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Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 2 days ago
    • Energy
    • Trade
    • United States

    Stranded and uninvestable: Venezuela’s oil prospects

    Huw McKay
    The economics don’t stack up for American oil companies, but the Trump administration is trying to change the terms of the geoeconomic game.
  • 13 Jan 2026
    • China
    • Energy
    • Sustainability

    The green mirage: China’s clean tech built on coal

    Luke Heilbuth
    Beijing’s green credentials rely on fossil fuel. The West prefers not to notice.
  • 11 Dec 2025
    • China
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Energy
    • Trade

    Why the Ukraine war works in China’s favour

    Nikola Mikovic
    China has Russia cornered – reliant on Beijing for markets and energy exports and playing the role of junior partner.
  • 3 Dec 2025
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    Japan lost its climate leadership – and now Australia can help

    Richard Neumann
    Japan’s largest supplier of coal and LNG has just pledged to transition from fossil fuels – creating both tension and opportunity.
  • 27 Nov 2025
    • China
    • Australia
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Energy

    Critical minerals: Why fast-tracking undermines democratic legitimacy

    Katherine Teh
    With mineral projects taking years to move from exploration to production, Australia must hasten carefully.
  • 25 Nov 2025
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    The world proves thirstier than ever for energy

    Robert Walker , Georgia Hammersley
    But the Trump administration is trying – and failing – to play a spoiler role while China focuses on the long game.
  • 20 Nov 2025
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    China built the energy transition while democracies debated

    Cristina Talacko
    From solar panels to batteries, the industrial spine of decarbonisation runs through factories the West does not control.
  • 21 Oct 2025
    • Asean
    • Cambodia
    • Indonesia
    • Laos
    • Malaysia
    • Thailand
    • Energy
    • Trade
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability
    • United States

    The sun is setting on Southeast Asia’s solar exporters

    Robert Walker
    US tariffs are testing whether ASEAN is all talk on regional integration for renewable energy generation.
  • 17 Oct 2025
    • China
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • United States

    Trump wants our rare earths minerals, but we should keep selling to China too

    Stephen Grenville
    With almost “the whole periodic table” on offer, Australia should avoid choosing sides in the US–China minerals tussle.
  • 13 Oct 2025
    • Aid & Development
    • Energy
    • G20
    • Poverty
    • Climate change

    COP30: Is the bioeconomy the answer to equitable prosperity?

    Mohd. Yunus
    The Brazil meeting will need to confront old tropes of competition and control over the world’s natural resources.
  • 26 Sep 2025
    • Debt
    • Energy
    • G20
    • Poverty
    • Trade
    • Africa

    Show or substance? The African Union’s G20 test

    Isel Ras , Jana de Kluiver
    Under this year’s South African presidency of the global forum, it’s more important than ever for the Union to speak as one.
  • 18 Sep 2025
    • China
    • Energy
    • Technology
    • United States

    US-China rare earth talks: Trading predictability for time

    Apoorba Banerjee
    Transparency in rare earth licensing could tame market volatility.
  • 12 Sep 2025
    • Pakistan
    • Energy
    • United States

    The resource potential in Pakistan that Trump hopes to tap into

    Shamsa Ishfaq
    For a relationship historically dominated by security concerns, energy and mineral reserves could give Islamabad’s ties with Washington a stronger foundation.
  • 8 Sep 2025
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Energy

    Ukraine’s oil war threatens to leave Russia running on empty

    David Kirichenko
    Drone attacks on energy infrastructure expose Moscow’s vulnerabilities while raising costs of continued war.
  • 25 Aug 2025
    • Defence & Security
    • Energy
    • Sustainability
    • Technology
    • Africa

    Congo’s mineral curse fuels US-China rivalry

    Isel Ras
    Boasting about a peace deal is belied by continued suffering on the ground.
  • 6 Aug 2025
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Sustainability

    Australia risks wasting its solar superpower status

    Clare Caldwell
    With a landmass capable of producing enough energy to supply the world, why can’t Australia even meet its own demands?
  • 4 Aug 2025
    • Indonesia
    • Energy
    • Trade
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    The copper gambit: How Indonesia turned a trade war into strategic leverage

