DOOMSCROLLING

El Niño Armageddon Qiyamah Has Officially Begun – OpEd

June 12, 2026 
By Rabbi Allen S. Maller


El Niño has officially begun, and it is forecast to intensify into a very strong or “Super” El Niño with major shifts in global weather patterns and an even hotter climate, according to a new report released Thursday morning from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. El Niño is a periodic weather pattern in the tropical Pacific Ocean that alters winds and features unusually hot waters in the central and eastern Pacific. These changes in winds and ocean temperatures have knock-on effects on weather patterns worldwide.

NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is giving this El Niño a 63% chance of becoming a “very strong” event (known as a Super El Niño) and one of the “largest El Niño events in the historical record going back to 1950.” In a sign of the center’s certainty in the forecast, it’s giving 100% odds of El Niño continuing through the fall and extremely high odds continuing into the winter. To be considered a Super El Niño, tropical Pacific water temperatures must be more than 2 degrees above average. Some reliable computer models suggest that bar will be greatly exceeded.

For the past few months, large volumes of unusually hot water have been sloshing from the western Pacific to the eastern tropical Pacific, forced by shifting winds. This unusually hot water has traveled about 600 to 1,000 feet beneath the ocean surface and is beginning to rise to the sea surface thousands of miles to the east, closer to South America. Similar dynamics have played out during past intense El Niños. Super El Niño events are relatively rare, with the most recent ones occurring in 2015-16, 1997-98 and 1982-83.

Because El Niño involves the transfer of a large amount of heat energy from the ocean to the atmosphere, this phenomenon also has implications for the global climate. It boosts global average surface temperatures on top of the human-caused warming trend from fossil fuel pollution, virtually guaranteeing that 2027 will eclipse 2024 to set a record for the planet’s new warmest year. Studies have shown that strong El Niños can reduce countries’ economic growth through disaster losses and food supply disruptions.


There is an extra dose of uncertainty about this Super El Niño’s impacts because this event is occurring when the world is already much hotter than average due to global warming from fossil fuel pollution.

Sea levels are rising faster than at any time in 4,000 years, with China’s major coastal cities at particular risk. The rapid increase is driven by warming oceans and melting ice, while human activities like groundwater pumping make it worse.

Also a group of scientists, whose research was recently published in Science, used satellite data to determine why these severe heat waves are happening. They found that 96% of the world’s ocean surfaces experienced heat wave conditions, compared with a historical (1982–2022) average of 73.7%. They also found that the average duration of heat waves had gone up to 120 days, quadrupling the historical average.

I am a Reform Rabbi who believes our planet and our species will survive and thrive through the coming climate change catastrophes, but the longer humans delay transforming our way of life away from carbon based fuels like gas, oil and coal; the more it will cost us.

The majority of Christians, Jews, and Muslims do not believe that all of humanity is moving closer and closer to a catastrophic Judgement Day. The minority who do think that Judgement Day is coming soon share the usual negative, fear-filled views of most end-times thinkers: Christians, Jews and especially Muslims, who do believe that: “The hour (of Judgement) is near” (Qur’an 54:1); and ˹The time of˺ people’s judgment has drawn near, yet they heedlessly turn away.” (Qur’an 21:1)


According to a 2012 poll by the Pew Research Center, at least half of Muslims in nine Muslim-majority countries believe that the coming of the Mahdi is “imminent,” and could happen in their lifetime. Sadly these end-times thinkers always see pre-ordained threats of a cataclysmic world wide doom; and not just the warning of the consequences if we humans do not repent and change our behavior.

This is clearly a warning for all serious Christians, Jews and Muslims. A World Meteorological Organization forecast for the next several years also predicts a 90% chance that the world will set yet another record for the hottest year by the end of 2026; that the Atlantic will continue to brew more potentially dangerous hurricanes; meteorologists say large parts of land in the Northern Hemisphere will be 1.4 degrees warmer than recent decades, and the U.S. Southwest’s drought will continue.

It is true that human society has changed more rapidly, violently, and fundamentally in the last century of the second millennium than ever before in history. Doctors saved the lives of millions. Dictators sacrificed the lives of millions. Populations exploded and birthrates declined. Technology produced both worldwide prosperity and pollution at the same time.

Knowing all this, should we look upon the first century of the third millennium with optimistic hope or with fatalistic trepidation? Are the world and our society heading towards a wonder-filled new age, or toward a doomsday; or are both occurring concurrently because breakdown is always a prelude to breakthrough?

Many who believe in the Biblical vision of a Messianic Age use the insights of the Prophets of Israel to provide guidance in understanding the social, economic, scientific, and cultural upheavals sweeping society. Usually, it is the dramatic dangers of the pre-Messianic tribulation that are emphasized. I will focus on the positive signs developing throughout the world that accord with the Messianic vision of the Biblical Prophets.


In most non-Abrahamic religious traditions, redemption is defined only in terms of individual enlightenment or personal salvation. However, the Abrahamic Prophets said that redemption is a transformation of human society that would occur through the catalyst of the transformation of the Abrahamic religious community. This transformation, which will take place in this world at some future time, is called the Messianic Age.

The transition to the Messianic Age is called the birth pangs of the Messiah. The birth of a redeemed Messianic world may be the result of easy or difficult labor. If everyone would simply live according to the moral teachings of his or her religious tradition, we would ourselves bring about the Messianic Age. But, if we will not do it voluntarily, it will come through social and political upheavals, worldwide conflicts, and generation gaps. The Messiah refers to an agent of God who helps bring about this transformation.

The Jewish tradition teaches that this agent of God (and there will be three or four such agents) will be a human being, with great spiritual leadership qualities similar to Prophets Moses or Mohammed. For Jews, the Messianic hope helped them to survive many years of oppression and evil. For Christian and Muslims the Messianic hope will be the second coming of Jesus and the Muslim Mahdi, leading up to God’s Judgement Day-Qiyamah vindication for righteous believers; and the establishment of God’s kingdom on Earth…

The arrival of the Messianic Age is what’s really important, not the specific personality of the agents who bring it about since they are simply the instruments of God, who ultimately is the real Redeemer.

The Messianic Age is usually seen as the solution to all of humanity’s basic problems. This may be true in the long run but the vast changes the transition to the Messianic Age entails will provide challenges to society for many generations to come.

The majority of Christians, Jews, and Muslims do not believe that all of humanity is moving closer and closer to a catastrophic Judgement Day. The minority who do think that Judgement Day is coming share the usual negative, fear-filled views of most end-times thinkers: Christians, Jews and especially Muslims, who do believe that: “The hour (of Judgement) is near” (Qur’an 54:1); and ˹The time of˺ people’s judgment has drawn near, yet they heedlessly turn away.” (Qur’an 21:1)

Sadly these end-times thinkers always see pre-ordained threats of cataclysmic world wide doom; and not just as Armageddon being a warning of the consequences if we humans do not repent and change our behavior. Armageddon comes from the name in the Hebrew Bible for the hill of Megiddo, which is about 80 miles north of Jerusalem, and is today only an archaeological site. The word Armageddon does not appear in the Hebrew Bible and appears only once in the Greek New Testament, in Revelation 16:16.

Armageddon is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew har məgiddô (הר מגידו). Har in Hebrew means “a mountain or hill”. Armageddon is usually seen as the final battle or battles between good and evil which lasts for only a short time; compared to the Messianic Peace that follows Armageddon that lasts until large carnivores eat only Plant based meat. Armageddon is a powerful challenge that can be overcome if most people will stop fighting each other and co-operate to reduce climate change.

