Former Southern Water boss charged with conspiracy to defraud July 22, 2026 The former boss of Southern Water is among four of the water firm’s ex-employees set to face criminal proceedings for conspiracy to defraud. The Environment Agency (EA) alleges that between January 2012 and December 2017 Matthew Wright helped manipulate the operator self-monitoring testing regime by implementing “artificial no-flow events” at wastewater treatment works. The government [...]
Europe has made a ‘major mistake’ on slow electrification, IEA chief warns July 11, 2026 The head of the International Energy Agency has warned Europe made a “major mistake” by failing to end its economy reliance on imported fossil fuels quickly enough since the 2022 energy crunch. Fatih Birol said Europe’s low electrification rate, electricity’s share of the energy consumed in the EU, of roughly 23 per cent is holding [...]
Lloyd’s and Chubb unlock $400m to jumpstart Strait of Hormuz shipping June 19, 2026 The world’s largest insurance marketplace is set to break the Strait of Hormuz logjam with a new $400m (£316m) war-risk facility. Lloyd’s of London has launched a new market consortium designed to provide additional marine war risk insurance capacity for vessels and cargo transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Insurer Chubb will serve as lead underwriter, [...]
Fuse boss attacks planning rules as a ‘self-imposed bottleneck for growth’ June 16, 2026 Alan Chang believes Britain’s energy crisis is largely self-inflicted. The founder of Fuse Energy, the $5bn (£3.72bn) energy supplier and infrastructure developer, argues that the UK already has the ingredients needed to drive investment in the sector. What it lacks, he says, is a planning system capable of turning that potential into projects. “There is [...]
Rolls-Royce shares surge as SMR unit bags multi-billion pound Swedish nuclear contract June 15, 2026 Rolls-Royce’s special purpose vehicle for nuclear energy has secured a major win after locking down a multi-billion pound deal to build small modular reactors in Sweden. The FTSE 100 giant’s small modular reactor (SMR) unit, which is co-owned by Czech power company CEZ, designs and delivers factory-built nuclear power plants. Rolls-Royce SMR was selected by Swedish [...]
Starmer overrules Miliband on electric car sales targets as he looks to appease automotive industry June 14, 2026 Keir Starmer will water down the UK’s electric vehicle sales, in a significant blow to energy secretary Ed Miliband’s net-zero agenda, in a bid to quash fears in the automotive industry. According to reports in The Sunday Times, the prime minister is understood to have overruled Miliband following pressure from the industry, the Unite union [...]
Ovo to cough up £10.4m for exposing vulnerable customers to harm June 3, 2026 Energy supplier Ovo is set to cough up a hefty sum after an investigation by the watchdog concluded that it had left vulnerable customers at risk of harm. The firm – which focuses on smart technology, green energy tariffs, and carbon-reduction goals – will pay £7m into Ofgem’s voluntary redress fund, which is used for [...]
No ‘capacity’ for Ed Miliband’s warm homes plan, says British bank boss June 2, 2026 A UK banking chief has warned the government does not have the “capacity” to meet its ambition to transition millions of homes to low carbon-heating technologies. Nigel Terrington, the boss of specialist lender Paragon Bank, said Labour faced an “operational capacity constraint” in its bid to implement its warm home plan. The £15bn initiative, which [...]
Neil Woodford criticises BP board for ousting ‘shouty’ chairman May 30, 2026 Once-renowned investment manager Neil Woodford has criticised the BP board for ousting its ‘shouty’ chairman after less than a year in post. Woodford called out the oil giant’s board for removing Albert Manifold after just eight months in the job, noting that he is the third chairman the company has been through in three years, [...]
Energy price cap to jump 13 per cent this summer May 27, 2026 UK households will be hit by a sharp £200 rise in energy bills next month, leaving Brits bracing for a painful winter of higher bills off the back of the Iran war. From 1 July to 30 September the annual energy price cap will be £1,862 per year, up from the current cap of £1,641, [...]