    Akhmad Hanan
    Indonesia’s mineral transformation from raw exports to refined power shows the benefit of resource nationalism.
  • 21 Jul 2025
    • Aid & Development
    • AUKUS
    • Energy
    • Poverty
    • Trade
    • Climate change
    • Migration
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Sustainability
    • United States

    Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill: A domestic deal with Indo-Pacific consequences

    Shameek Godara
    America’s new act reinforces the reality that internal choices are rarely contained within borders.
  • 16 Jul 2025
    • Asia
    • Australia
    • Energy

    If infrastructure is the new oil, Australia is in a winning position

    Melinda Stuart
    By investing in Southeast Asia’s sustainable development, Australia can help shape regional growth and prosperity.
  • 9 Jul 2025
    • Australia
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    Green energy statecraft and Australia’s clean industry future

    Elizabeth Thurbon , Oliver Yates
    A new policy model that removes the risk in clean commodity innovation will put Australia ahead of the pack.
  • 10 Jun 2025
    • Maritime Security
    • Energy
    • International law
    • United States

    What lies beneath: Trump and the security of subsea cables

    April A. Herlevi
    To access the riches under the sea, the new US administration seeks dominance.
  • 14 Apr 2025
    • India
    • Sri Lanka
    • Energy
    • United Arab Emirates

    Three-way energy play: The India-Sri Lanka-UAE deal in Trincomalee

    Rushali Saha
    Pipeline politics transform a Second World War-era fuel tank farm into a regional prize.
  • 26 Mar 2025
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    Can public banks fund renewable energy exports?

    Christian Downie , Maxfield Peterson
    Export credit agencies face hurdles in mobilising finance for renewable energy.
  • 12 Mar 2025
    • Energy
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    Energy security: Lead, don’t lag

    Patricia Schouker
    The fundamental problem – insufficient domestic production – hasn’t been solved.
  • 22 Jan 2025
    • European Union
    • Russia
    • Energy
    • Trade

    A body blow to Putin’s “dirty fleet”

    Selwyn Parker
    Europe is increasingly cracking down on Russia’s sanction-busting oil trade.
  • 30 Dec 2024
    • China
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Free Trade
    • Trade
    • Sustainability
    • United States

    Whether EVs or solar panels, protectionism has the same distorting effect

    John Edwards
    Biden is playing election politics with tariffs on China’s electric cars, while Albanese’s solar subsidy plans might end up costing Australia.
  • 11 Dec 2024
    • Global Economy
    • Energy

    The new energy shock: Complacency in oil markets could ignite a global crisis

    Patricia Schouker
    The cascading effects of even minor disruptions are too often ignored. It’s time to reassess the risk.
  • 28 Nov 2024
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Sustainability

    Is it time to change the clocks to harness the power of solar?

    Joseph Webster , Frank Willey
    Shifting to “solar alignment time” could lower energy costs, enhance supply reliability, and mitigate climate change.
  • 25 Nov 2024
    • Global Economy
    • Energy
    • Resource security
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    Critical minerals and the case for human rights in the just transition

    Fiona David , Shannon Hobbs
    Poor labour standards uncovered in the nickel industry should serve as a warning not to repeat past industrial mistakes.
  • 18 Nov 2024
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    A long way to go to zero

    Selwyn Parker
    Southeast Asia’s fast-growing economies still rely on coal.
  • 15 Nov 2024
    • Asean
    • Singapore
    • Southeast Asia
    • Australia and Asia
    • Energy
    • Environment
    • Sustainability

    Is Southeast Asia ready for a regional power grid?

    Hannah Lord
    Australia is in pole position to partner with the region on cross-border electricity supply.
  • 6 Nov 2024
    • China
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Resource security
    • BRICS

    New players on the bloc: Is BRICS+ a critical challenge?

    Marina Yue Zhang
    A growing roster of countries lined up in the grouping carries implications for Australia’s minerals policy.
  • 24 Oct 2024
    • China
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Sustainability
    • United States

    China’s cleantech investment in the US: Leg-up or security threat?