Also in our own generation we have seen the dramatic fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy: “I will bring your offspring from the (Middle) East and gather you from the (European) West. To the North (Russia) I will say ‘give them up’ and to the South (Ethiopia) ‘do not hold them’. Bring my sons from far away, my daughters from the end of the earth.” (43:5-6)


Isn’t it amazing how people adjust to living in a radically new world and forget the past? Indeed, the Prophet Isaiah himself proclaimed God’s message, “Behold, I create a new Heaven and a New Earth, and former things shall not be remembered.” (65:17)

Where does the Mahdi, Prophet Jesus and the last Messiah fit in with all of this? They will still have lots to do when they arrive. Now that a large part of the Jewish people have returned to the Land of Israel, and resurrected a Jewish State, one might think that rebuilding a temple on the site where Solomon originally built one almost 3,000 years ago, would be relatively simple.

And it would, except for the fact that a Muslim Shrine called The Dome of the Rock presently occupies the Jerusalem Temple of Prophet Solomon site. Often erroneously called the Mosque of Omar, it is not a mosque and it was not built by Omar. It was built in 691 by Abd-Al-Malik and it is regarded by Muslims as the third holiest site in the world. Any attempt to replace the Dome of the Rock would provoke a Muslim Holy War of cataclysmic proportions.

There is open land on the Temple Mount, and a small 3D digital broadcast Jewish house of worship like Solomon’s Temple could be rebuilt as a virtual replica like those made by the Factum Foundation, a Madrid-based nonprofit that creates high-resolution digital replicas of the world’s cultural heritage; could be built near the Dome of the Rock provided the Muslims would cooperate.

Most observers agree that anyone who could arrange such Jewish-Muslim cooperation would really be the Messianic Ruler of Peace (Isaiah 9:5) Christian support for such a cooperative venture would also be very important, and anyone who can bring Jews, Christians, and Muslims together in mutual respect and cooperation would surely fulfill the greatest of all Messianic predictions: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning knives; nation shall not take up sword against nation, they shall never again teach war.” (Isaiah 2:4)

Indeed, such Jewish/Christian/Muslim cooperation would not be possible without great spiritual leadership in all three communities. Thus, each community could consider its leadership to be the Messiah and this would fulfill the culminating verses of Isaiah’s Messianic prophecy as enlarged upon by Micah (4:3-5),

“They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning knives. Nation shall not take up against nation, they shall never again teach war, but every man shall sit under his grapevine or fig tree with no one to disturb him, for it is the Lord of Hosts who spoke. Though all peoples walk each in the name of its God, we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.”

Then, “On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. On that day Israel will join a three-party alliance with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing upon the heart. The LORD of Hosts will bless them saying, “Blessed be Egypt My people, Assyria My handiwork, and Israel My inheritance.”…(Isaiah 19:23-5)

I know that Prophets Jesus and Muhammad warned their own communities about trying to calculate a specific end-time date for Messianic events. In the New Testament when prophet Jesus was asked in private by his disciples, “What will be the sign for your coming (back) and the end of the (present) age?” (Matthew 24:3) Prophet Jesus warned his disciples about all kinds of upheavals and false Messiahs that will come; and then concludes by saying, “But about that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, not even the son: only the Father.” (24:36) A similar statement was made by Prophet Muhammad when he was asked, “Tell me about the Hour”. He replied: “The one questioned about it knows no better than the questioner.” (Muslim book 1:1&4)

Yet we should never give up the positive Messianic hope that if each of the three Abrahamic religious communities truly follows the best of its own religious teachings; God has assured us that the Messiah will arrive, and one way or another, God’s Qiyamah-Judgement Day will arrive and God’s Kingdom of worldwide peace and prosperity will be established.


About Rabbi Allen S. Maller

Allen Maller retired in 2006 after 39 years as Rabbi of Temple Akiba in Culver City, Calif. He is the author of an introduction to Jewish mysticism. God. Sex and Kabbalah and editor of the Tikun series of High Holy Day prayerbooks.
View all posts by Rabbi Allen S. Maller →

A monster is awakening as 'super-El Niño' could devastate the planet in 2026

Bathers enjoy a summer day due to the high temperatures at Agua Dulce beach in the Chorrillos district, Lima, Peru, February 25, 2024. REUTERS/Sebastian Castaneda//File Photo

The Conversation 

June 11, 2026

El Niño is a recurring climate event with impacts across the globe. It has three phases: one cold (known as La Niña), one neutral, and one warm (El Niño).

In 2026, spring in the northern hemisphere took place in a neutral phase, which followed a relatively mild La Niña. Short-term forecast models indicate that by mid-year it is very likely that we will enter an El Niño phase. This El Niño could become very intense towards the end of the year, with talk of a “super-El Niño”. But what effects might it have? And has something similar happened in the past?

An anomalous Pacific current

This occasional anomalous warm ocean current in the Pacific was originally noted by 19th-century Peruvian fishermen. They called it El Niño – “the child” in Spanish – because it often arrived around Christmas time.

It occurred when warm waters from the equatorial Pacific replaced the usual cold waters off the coasts of Ecuador (south of the city of Guayaquil), Peru and northern Chile. These waters are normally quite cold due to the Humboldt Current – which flows from south to north along this sections of South America’s coastline – and due to the upwelling of deep cold waters.

The impact of these currents is significant. Take, for instance, the Chilean city of Antofagasta on the Pacific coast, and Rio de Janeiro on the Atlantic coast. They are at almost exactly the same latitude, the Tropic of Capricorn, but their average sea temperatures are very different: around 18°C in Antofagasta and 24°C in Rio de Janeiro.

For Peruvian fishermen, the arrival of the warmer El Niño current meant the disappearance of their most abundant and prized fish, the anchoveta, which thrives in cold, plankton-rich waters.

An ocean and atmospheric phenomenon

In the 1920s, British physicist and climatologist Gilbert Walker made a surprising discovery. While analysing vast amounts of atmospheric pressure data, he realised that when pressure increased in the South American Pacific, it decreased in northern Australia and Indonesia, and vice versa. In other words, these two regions of the planet, thousands of kilometres apart, were connected in terms of atmospheric pressure behaviour. This is what we now call a teleconnection, a long-distance meteorological link.

This coordinated oscillation in atmospheric pressure across the South Pacific was named the Southern Oscillation. But what does El Niño, an ocean current, have to do with the Southern Oscillation, an atmospheric phenomenon?

As well as having a negative impact on the Peruvian fishing industry, El Niño brings rainfall – sometimes torrential – to the arid regions of Peru and northern Chile, home to the world’s driest desert, the Atacama. In 1957-1958, a very intense El Niño caused torrential rainfall in Peru and other countries, and a severe drought in India and Southeast Asia, spurring further research into the phenomenon.

In the 1960s, Norwegian-American meteorologist Jacob Bjerknes found that the warming of the South American Pacific caused by El Niño was linked to the Southern Oscillation, thereby establishing a close connection between the ocean and the atmosphere.

When the South Pacific tropical anticyclone – with its associated trade wind pattern that blows from South America towards Australia and Indonesia – weakens, the waters of the equatorial Pacific warm and begin to shift towards Central America. There they branch off, mainly southwards, along the coasts of parts of Ecuador, Peru and Chile. This is how El Niño is generated.

Bjerknes demonstrated that the atmosphere and the ocean are closely linked, and that what happens in one part of the climate system has an impact elsewhere. Combining the names of the oceanic and atmospheric components gave rise to the El Niño’s official name: El Niño-Southern Oscillation (often abbreviated to ENSO).

