Thursday, 16 July 2026

EP Lynemouth Ltd. and the Low Carbon Contracts Company signed the final terms of a four-year low-carbon dispatchable (LCD) Contract for Difference for Lynemouth Power Station on 8 July 2026, according to UK DESNZ. The signature followed direction by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.

UK DESNZ said the four-year contract reduces subsidy and strengthens sustainability.

Heads of terms for the LCD CfD were agreed in February 2026 with EP Lynemouth Ltd., operators of Lynemouth Power Station in Northumberland, according to UK DESNZ.

London marine insurers are fielding fewer inquiries for voyages through the Strait of Hormuz, and some report that the cost of cover has risen as the US and Iran exchange attacks, according to Rigzone.

Insurance rates for Hormuz transits have climbed to between 2% and 6% of a vessel's value, up from a fraction of a percent before the conflict, according to Marcus Baker, global head of marine at Marsh. At the higher end of that range, insuring a $100 million oil tanker for a Hormuz transit would cost $6 million before any no-claim discounts, though owners often receive large discounts that reduce headline rates.

At the height of the conflict, some ships were charged as much as 10% of their value to transit the strait, according to Rigzone.

Visible shipping traffic through Hormuz had virtually ground to a halt on Thursday, with few observable journeys taking place.

Requests for quotes have dropped off because of a reluctance to commit to transits, though inquiries continue and terms remain available, according to Simon Lockwood of Willis Towers Watson.

The U.S. Department of Energy has appointed new members to the Secretary of Energy Advisory Board, according to the department, with terms that expire in May 2028.

SEAB members are appointed for a two-year term, according to the DOE, and the board meets quarterly to advise the Secretary on emerging issues tied to the department's activities and to recommend improvements to its operations. Members include leaders from research and education, exploration and production, energy financing, artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity.

The appointees include Eimear P. Bonner, CFO of Chevron, and Jack Fusco, Chairman, President and CEO of Cheniere, according to the DOE. Others named to the board include Cody Campbell, Co-CEO of Double Eagle Holdings; Joseph W. Craft III, CEO of Alliance Resources Partners; Alex Cranberg, Chairman of Aspect Energy; and Bill Fehrman, Chairman of the Board of Directors, President and CEO of American Electric Power.

Secretary Chris Wright said the appointees' diverse backgrounds and expertise will help expand access to affordable, reliable, and secure American energy, according to the DOE.

President Donald Trump's attacks on clean energy have not spelled disaster for the energy transition but have hurt job prospects for Americans, according to Canary Media.

The analysis, published as part of Canary Media's "Chart of the Week" series, frames its jobs assessment over the period from January 2025, when Trump took office for his second term, through May 2026.

The Environmental Defense Fund, Sierra Club and Earthjustice filed a motion on behalf of Florida Rising asking the Department of Energy to reconsider an emergency order keeping a Florida coal plant running, according to Inside Climate News. The groups argue the order fails to show that an emergency actually exists.

The order forces the Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) to keep operating a plant it had planned to retire. According to Inside Climate News, OUC had planned to move one of two coal-fired plants at the Stanton Energy Center into extended cold shutdown by the end of May, part of a 2020 plan to reach net zero emissions by 2050.

The DOE emergency order took effect June 4 and remains in place through Sept. 1, Inside Climate News reported. The order cited a shortage of facilities and anticipated growing demand from a data center industry in the state. It also noted a February cold snap that strained OUC's resources and forecasts for an especially hot summer.

OUC is Florida's second-largest municipal utility, serving more than 288,000 customers in Orange and Osceola counties, according to Inside Climate News.

The advocacy groups say OUC's financial reports indicate coal has been its most expensive fuel per megawatt-hour in recent years, costing more than natural gas or solar.

The Trump administration faces similar challenges in Colorado, Indiana, Michigan and Washington, where emergency orders also reversed plans to wind down coal plants, Inside Climate News reported.

Air conditioning remains rare across Europe even as record heat grips the continent, according to Carbon Brief. The best available estimates cited by Carbon Brief put AC use at about 6% of households in Germany and just 4% in England.

That contrasts sharply with the United States, where more than 90% of households have AC installed, according to Carbon Brief.

The figures come as France, Germany and the UK saw record-breaking heat and thousands of heat-related deaths in summer 2026, Carbon Brief reported, with June temperatures in many regions passing 40C.

Carbon Brief attributed the intensity of the heat to a warming climate, noting Europe now sits around 2.5C above pre-industrial levels.