    Henry Storey
    Security hawks have struggled to articulate a compelling case for completely pulling up the drawbridge.
  • 24 Sep 2024
    • India
    • Energy
    • Sustainability
    • Africa

    India seizes a small chance to make a big difference in Africa’s solar transformation

    Manish Vaid
    Decentralised power projects – rather than expensive grid networks – are the focus of a new phase in the International Solar Alliance.
  • 19 Sep 2024
    • Afghanistan
    • Energy

    The Taliban’s gas pipedream

    Humayoon Babur
    The much-hyped TAPI gas line faces too many blockages to be realistic.
  • 30 Aug 2024
    • Indonesia
    • Energy
    • Sustainability

    The right road to renewable biofuel in Indonesia

    Hidayatul Mustafidah Rohmawati , Michael Suryaprawira
    Taking directions from big producers in the United States and Brazil.
  • 9 Aug 2024
    • Southeast Asia
    • Australia
    • Australia and Climate Change
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Sustainability

    Is Australia too late to claim its green economy share?

    Trang Nguyen
    Playing a role in Southeast Asia’s green energy transition is an opportunity Australia must not let pass.
  • 8 Aug 2024
    • India
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Resource security
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    Mission possible: Making the most of Australia-India cooperation on critical minerals

    Titiksha Vashist , Zoe Jay Hawkins
    The Indian government has set itself a new ambition to meet green transition needs – and Australia is a perfect partner.
  • 31 Jul 2024
    • Europe
    • European Union
    • Energy
    • Environment
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    Charging up: Europe’s bid for renewable energy independence

    Nina Marković Khaze
    A new deal with Serbia for one of the world's largest lithium mines is about breaking China’s stranglehold on the market.
  • 29 Jul 2024
    • Energy
    • Resource security
    • Climate change
    • Environment
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    Critical minerals, critical decisions

    Shannon Hobbs , Fiona David
    A new UN panel can help ensure the social and environmental risks of the energy transition are better understood.
  • 24 Jun 2024
    • Japan
    • Australia in the World
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability

    Gas and the difficult path to net zero

    Stephen Grenville
    As a major supplier of global energy, Australia’s external challenges will be formidable.
  • 11 Jun 2024
    • China
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Resource security
    • Trade
    • Technology

    Rare earths vs rarer resources: Global ripples from Australia’s divestment decision

    Marina Yue Zhang
    Climate change is a challenge China and the United States are fighting together, making technological cooperation key.
  • 15 May 2024
    • Australia
    • Australia's Economy
    • Energy
    • Sustainability

    Australia’s new gas strategy makes for flawed foreign policy

    James Bowen
    Simultaneously advancing energy security in Asia and climate security in the Pacific is both possible and desirable.
  • 8 May 2024
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    The cable shortage: Plugging in offshore wind farms

    Cynthia Mehboob
    Australia must consider the bigger risks as well as the opportunity of a shift to renewable energy.
  • 26 Apr 2024
    • Indonesia
    • Southeast Asia
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Climate change
    • Sustainability
    • Technology

    Australia’s comparative advantage in climate transition

    Stephen Grenville
    Already world leaders in rooftop solar, Australians should take the opportunity with supporting rollouts in Southeast Asia.
  • 16 Apr 2024
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    Great powers vs domestic politics: The clean energy trade-off

    Trissia Wijaya , Jun Arima , Patrick Ryan , Miwa Hirono
    The battle to corner the market on energy transition minerals has much at stake.
  • 16 Apr 2024
    • India
    • Sri Lanka
    • Energy

    India’s takeover of the Trincomalee Oil Tank Farm will help build energy interdependence with Sri Lanka

    David Brewster
    Old infrastructure could get a new lease on life.
  • 28 Feb 2024
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    ASEAN-Australia cooperation in the clean energy transition

    Sharon Seah
    Big ambition is the order of the day.
  • 12 Feb 2024
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • Energy
    • Climate change

    Australia’s nuclear energy debate doesn’t have to be partisan

    Dron Parashar
    The technical merits of nuclear power as part of a mix of energy sources should be the foundation for debate here – as it is elsewhere globally.
  • 9 Feb 2024
    • Australia
    • Australia and Asia
    • Australia and Climate Change
    • Australia's Economy
    • Energy
    • United States

    Middle East turmoil and a US pause offer Australia LNG opportunities

    Ian Satchwell
    On the way to net-zero, there is a chance to help bolster Asia’s regional energy security.
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