The worst El Niño of the 20th century

In 1982–83, the most intense El Niño of the 20th century caused extreme weather events throughout the world, including floods in the American Pacific and in the southern United States, and droughts in north-eastern Brazil and Indonesia. It also caused a very mild winter in the mid-latitudes of Europe, Asia and North America.

From that point onward it was observed that, from time to time, temperatures in the equatorial Pacific also showed a negative anomaly, meaning they were lower than normal. At the same time, the South Pacific high-pressure system strengthened, along with the trade winds. This situation was the opposite of El Niño and was named La Niña.

In short, El Niño brings warm waters and instability, while La Niña brings colder waters than normal and greater stability to Ecuador, Chile and Peru. These phenomena form recurring cycles, though not over fixed periods of time.

The last intense El Niño of the 20th century occurred in 1997–98, causing severe flooding in California. It received widespread media coverage, as the disasters occurred in the US.

How might the next intense El Niño behave?

A super-El Niño would undoubtedly lead, if not in 2026 then certainly in 2027, to a higher global average temperature – a few tenths of a degree above what would be expected given the current rate of global warming. There would also be heavy rainfall in the aforementioned Andean countries, the Argentinian area of Mar del Plata, East Africa, and parts of the southern United States, with severe droughts in Southeast Asia, parts of Australia and northeastern Brazil.

In the Mediterranean basin, the El Niño-La Niña cycle is weaker, largely due to the region’s unique geographical characteristics. However, during a very strong El Niño event it can expect higher than normal temperatures, and perhaps a greater likelihood of extreme rainfall.

In any case, what once appeared to be a phenomenon confined to Peruvian fishing grounds is now known to be a global interaction between the atmosphere and the ocean, with repercussions that can be catastrophic in regions far removed from its source.

Javier Martín Vide, Catedrático de Geografía Física, Universitat de Barcelona

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

'The big one': CA braces for massive earthquake as fault stress hits 1,000-year peak

Photo by USGS on Unsplash

Sarah K. Burris

June 09, 2026  

ALTERNET

California's fault lines are under the most amount of stress than they've experienced in 1,000 years, researchers revealed.

A new study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research, Solid Earth, cites concerns that a major earthquake might be on the horizon. There's no real way of knowing when it could happen, the experts warned.

Gizmodo reported the study on Tuesday, including a visualization from the research team of the tectonic plates in California. These plates are constantly pushing, pulling or sliding. The fault lines are where fractures in the plates accumulate pressure, and stress on those faults can build up over time.

Eventually, when the stress exceeds the friction holding the rocks together, an earthquake occurs as the fault ruptures. The more often there are little earthquakes that release the pressure, the less buildup there can be. The longer it has been since the last quake, the more energy is accumulated. All of that built-up stress energy is released as waves or vibrations that travel through the Earth, moving the ground.

“The question of when and how the next major earthquake will occur in this region is one of the most pressing problems in applied geoscience,” said lead author Liliane Burkhard, a geophysicist and planetary geologist at the University of Bern in Switzerland, in a press release. “Our results provide a clearer, physics-based picture of the current stress state of the fault system, and the framework we developed is not just applicable to California, but also for other complex fault junctions worldwide."

The visualization shows the greatest stress on the fault line northeast of Los Angeles. The last major quake was a magnitude 7.9 in Fort Tejon in 1857. It remains one of the largest on record, Gizmodo recounted. Even the infamous 1994 Northridge quake didn't exceed 7.0, and it cost an estimated $49 billion, the Los Angeles Daily News reported in 2014.

Scientists are fearful that the San Andreas Fault System could move "any day now," the report said.

"Their physics-based earthquake cycle model simulates this process in three spatial dimensions over time," said Gizmodo, citing the research. The scientists put geological data of past quakes into their model, which included things like tree-ring anomalies and radiocarbon dating.

"When they ran it, the results indicated that tectonic stresses along the San Andreas and San Jacinto fault zones have reached and, in some cases, exceeded the highest levels of the last millennium," the report said.

There are two main points in the fault system where the San Andreas and San Jacinto are. Burkhard and her co-researchers called it a kind of "earthquake gate."

“The earthquake gate concept captures something important about how fault junctions work,” Burkhard said in the release. “Cajon Pass doesn’t simply block or channel earthquakes: It responds to stress conditions, and those conditions change over centuries.”

When stress builds up on both faults, it's more likely that one'll rupture at a major joint and cross both systems, the study said. That's why they fear it could be more substantial than quakes in past centuries.

The Hidden Infrastructure Challenge Behind Renewable Energy Growth

By Irina Slav - Jun 12, 2026

The Middle East crisis has spurred more interest in alternative energy supply, but the evolution of transition technology has made transporting things like turbine blades and batteries problematic, DHL’s chief executive has warned.

“Large wind turbines now have blades of astonishing dimensions,” Tobias Meyer told the media, as quoted by Bloomberg. “These large cargoes create high wind loads for vessels, require stacking and specialized rigs to transport, as they are also quite vulnerable.”

Wind turbine equipment has been steadily getting larger in order to boost the generation capacity of the installations. Bloomberg noted in its report a Chinese company that has developed a 26-MW turbine whose blades measure 153 meters and another company that has built a 50-MW turbine that requires even longer blades.

Batteries, on the other hand, constitute a fire risk, which has made transporting them a challenge in terms of insurance and, therefore, costs. Some shipping companies have even refused to transport EVs and batteries due to that risk. Last year, a fire broke out on a ship transporting 3,000 cars, among them 800 electric vehicles, and the ship had to be abandoned in the Pacific.

Battery demand is on a strong rise as transition tech adopters seek to make wind and solar electricity supply more reliable and available on demand rather than only when the weather allows. According to BloombergNEF, demand for batteries, including for storage, is set to rise 17 times between 2025 and 2050, to reach 3.8 terawatts.

DHL is addressing the battery problem by building a special transport hub for battery products in its native Netherlands, and using special containers with thermal insulation to reduce the risk of spontaneous combustion and fires on board ships. Another DHL executive noted that the challenging nature of transporting transition tech would require the development of specialized infrastructure because many wind and solar installations are built in areas that are far from established trade routes, Bloomberg also reported.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

 

France Releases Details for a Mega-Scale, 11-Project Offshore Wind Tender

Fecamp launched in 2024 was among France's largest wind farms to date while TotalEnergies is now developing a massive 1.5 GW project near Le Havre (Fecamp)

Published Jun 11, 2026 9:50 PM by The Maritime Executive

The French government is set to release the specifications for its next offshore wind tender, which seeks to develop 11 projects spanning each of France’s water borders and achieve 10 GW of capacity. The Ministry of Energy is calling it one of the largest offshore wind development programs ever undertaken in Europe.

The Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE) will release the specifications on June 12, detailing five fixed bottom projects to provide 5 GW and an additional 5 GW from five floating wind farms that can be placed further from shore. It notes that the tender, which has been delayed since 2024, combines its ninth and tenth rounds to AO10, which “truly marks a change of scale.”

France currently has approximately 2 GW of installed offshore wind energy capacity. The government’s goal is to reach 15 GW by 2035 and 45 GW by 2050. In addition to the installed capacity, 4.8 GW is currently in the development pipeline.

 

Preliminary map showing the scope of the projects proposed for AO10 (CRE)

 

“The development of offshore wind power is one of the pillars of France’s energy and climate strategy,” said the Energy Ministry. It notes that the program is designed to ensure energy availability at a controlled cost and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Its goal is to ensure France’s energy sovereignty.

