As the demand for power surges across the US, the debate over how to build energy infrastructure has reached a fever pitch. And while both sides of the...
Simultaneous pressures are colliding at the worst possible time, making power generation a central test of the country’s capacity to recover.
President Trump issued a proclamation on August 6 imposing tariffs on polysilicon and solar products.
The centre of gravity of the global energy system has definitively shifted eastward, driven by rapid industrialisation, expanding urban populations, and rising
Data centers face growing local opposition as states impose moratoriums on hyperscale projects and grid connections. Communities can negotiate deals for tax revenue and jobs.