February 2026

Globally, over 666 million people do not have access to electricity. If those without electricity were a country, they would be the third most populous on earth.

Global electricity demand is forecast to increase at a brisk average annual rate of 3.6% over the 2026-2030 forecast period, supported by rising consumption from industry, electric vehicles, air conditioning and data centres.

Paks has four VVER-440 units, commissioned in the 1980s, and two new VVER-1200 units are being built by Atomstroyexport, a subsidiary of the Russian Rosatom.

Since early 2024, China’s emissions have been flat or declining, according to multiple independent trackers, even as power consumption climbed.

Winter Storm Fern (January 23–27, 2026) was a severe, multi-day arctic outbreak that brought record-low temperatures (as low as –43 °F in Minnesota), ice accumulations up to 0.80 inches, snowfall of 6–13 inches in the Ohio Valley, high winds, and widespread freezing precipitation across a vast corridor from northern Mexico through the Southern Plains, Midwest, Southeast, and Northeast.

The Chinese power group CHN Energy (CEIC) has commissioned the first 660 MW of its 2,640 MW Zhongwei coal-fired power plant project in the Gobi Desert, in the Autonomous Region of Ningxia, in northern China (CEIC press release, 03/02/2026).

Saudi Arabia and Türkiye have signed a strategic agreement to develop large-scale renewable energy power plant projects in Türkiye.

The Republic of Korea (ROK) is increasing its diplomatic efforts to address US President Donald Trump’s recent threat to raise tariffs on South Korean automobiles, lumber and pharmaceuticals – as well as country-specific tariffs – from 15% to 25%

Britain is seeking to largely decarbonise its power sector by 2030, which will require a big increase in renewable capacity.

The government has also proposed that SEK20 million (USD2.2 million) will be allocated annually until 2030 by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency to municipalities that want to conduct feasibility studies for new nuclear power.