The tender aims to establish a weighted average price of €100 per MWh. Observers note it is significantly above the €66 per MWh awarded to TotalEnergies in the last fixed-bottom tender, but below the anticipated cost of projects using less developed technologies.

Companies will have four months to submit their proposals to CRE. It will analyze the bids and issue its opinion by the beginning of 2027.

One new element added to the tender process is scoring for projects that favor European manufacturers and minimize the use of components sourced from China. It will give the highest scores to projects using French manufacturers and suppliers, and also consider the promotion of low-carbon projects.

The Ministry for Energy is expected to award contracts in February 2027.

 

WTIV Loses Control in Danish Port Damaging Blades for Offshore Wind Farm

Port of Esbjerg has become a key hub for staging and supporting offshore wind vessels (Esbjerg)

Published Jun 11, 2026 4:04 PM by The Maritime Executive

High winds and poor weather conditions are being cited as the likely cause for an incident in the Port of Esbjerg, Denmark, on Wednesday morning, June 10. Blades for an offshore wind farm were damaged, and the vessels, pier, and a crane were still being inspected, while the wind turbine installation vessel (WTIV) Brave Tern has been detained.

Estimates in the local media are that more than $150,000 worth of damage resulted as blades for the Thor wind farm were damaged as a result of the allision. The Brave Tern struck another docked installation vessel, Wind Keeper, before hitting the crane and the pier.

Initial reports said that no one was injured. Later, they, however, said that one person had been sent to the hospital for a medical checkup.

According to the Danish Maritime Authority and RWE, which has chartered the Brave Tern, the vessel had completed the load out with nine blades for the installation at the Thor wind farm. The Brave Tern was attempting to maneuver in the harbor when it was pushed into the other ship. 

 

 

The blades were damaged as the vessel clipped the docked vessel and was pushed up against a shore crane. According to the media reports, the value of each of the blades is approximately 3.6 million euros. Pictures showed the blades broken and bent over.

Thor, which began turbine installation in March, is located approximately 13 miles offshore. It will be Denmark’s largest offshore wind farm, consisting of 72 Siemens Gamesa 15 MW turbines. Installation is scheduled to be completed this year.

The Brave Tern is a 15,300 gross ton WTIV owned by Fred Olsen Windcarrier. Built in 2012, it is 132 meters (433 feet) in length and able to carry up to 9,000 tons of material. The jack-up vessel is registered in Malta. 

It struck the Wind Keeper (22,500 gross tons), which is owned by Cadeler and registered in the Marshall Islands. The 196-meter (643-foot) vessel was docked.

The Danish Maritime Authority ordered the Brave Tern detained after the allision. Both vessels, as well as the port infrastructure, were being inspected for additional damage.

VOLUNTEERISM FAILS

Voluntary Pledges ‘Aren’t Working,’ Report Shows as Big Banks Continue to Sow Climate Chaos

“Banks keep telling us they’re committed to climate. Then they abandon their own policies the moment political pressure mounts. Voluntary pledges have had their chance. We need binding rules—not promises.”

Wrecked vehicles remain submerged in floodwaters as volunteers work to clean up and recover belongings on July 7, 2025, after a weekend flash flood devastated homes in Leander, Texas.
(Photo by Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)

Julia Conley
Jun 09, 2026
COMMON DREAMS

Calls for an end to oil, gas, and coal extraction grew louder in 2025 as the impact of fossil-fueled planetary heating was starkly illustrated by devastating wildfires across the Los Angeles area, deadly flash floods in Texas, a European heatwave that was blamed for the deaths of more than 24,000 people, and cyclones and floods that killed thousands.

But as climate action groups demanded that governments and financial institutions end support for fossil fuel projects and companies last year, according to a report released Monday by several organizations, the world’s largest banks only committed more financing to projects like the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) “boom” in the Philippines, and fracking in the Permian Basin.

Last year, according to Banking on Climate Chaos—released by groups including the Rainforest Action Network, Sierra Club, and Oil Change International—the world’s largest financial institutions committed $906 billion in financing to fossil fuel companies, representing an 8% increase over funding the previous year.

The groups emphasized that the banks financed pollution-causing oil, gas, and coal projects even as they made “voluntary commitments” to “aligning their lending, investment, and capital markets activities with net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050,” as a now-defunct United Nations-backed scheme called the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) pledged.

More than a decade after countries agreed to the Paris climate accord and pledged to take action in a push to avert planetary heating over 1.5°C above pre-industrial temperatures, the report notes, “banks maintain and are expected to uphold climate policies independent of the NZBA.”

However, it continues, “the collapse of the NZBA—culminating in its cessation of operations in October 2025—freed banks to further unwind from climate targets and other elements of their climate strategies.”

“Notably, throughout 2025 and the first half of 2026, banks have further weakened their commitments to uphold 1.5˚C temperature rise limits, widened loopholes, and undercut sector policies for coal, oil, and gas energy or power supply primarily by removing or diluting exclusion criteria and commitments. Most policy changes in the past year were downgrades of existing policies rather than improvements,” reads the report.

“Voluntary commitments aren’t working. No major oil and gas company is doing anything even close to what is needed to hold global heating to 1.5°C, and voluntary banking sector pledges like the Net Zero Banking Alliance aren’t cutting their pipeline of cash.”

Diogo Silva, campaign lead for BankTrack and a co-author of the report, said: “Banks keep telling us they’re committed to climate. Then they abandon their own policies the moment political pressure mounts. Voluntary pledges have had their chance. We need binding rules—not promises.”

Banking on Climate Chaos highlights the banks that spent the most money investing in fossil fuel projects, with JPMorgan Chase named the leading financier of oil, coal, and gas. The Wall Street firm spent $58 billion in 2025, the same year it also “weakened” its own climate policy.

“Of the 15 North American banks in scope, 12 now have no meaningful fossil fuel commitments,” said Rainforest Action network. “JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs abandoned their coal and Arctic exclusions entirely, converting them into case-by-case due diligence standards.”

JPMorgan Chase is one of three US banks listed in the top five fossil fuel backers; Bank of America financed the second-largest amount of pollution-causing projects at $47 billion, while Citigroup poured more than $45 billion into fossil fuels. Two Japanese institutions, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Mizuho Financial, were also in the top five.

With President Donald Trump taking executive action last year aimed at pressuring companies to back fossil fuel interests and “disregard social or environmental considerations,” the report notes, US banks’ share of all global fossil fuel financing increased to 32%, representing “the single largest source of fossil capital in the world.” In 2021, US banks provided 28% of fossil fuel investment.

Trump has also aggressively pushed for more coal production since taking office for his second term in January 2025, and financing for coal mining expansion surged 77% in 2025, to $84 billion. Funding for coal power also grew by 40%, with companies pouring $81 billion into coal-fired plants.

Even when asked about the report’s findings, top banks pointed to their own voluntary commitments to finance renewable energy projects and “achieve net zero financed emissions by 2050,” as a spokesperson for Citigroup said to The Guardian.

The spokesperson said the bank “supports clients in the low‑carbon transition while recognizing the real need for secure, affordable and reliable energy today. We are committed to... advancing our $1 trillion sustainable finance goal, with a focus on balancing the transition with global energy resilience”.

David Tong, global industry campaign manager for Oil Change International and a co-author of the report, warned that “every dollar of finance for oil and gas helps an industry of war profiteers squeeze out short-term profits, further trapping communities into paying higher fossil fuel energy bills, fueling war and conflict, and burning all our futures.”

