Energy Transition, Renewables, Emissions, Carbon
November 4, 2026
ET Highlights: US election's implications for energy transition, UK's CBAM expansion, India's COP31 electrification goal
Energy Transition Highlights: Our editors and analysts bring together the biggest stories in the industry this week, from renewables to storage to carbon prices.
Top story
FACTBOX: Affordability, energy transition on ballot in US state elections
Gubernatorial and utility commission races in the US midterm elections Nov. 3 could reshape how states meet growing electricity demand and who pays for the necessary infrastructure, with implications for power supplies, utility investment and customer bills, Platts, a part of S&P Global Energy, reports.
Several high-stakes congressional races and ballot initiatives across the US this election cycle are set to reshape energy policy, with data center power demands and the balance between fossil fuels and renewable energy resources emerging as defining issues on the ballot.
Data center development raises the stakes, putting pressure on states to expand generation and grid infrastructure while protecting existing customers from the costs of serving large electricity users.
Governors influence energy development through legislation, permitting policy and regulatory appointments, while utility commissions decide rates, infrastructure spending and power supply plans. Those decisions shape which projects advance, how costs are recovered and who bears the investment risk.
Benchmark of the Week
$27.56 MWh
Platts-assessed New Jersey REC Class 1 Current Year Vintage on Oct. 30.
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UK plans to expand CBAM to refined products
The UK plans to expand the scope of its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism to cover refined products, pending a freshly opened consultation, according to the government. The government intends to deliver that scope expansion, subject to consultation on both the feasibility and impacts of doing so, James Murray, Financial Secretary to the UK Treasury, said in a foreword to the consultation. The consultation on including refined products in the CBAM closes Jan. 20, 2027, the government added.
INTERVIEW: AM Green eyes more deals for 3 mil mt/y renewable ammonia goal
AM Green Ammonia is seeking further global offtake deals as it targets 3 million mt/year of renewable ammonia capacity by 2031-32, CEO Gautam Reddy told Platts, adding more offtake deals are at various stages of development. The company signed a binding agreement with JERA last week for about 70,000 mt/year of renewable ammonia from its Kakinada project in Andhra Pradesh state, which is planned for commissioning in 2028-29.
INTERVIEW: Australia’s growing battery market demands complex solutions, says Valo Energy
Australia's shift towards renewable energy is creating opportunities for large-scale battery storage, but increasingly complex grid requirements and pressure on project economics shape the market's development, Suraj Narayan, Managing Director, Australia, Valo Energy, a battery energy storage system integrator, told Platts. Customers need systems that can meet increasingly demanding grid requirements while remaining commercially viable throughout their operating lives, Narayan added.
INTERVIEW: SAF scale-up needs investor push, Dubai Airports CEO warns
The head of Dubai Airports has warned that sustainable aviation fuel will remain a marginal energy source for the global aviation industry unless a major injection of capital into production infrastructure breaks a self-reinforcing cycle of high costs and weak demand. Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths told Platts in an interview that SAF currently accounts for barely 1% of global jet fuel consumption — which runs at around 7 million to 8 million b/d — and that the economics of scaling up production remain deeply challenging for an airline industry operating on thin margins and already facing soaring oil prices amid the US-Israeli war with Iran.
Woodside Energy to curb investment in Texas blue ammonia project
Woodside Energy Group Ltd. intends to reduce investment in its newly built Beaumont New Ammonia plant in Texas despite ongoing plans to add carbon capture technology to the facility, which has a capacity of 1.1 million metric tons/year. Following a strategic review of the clean energy project, Woodside will initiate a formal process to reduce investment and achieve value for our shareholders, Woodside CEO Liz Westcott said.
Qantas announces A$30M partnership for Australian carbon credit units
Qantas announced an A$30 million partnership with Greening Australia and Conscious Investment Management to restore cleared land in South Australia, with the first project targeting nearly 800 hectares on Barngarla Country on the Eyre Peninsula, Hayley Alchin, Qantas executive manager for climate strategy, finance and reporting said at the Australasian Emissions Reduction Summit 2026 in Adelaide. The investment aims to generate native afforestation-based environmental planting ACCUs, Alchin said.