In today’s edition:

⚡️ Mining magnate threatens UK business

🚜 Straw bales find new purpose

🌳 Gabon’s ‘debt-for-nature’ swap on hold

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⚡️ Energy (1-minute read)

Ore-fully Green: Mining magnate threatens to pull out of UK after Sunak’s climate pivot

What happened: When Rishi Sunak, UK prime minister, made a show of embracing oil and gas development this week, it sparked horror among many non-governmental groups and activists. But it has also unleashed fierce criticism from an arguably more surprising source: an Australian chief executive and mining billionaire.

Details: Andrew Forrest, who runs the Australian industrial and mining conglomerate Fortescue is now deeply involved in hydrogen. He warned he would pull out of Britain if the government did not reverse course. Forrest owns WAE Technologies, the battery group slated to open an advanced batteries plant in the UK. Leaders warmly met this move as a key step to bolster the electric vehicle industry and reduce reliance on China. The enthusiasm was doubly high since another battery company — Britishvolt — collapsed earlier this year.

Why it matters: a) The intervention could prompt other business leaders to speak out. b) The decision could reinforce the perception that America is a more welcoming destination for green tech through its Inflation Reduction Act

🚜 AgriTech (1-minute read)

From stalks to skyscrapers — straw bales find new purpose in Green Construction

Headline: The UN estimates that cereal farmers globally will produce 2.8bn tonnes (roughly the weight of 140,000 Eiffel Towers) of produce this year. However, this yield comes with lots of straw (the stalks of wheat, barley and other crops), a low-value by-product from harvest, which sometimes is burnt and contributes to climate change.

Solutions: Construction startups are repurposing straw in a sustainable way which could reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create an additional income stream for farmers. Companies like Huff and Puff, EcoCocon, and Agile Homes are using straw to create pre-fabricated panels for construction — providing an affordable housing solution with improved insulation and reduced carbon footprints

The bigger picture: Straw bale construction could help the UK boost its use of sustainable construction materials, with the country lagging behind other European nations.

Great potential: Straw’s potential extends beyond construction, with other companies exploring its use as a source of paper and packaging to reduce the need for wood pulp and plastics to support the transition to a low-carbon economy.

🌳 Nature (1-minute read)

Gabon 'debt-for-nature' swap presses on but delayed amid market volatility

A What now? At their simplest, debt-for-nature swaps see a country's debt bought up by a bank and replaced with cheaper debt, usually with a multilateral development bank "credit guarantee" or "risk insurance". The savings on interest payments are intended to fund conservation.

Where have we seen this before? Earlier this year, Ecuador completed the world’s largest debt-for-nature deal. This transaction allowed the nation to exchange $1.6 billion of dollar-denominated bonds for a new $656 million loan tied to protecting the habitats of the Galapagos Islands.

What’s new, and why it matters? Gabon has launched a bond buyback that will kick off a $500 million 'debt-for-nature' swap, with savings to be channelled into ocean conservation (Gabon’s oceans host a third of the world's endangered leatherback turtles, the largest global population)

💭 Little Bytes

Quote: “The greatest damages by natural disasters in the history of independent Slovenia.” — Slovenia’s prime minister Robert Golob describing the damage to roads, bridges and buildings following devastating floods.

Stat: Venture capital investment in carbon accounting companies jumped from $60mn in 2020 to $767mn in 2022. — PitchBook

Watch: Stockholm to build entire neighbourhood out of wood

🗞 In other news…

• Last month, Tata pledged to spend £4bn on a UK plant that will provide batteries for Jaguar Land Rover’s electric cars. Recent reports suggest a battery maker previously called Envision AESC, owned by Chinese energy giant Envision, is heavily involved with the project - causing a stir among political leaders about increasing dependence on China.

• Morgan Stanley announced that it’s over two-thirds of the way towards achieving its target to finance $1 trillion of low carbon and sustainability investment by the decade's end.

• London’s mayor is extending a car scrappage scheme to more drivers in a bid to calm opposition to a contentious Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ), which will cover all of the British capital from the end of August.

• A global failure to curb carbon emissions will lead to rising debt-servicing costs for 59 nations within the next decade, according to a study that simulated the economic impact of climate change on current sovereign credit ratings.

• It’s a dark time for fans of the incandescent light bulb: Starting this month, retailers are no longer allowed to sell the old-fashioned globes, thanks to regulations implemented by the Biden administration.

• Red tape is frustrating the efforts of Big Tech in China to launch electric vehicles. Public records show only two approvals for new electric car production since the start of the year. Industry insiders say regulators have tightened approvals to tackle growing overcapacity and a spate of EV company failures that left customers with cars that can’t be repaired or serviced.

🎣 Gone Phishing

Three of these stories are true, one we've made up. Guess which:

• Dairy owner crushed under cheese wheel

• Google street view leads police to a high-speed chase

• Scientists find the playful part of the brain by tickling rats

• The Australian town where people live underground

🌞 Climate meme of the week

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