“Voluntary commitments aren’t working. No major oil and gas company is doing anything even close to what is needed to hold global heating to 1.5°C, and voluntary banking sector pledges like the Net Zero Banking Alliance aren’t cutting their pipeline of cash,” he said. “Instead, banks have injected over staggering $900 billion into fossil fuel financing in 2025 alone. Governments must step in and take urgent action to hold financial institutions and fossil fuel companies accountable for their role in the climate crisis.”

Since the Paris climate agreement, the report says, banks have poured a staggering $8.7 trillion into the fossil fuel industry, with the “Dirty Dozen,” as the authors call the 12 largest fossil fuel financial backers, providing nearly 40% of all investment for coal, oil, and gas extraction.

The report makes demands of banks, calling on them to “exclude all finance for fossil fuel expansion immediately” and “require robust, 1.5°C-aligned transition plans from all existing fossil fuel clients”—but emphasizes that governments must compel financial institutions to end financing for oil, gas, and coal.

“After two consecutive years of fossil fuel finance increases by global banks—especially the increase in fossil fuel expansion finance and the continued backtracking from banks on their climate pledges—it is clear that the banking sector will not voluntarily take the necessary steps to transition out of fossil fuel finance at the pace and scale needed for the world to deliver on the Paris Agreement goals,” reads the report.

Instead, it says, governments must mandate transition planning by banks, private equity holders, insurers, and other companies; make polluters pay for climate damages; ensure public finance institutions are subject to transparent reporting and legal accountability to international standards, and rapidly wind down supply-side fossil fuel subsidies, tax exemptions, subsidies, guarantees or other public assistance for new oil, gas, and coal projects.

“A decade after Paris, just twelve banks now drive more than a third of the world’s fossil fuel financing—proof that this is no longer a problem of markets, but of a small set of decision-makers making active choices,” said Niko Lusiani, research director for Rainforest Action Network. “They are choosing to lock in an energy system that hands record profits to a few fossil firms while passing the costs onto the three of every four people on Earth who depend on imported fuel.”

“The good news is that what a handful of banks built,” said Lusiani, “governments and people worldwide have the power to change.”

Despite Trump’s Relentless Attack on Renewables, Solar Surpassed Coal Energy in US for First Time in May

“Solar is cheaper, cleaner, more reliable,” said Rep. Jared Huffman. “Trump needs to end his war on clean energy and get on board with what’s best for America.”


Landowners, educators, and government employees stand under solar panels during a tour of a Solar Stampede site in Saltillo, Texas on May 28, 2026.
(Photo by Angela Piazza/The Dallas Morning News via Getty Images)

Julia Conley
Jun 11, 2026
COMMON DREAMS

Since taking office 16 months ago, President Donald Trump has gone to extreme lengths to try to reverse the undeniable trend in the direction of solar power and away from expensive, planet-heating coal—but two new reports reveal how, despite Trump’s relentless efforts, Americans are using renewable solar energy to power their homes and businesses more than ever.

The global energy think tank Ember revealed Wednesday that in May, for the first ever, solar supplied more of the United States’ electricity than coal, at 12.8%. Coal dropped to its fourth-lowest point last month, delivering just 12.2% of electricity. Solar also became the third-largest source of electricity in May, behind gas and nuclear power.

The previous month, coal hit an all-time low, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration analyzed by Ember.

Another report from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) and the analytics firm Wood Mackenzie found that solar and battery storage accounted for 91% of all new energy generation capacity in the first quarter of 2026.

The news comes a week after Trump announced $700 million in new funding for the nation’s coal industry, some of which is planned for the building of two brand-new coal-fired plants, which would be the first to be built in the US in 13 years.

US Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) compared Trump’s latest effort to “lighting $700 million taxpayer dollars on fire,” but emphasized that “the proof is there.”

“Solar is cheaper, cleaner, more reliable,” he said. “Trump needs to end his war on clean energy and get on board with what’s best for America.”



Last week’s announcement is one of numerous steps Trump has taken to prop up coal, one of the fossil fuels that scientists warn are heating the planet and increasingly causing destructive extreme weather events.

In February the president ordered the Pentagon to sign taxpayer-funded contracts with coal plants that otherwise would have been retired in the coming years, to provide electricity to military installations.

The Department of Energy also pledged $625 million to “expand and reinvigorate America’s coal industry,” an effort that has run into opposition even from the industry itself. In Colorado, two utilities, Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association and the Platte River Power Authority, which co-own a coal-fired plant the administration has demanded stay in operation, filed a petition earlier this year asking the DOE to allow them to close the facility, saying they’ve built solar and wind farms and that being forced to buy coal and maintain the plant amounts to a violation of the US Constitution’s takings clause.

While demanding that coal production continues, Trump has taken direct aim at the booming solar industry—canceling projects and terminating $7 billion in funding for an affordable renewable energy program.

On the online news show “Breaking Points,” Ryan Grim noted that solar and wind power surged in the first quarter before Trump joined Israel in waging war on Iran, a decision that sent oil prices skyrocketing.

“I would imagine the second quarter is going to see 98%” of energy generating capacity coming from solar power, said Grim.

“Who out there is like, ‘You know, what we need to do is invest deeply in building out our fossil fuel infrastructure’ at this point?” he said.

 Nuclear News

China Unveils Nuclear-Powered Floating Hub for Zero-Emission Shipping

By ZeroHedge - Jun 10, 2026

• Jiangnan Shipyard — a subsidiary of state-owned China State Shipbuilding Corporation — unveiled a nuclear-powered floating logistics hub at the Posidonia International Shipping Exhibition in Greece, designed to serve as a container transshipment terminal, energy production centre, and vessel charging station.
• 
  
• The platform's core power source is a molten salt reactor, supplemented by solar and wind, capable of producing hydrogen, ammonia, and synthetic green fuels for both terminal operations and support vessels.
• 
  
• The concept builds on Jiangnan's 2023 nuclear containership design — which received DNV approval in principle — and comes after the company secured manufacturing and installation licences from China's nuclear safety authorities earlier this year.
• 
  

China has proposed a large offshore logistics platform powered by nuclear energy that would function as both a cargo transfer hub and a refuelling/charging centre for ships, according to the South China Morning Post.

The concept, unveiled by Jiangnan Shipyard, combines port infrastructure, energy generation, and cargo handling into a single floating facility aimed at reducing emissions in maritime transport. The project was presented at the Posidonia International Shipping Exhibition in Greece.

The SCMP writes that the platform would rely on a molten salt reactor as its primary energy source, supplemented by renewable technologies including solar and wind power. It would also feature systems for hydrogen production, synthetic green fuels, and electricity distribution. According to the company, the facility could generate clean power and fuels such as ammonia for both terminal operations and electric support vessels.

Jiangnan argues that molten salt reactor technology offers significant safety benefits because it is resistant to conventional meltdown scenarios and the coolant solidifies quickly if released, limiting the potential impact of leaks.

Designed to support international shipping lanes, coastal transport links, and cargo transshipment, the floating hub could also be replicated at other strategic ports thanks to its modular design.

The proposal builds on Jiangnan's ongoing work in nuclear-powered shipping. In 2024, the company revealed plans for a large container vessel powered by a thorium-based molten salt reactor. Meanwhile, Chinese scientists have continued advancing the technology, recently demonstrating a successful conversion of thorium into uranium fuel within a molten salt reactor system. Thorium is widely viewed as a more abundant alternative to conventional uranium fuel.

By Zerohedge

World Nuclear News

Chile and Argentina sign nuclear cooperation agreement

Wednesday, 10 June 2026

Collaboration between Chile and Argentina will focus on research reactors, radiopharmaceuticals, applications of nuclear technology in health, agriculture, industry and mining as well as other areas.
 

(Image: CCHEN)

The two countries have had agreements on cooperation in the area of peaceful uses of nuclear technology dating back to 1976.

This latest agreement was signed by representatives of Argentina's National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA) and the Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission (CCHEN).

It was signed for the Argentine side by CNEA President Martin Porro, who called it "an important milestone in the field of bilateral and regional cooperation, given that the Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission is an institution with which we have been working closely for years on a wide variety of issues, including within the framework of International Atomic Energy Agency initiatives such as the Latin American Research Reactor Network".

Richard Gonzalez, acting executive director of Chile's CCHEN, said: "We are very pleased to have consolidated and finalised this cooperation and mutual collaboration agreement. This will boost science and technology in our country … working in collaboration with the CNEA allows us to enhance our technological development in Chile."

The form of cooperation set out in the agreement includes information exchange technical visits and joint research and technological development projects and programmes.

The two organisations said the areas covered are: research reactors and their applications; radiopharmaceuticals; applications of nuclear technology in health, agriculture, industry and mining; nuclear and radiological safety; human resource training; used fuel management; modernisation and management of technological aging, especially of nuclear reactors; and scientific and technical assistance in nuclear power.

Argentina has three nuclear reactors generating about 7% of its electricity. Its first commercial nuclear power reactor began operating in 1974. It had been developing the CAREM25 small modular reactor, but work on that has been halted under the current government. Uranium exploration and some mining was carried out from the mid-1950s, but the last mine closed in 1997 for economic reasons. It also has a long history with research reactors, including the RA-10 research reactor which is currently under construction.

The Chilean Nuclear Energy Commission has operated the RECH-1 research reactor since 1974. This reactor is located at La Reina Nuclear Centre in Santiago. It is a 5 MW pool-type reactor using low-enriched uranium fuel assemblies, light water as moderator and coolant, and beryllium as reflector. The main use of the RECH-1 reactor is the production of radioisotopes, mainly for medicine. In addition, irradiation of samples is carried out for chemical analysis and geological material, for purposes of determining age and preparing radioactive tracers. Chile does not have any nuclear energy plants, but there have been various proposals to develop some in the past.

BN-1200 targeted for construction start in 2027

Wednesday, 10 June 2026

Site clearance work has been taking place for the proposed sodium-cooled fast neutron BN-1200 reactor at Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Plant.
 

(Image: Rosatom)

The unit, which will be the fifth at the site in Russia's Sverdlovsk region, will become the world's largest fast-neutron reactor.

The sodium-cooled BN-series fast reactor plans are part of Rosatom's project to develop fast reactors with a closed fuel cycle whose mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel will be reprocessed and recycled. In addition to the BN-600 reactor at Beloyarsk unit 3, which began operation in 1980, the 789 MWe BN-800 fast reactor at Beloyarsk unit 4 entered commercial operation in October 2016. This is essentially a demonstration unit for fuel and design features for the larger BN-1200, which will be unit 5 at Beloyarsk.

Details of the proposed construction timelines came during a visit to the site by Rosenergoatom CEO Alexander Shutikov (see picture above), where he heard that 1.4 million cubic metres of waste soil and vegetation have been cleared from the site.

Site preparation for drilling and blasting operations and site planning are scheduled to be ready this summer, reported Yuri Nosov, director of the power plant.

And Shutikov said: "Our primary focus now is completing the design documentation for submission to the Main Directorate of State Expertise of Russia, with the goal of receiving a conclusion on the design documentation for the main construction period by the end of 2026. The next step is to obtain a licence to construct the power unit in the spring of 2027."

He said the target for first concrete was by the end of 2027. When the preliminary phase for construction of the unit was launched in July last year by Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev, 2034 was reported as the target date for completion.

Rosatom says the service life of the BN-1200 power unit will be at least 60 years. Its design uses technical solutions that have proven themselves in the operation of the BN-600 and BN-800 reactors, but also features innovations. For example, the BN-1200 will have four instead of three loops for the circulation of liquid sodium, like its predecessors; the volume of the in-reactor storage facility will be increased to allow the unloading of fuel assemblies from the reactor directly into the used fuel pool, eliminating the intermediate drum for used assemblies; and the turbine condensers will be cooled using a chimney-type evaporative cooling tower.

In April last year Russia's nuclear regulator Rostechnadzor gave the go-ahead for the BN-1200 reactor. The licence was issued after the consideration of a package of documents covering the safety of the power unit and its compliance with technical regulations, federal rules and standards and legislation, Rosatom said.

It says that the fourth generation units "have the potential to radically transform the nuclear energy industry, primarily through a new level of safety, an expanded fuel mix, and a significant reduction in radioactive waste" and contributing to a closed nuclear fuel cycle.

Japan, Kazakhstan extend cooperation on fast reactors

Wednesday, 10 June 2026

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency and Kazakhstan's National Nuclear Centre have agreed to a new phase of their joint core safety experiments of fast reactors, which focus on severe accident mitigation measures for demonstration fast reactors.
 

The signing of the memorandum of cooperation in in Almaty, Kazakhstan, on 3 June (Image: NNC RK)

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) and the National Nuclear Centre of the Republic of Kazakhstan (NNC RK) have been advancing the phased EAGLE Projects on core safety experiments of fast reactors since the early 2000s and implemented three phases: EAGLE-1, EAGLE-2, and EAGLE-3. It is aimed at advancing the safety of sodium-cooled fast reactors, including the investigation of phenomena associated with severe accidents involving core melt. The project includes studies of molten core material behaviour and its interaction with sodium coolant and structural materials through both in-pile and out-of-pile experiments. In-pile tests are conducted at NNC RK's unique IGR research reactor, while out-of-pile studies are performed at the EAGLE test-bench.

About 200 preparatory tests have been carried out, along with two intermediate-scale and nine full-scale reactor experiments, as well as more than 65 out-of-pile tests at the EAGLE test-bench. The EAGLE-1, EAGLE-2, and EAGLE-3 experimental programmes have been successfully completed, confirming that molten fuel is promptly discharged from the core in the event of a severe accident. In addition, with the support of Marubeni Utility Service Ltd, analytical and computational studies were performed to prepare the next phase of the EAGLE programme (the Post-EAGLE-3 project).

NNC RK Director General Erlan Batyrbekov and JAEA President Masanori Koguchi have now signed a memorandum of cooperation to undertake a fourth-phase cooperative research project - EAGLE-4 - and to promote core safety experiments toward the implementation of fast reactors while further strengthening collaboration between both institutions.

The EAGLE-4 project includes several in-pile experiments, twelve out-of-pile experiments, and a series of small-scale tests. The main objectives of this new phase are to test fuel assemblies for advanced Japanese Generation IV reactors, conduct research at the IGR reactor and other NNC RK facilities, and provide the scientific basis for the safety assessment of advanced nuclear technologies.

JAEA said it will conclude in coming months an implementation arrangement that defines the detailed specifications of the core safety tests to be implemented under the EAGLE-4 project and will proceed with the cooperative research with NNC RK.

NNC RK said it is in discussions with JAEA on the continuation of the EAGLE-4 project through to 2031.

Fast neutron reactors offer the prospect of vastly more efficient use of uranium resources than in conventional power reactors, as well as the ability to burn actinides. Fast reactors have operated in various countries since the 1950s, with some producing electricity commercially.

JAEA has a history of operating sodium-cooled fast reactors, such as Monju in Fukui Prefecture and the Joyo experimental fast reactor in Ibaraki Prefecture. However, the development of fast reactors in Japan was halted when the government decided to decommission Monju in 2016, following a series of problems, including leakage of sodium coolant in 1995.

In the strategic roadmap for fast reactor development adopted by Japan's Cabinet in December 2018, a policy was defined to assess the efficacy of various types of fast reactors to be developed following a technological competition among private-sector corporations. The roadmap was subsequently revised by the Cabinet decision on 23 December 2022, at which time two decisions were taken: firstly, to select a sodium-cooled fast reactor as the target of the conceptual design of the demonstration reactor, set to get under way in fiscal 2024; and secondly, to select a manufacturer to serve as the core company in charge of the fast reactor's design and requisite R&D which would proceed with technology development in accordance with the goals and policy directions established by the government.

In collaboration with domestic companies, JAEA is conducting research and development towards the implementation of fast reactors, including the conceptual design of a demonstration fast reactor and the development of severe accident mitigation technologies. A demonstration fast reactor is planned to operate by 2050.

Tanzania's stalled $1bn uranium project Mkuju River gains momentum after talks with Russian partners

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By Brian Kenety June 10, 2026

Tanzania’s long-delayed Mkuju River uranium project has gained renewed political and investment momentum following President Samia Suluhu Hassan’s visit to Russia, with officials signalling that implementation is moving closer to full-scale development.

The project, which has been stalled for more than a decade, is being developed in Tanzania's Ruvuma region by Mantra Tanzania Limited, a subsidiary of Uranium One Group, which is wholly owned by Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom.

Uranium One was formerly a publicly traded Canadian uranium company, but it was acquired by Rosatom through its subsidiary Atomredmetzoloto (ARMZ) and taken private in 2013. According to the company, Mkuju River is a “world-class uranium development project” with the Nyota deposit among the largest uranium projects globally with a resource reserve of 152 million tonnes of ore.

Last year, Hassan signed a deal with Rosatom to build a $400mn uranium processing plant as part of a $1.2bn, 20-year plan to extract and process 300,000 tonnes of Tanzania’s massive reserves.

The newly revived Mkuju River project was effectively put on hold after the 2011 Fukushima nuclear accident triggered a prolonged downturn in uranium prices, making many planned uranium developments commercially unviable.

Improving uranium market fundamentals and renewed global interest in nuclear power, including across Africa, have since revived investor interest in the project.

Speaking to The Citizen, Minister for Minerals Anthony Mavunde said talks held in Moscow reinforced commitments between Tanzanian and Russian stakeholders involved in the project, which is central to the East African country’s ambitions to become a significant uranium producer.

“The visit has added significant momentum to the project,” the minister said, adding that key preparatory stages were already complete and that implementation was expected to accelerate.

Mantra Tanzania has previously commissioned a pilot uranium-processing facility to test extraction technology and support the design of the main industrial plant. The company has also issued tenders for infrastructure works at the site.

"Rosatom offers its cutting-edge uranium processing technologies to develop the distinctive geological potential of Tanzania. As with all our partners, we intend to advance cooperation with the country on the basis of equality and mutual understanding," Alexey Likhachev, Director General of Rosatom, said in a statement in July 2025.

"In doing so, Rosatom consistently adheres to the principles of sustainable development while strictly upholding high environmental and social standards. We are delighted to assist Tanzania in taking a pivotal step toward integrating into the global nuclear energy landscape."

Financing discussions are ongoing with Russian and Tanzanian lenders as developers seek capital for construction. Questions remain over long-term funding as the project’s special mining licence approaches expiry in 2028. Officials say renewal is possible under existing legal provisions.

As IntelliNews reported, Tanzania and Russia in June also agreed to expand cooperation in geological research, technical training and mining capacity building, building on long-standing Soviet-era ties.

Tanzania’s renewed focus on uranium comes amid a global shift towards low-emission energy sources, with the International Atomic Energy Agency recognising the country’s development potential and the World Nuclear Association listing it among countries with viable uranium resources.

According to project feasibility studies, Mkuju River could produce more than 4,000 tonnes of uranium annually, potentially positioning Tanzania as one of Africa’s leading producers.

Africa is an important source of uranium for the global nuclear industry, with mines in Namibia, Niger and South Africa accounting for about 14% of world uranium production, according to the World Nuclear Association.

Namibia remains the continent's largest producer, producing 8,000 tonnes annually, and the world's third-largest uranium supplier after Kazakhstan and Canada.

New uranium projects advance across the continent

Meanwhile, Aura Energy (ASX: AEE, AIM: AURA) is targeting a final investment decision (FID) for its Tiris uranium project in Mauritania by the end of 2026 after signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with a “major international nuclear utility” and advancing multiple funding options.

The Australian miner said in an update on June 2 that the non-binding MOU covers potential investment, uranium offtake and technical collaboration linked to the Tiris project, which would become Mauritania’s first uranium mine and the country’s first new mine in two decades.

Canada-based uranium developer Global Atomic Corporation (TSX: GLO, OTCQX: GLATF, FRANKFURT: G12) said last month it had secured renewed political backing from Niger’s military-led government for the Dasa uranium project, as the West African state seeks to strengthen mining investment and expand trade links following its post-coup diplomatic realignment.

Global Atomic said on May 26 that members of its executive team, led by chief executive Stephen Roman, met Niger President General Abdourahamane Tiani, Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine and Mines Minister Ousmane Abarchi during a visit to Niamey and the Dasa project site.

Niger's uranium mining sector had historically been dominated by French nuclear fuel company Orano S.A. (EPA: ORA), formerly Areva. But the country has continued to reposition its mining and foreign investment relationships since a July 2023 military coup, which triggered tensions with Western governments and regional bloc ECOWAS.

In December 2025, a Memorandum of Cooperation was signed between the Nigerien state company Timersoi National Uranium Company (TNUC) and Uranium One, intended to develop Russian cooperation in uranium mining. Under this partnership, the parties plan to obtain the necessary permits, conduct geological exploration of prospective deposits, and ultimately establish new uranium mining operations at those sites.

Issoufou Tsalhatou, Secretary General of TNUC, stated: "Niger has large-scale plans for developing its uranium mineral resource base and is interested in attracting Russian partners who have reference experience and competencies in managing mining projects based on safety principles. This approach establishes a solid foundation for the successful implementation of projects to develop the country's strategic resources."

Nuclear expansion underpins uranium demand outlook

Growing investment in nuclear power is helping to support uranium markets globally. While South Africa remains Africa's only nuclear power producer through the Koeberg plant, countries including Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria and Rwanda are examining nuclear generation as part of their long-term energy strategies.

Egypt's El Dabaa nuclear project, being built by Russia's Rosatom, is expected to become Africa's second operational nuclear power programme and reflects broader interest in nuclear energy as a low-carbon source of baseload electricity. This trend has contributed to stronger long-term demand expectations for uranium and renewed interest in new mining projects such as Mkuju River.

The renewed investment push comes as utilities in Europe, Asia and North America seek to secure future uranium supply outside traditional markets following geopolitical disruptions and tightening global inventories. Uranium prices have strengthened sharply since 2021, supporting new project development across Africa’s mining sector.

Spot uranium prices climbed from below $30 per pound in 2020 to above $100/lb in early 2024 — the highest levels in more than 15 years — before easing back into the $70–80/lb range during 2025 and 2026. The rally has been driven by growing reactor demand, supply disruptions in major producing countries such as Niger and Kazakhstan, and increased long-term contracting activity by utilities seeking to secure future fuel supply.

Singapore’s nuclear question

/ Nicolas HIPPERT- UnsplashFacebook

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By IntelliNews June 11, 2026

Surviving in a resource-scarce island city-state demands pragmatic realism. For Singapore, energy security on the densely populated island city-state has always been an issue.

And as revealed in a recent report by The Straits Times, Singapore has been looking long and hard into energy sources the island can still explore.

In a regulatory and technical milestone revealed in the same report, a recent study conducted by Singaporean authorities in collaboration with Swedish nuclear pioneer SKB International, has concluded that no major technical showstoppers would prevent the republic from safely storing high-level radioactive waste deep down and within its borders.

This research was originally commissioned back in 2023 by the Energy Market Authority (EMA) and the National Environment Agency (NEA), and the findings point to a calculated step forward. The data in the report backs a policy shift with the Singaporean government confirming that it will undergo a comprehensive country assessment by the United Nations' nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), in 2027. This assessment will have 19 critical operational parameters that will officially determine the nation’s capability to safely deploy nuclear reactors by as early as 2040.

The Olympic pool

For decades, the primary psychological and logistical barrier to nuclear adoption in Singapore has been a simple question of geometry: where do you put the waste on such a small island. The SKB International study directly addresses this question by breaking down the actual physical footprint of nuclear byproducts into a stark, highly humanised baseline comparison.

A standard 1-gigawatt (1GW) conventional large-scale reactor capable of powering roughly 700,000 homes produces approximately 370,000 litres of nuclear waste per year. To the average citizen, that volume sounds staggering. In reality, it fills just one-seventh (14.2%) of a single Olympic-sized swimming pool.

When placed in the context of a national landfill, the space constraints dissolve further. Singapore’s active Semakau Landfill has a volumetric capacity exceeding that of 11,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools. Only 5% of that annual nuclear byproduct is classified as high-level waste, such as spent uranium fuel rods containing plutonium-239, which carries a 240,000-year radiation decay timeline.

And given that the study verified that these compact waste isolation frameworks are fully compatible with Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), the advanced, lower-capacity systems (up to 300MW) that Singapore is actively monitoring for urban deployment, by translating complex nuclear physics into manageable spatial dimensions, the report shifts the domestic debate from a structural impossibility to a question of strict technical execution.

Granite shield

The geological foundation of Singapore’s nuclear ambitions lies right underneath its urban sprawl. Mark Lim, Chairman of the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society’s Singapore chapter, confirmed via The Straits Times that the city-state is uniquely positioned due to its well-characterised, remarkably stable bedrock. The central core of the island is anchored by the Bukit Timah granite formation, which stretches from Woodlands and Sembawang down through Bukit Batok, complemented by massive granite reserves on Pulau Ubin.

This specific granite is an exceptional natural vault. It is hard, dense, and highly impermeable, qualities that naturally block groundwater, and prevent any potential radionuclide migration. However, the EMA has urged strict caution. Because the SKB study was an initial desktop review, the state must now transition to intensive, physical on-site field surveys. Future exploratory drilling must prove that target granite sectors are completely unfractured and free of minor fault lines. In deep borehole storage, even a microscopic fracture path could allow groundwater to interact with containment canisters, making field verification the ultimate technical hurdle.

Navigating the psychology of density

Yet while the engineering parameters might look promising, nuclear energy specialists stress that the steepest challenge facing the Cabinet is not geological, but social. Matthew Chew, nuclear competency and strategy lead at engineering consultancy HY, pointed out in The Straits Times that Finland’s Onkalo repository, the world’s first operational deep granite tomb, set to go live later this year, took four decades of continuous public engagement, site selection disputes, and legislative ratifications to materialise. Finland succeeded because it built deep institutional trust with its population over generations.

Given Singapore’s extreme population density, introducing radioactive storage sites will require an unprecedented, highly transparent public education campaign. To mitigate localised anxieties and "Not In My Backyard" (NIMBY) types, early infrastructure designs suggest that any future disposal facility would likely be placed completely away from high-density residential zones. Instead, the repositories would be carved deep beneath less-developed state land sectors or hidden under a smaller but dedicated offshore island.

This careful management of information, holding onto the 2023 SKB findings until aligning them with the upcoming 2027 IAEA milestone, demonstrates the Singaporean government's signature risk-mitigation strategy. As the nation prepares to come under IEA scrutiny next year, the administration isn't just preparing a technical defence of its granite; it is beginning the delicate process of proving to global inspectors and its own citizens that a modern, high-tech city-state can safely master the atom.

China’s Nuclear Power Capacity Has Nearly Doubled Since 2016 – Analysis

 June 11, 2026  

By EIA

From 2016 to 2024, China’s nuclear generation capacity increased 76% (24 GW), based on our International Energy Statistics (IES) data. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Power Reactor Information System (PRIS), China added an additional 1.1 GW of nuclear power capacity in 2025 and 2.2 GW in 2026 (through May). China is continuing to build out its nuclear generating capacity and has 36 reactors under construction, accounting for more than 49% of total world nuclear construction, according to PRIS. 

China’s nuclear fleet is concentrated near population centers in the eastern part of the country, along the Pacific Ocean coastline from the Liaoning province in the north to the Hainan province in the south. According to IAEA’s PRIS, China’s existing nuclear fleet mostly consists of pressurized water reactors. 

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, World Bank, Global Energy Monitor, Global Nuclear Power Tracker, and International Atomic Energy Agency Note:  MW=megawatts

As of May 2026, China had 60 operational reactors with 58.7 GW of total capacity installed at 18 different sites. China has also implemented strategies to help rapidly expand its nuclear power plant fleet. 

Nuclear projects in China use a standardized project management approach for design, licensing, and construction for multiple reactor technologies. Reactors are built in batches of 6 to 10 reactors to take advantage of economies of scale. China is also building up a nuclear supply chain with a focus on domestic manufacturing of the main plant components to decrease reliance on foreign nuclear vendors. 

Additionally, China’s average build time for nuclear power plants is below the global average. According to the World Nuclear Industry Status Report, 2022 the average build time for a nuclear power plant in China between 2012 and 2021 was six years, compared with a global average construction time of about nine years. More recent reporting in 2024 similarly indicates that Chinese firms built reactors both inside and outside of China in five to seven years. 

China started construction of six new reactors in 2025 and two new reactors, Xuwei-1 and Taipingling-4 in 2026 through May. China has also commissioned two new units so far in 2026: Sanao-1 and Taipingling-1. In total, China has 36 reactors under construction across 19 sites which will add about 38.9 GW of additional capacity. 

Data source: U.S. Energy Information administration, World Bank, Global Energy Monitor, Global Nuclear Power Tracker, and International Atomic Energy Agency  Note:  MW=megawatts

China is building its first small modular reactor (SMR), the Linglong-1, a domestically designed 100 MWe pressurized water reactor that can be used for power generation, water desalination, and district heating. The project is intended to demonstrate commercial operation and is expected to start operation in the first half of 2026. The Linglong-1 uses the ACP100 SMR design, a modular design, allowing certain components to be built in a factory and installed onsite. 

• Principal contributors: Slade Johnson, Jonathan Russo
• Source: This article was published by EIA

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The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.

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