United Kingdom: Energy and Natural Resources

The UK's ambitious Clean Power 2030 strategy and Great Grid Upgrade face a critical planning challenge that threatens to derail progress. As National Grid races to build new transmission lines for renewable energy, local authorities continue granting planning permissions for developments directly on proposed cable routes, forcing costly redesigns and delays.

The UK government's new Energy Independence Bill promises to reshape the nation's energy landscape, but what will it actually deliver? With only cryptic references in the King's Speech and Labour Manifesto to guide us, the Bill's true scope remains uncertain—though it likely addresses planning acceleration for renewables, regulatory simplification, North Sea licensing clarity, and consumer protections.

Onshore wind projects are central to Scotland’s renewable energy ambitions, with an installed capacity of over 10.5GW (as of Q4 2025), and 18.1GW in the pipeline.

Battery technology advances are driving unprecedented growth in recycling innovation, with patent filings for end-of-life battery processing increasing seven-fold in the last decade. The European Patent Office's latest analysis reveals how the race to create a circular battery economy is accelerating, particularly in chemical transformation processes that could address critical material shortages and mounting waste concerns.

The pound (GBP) was muted against most of its peers at the end of last week, as expectations for any meaningful tightening from the Bank of England (BoE) continued to fade.

The UK Government has published its formal response to the consultation on updates to the Notifiable Acquisition Regulations (NARs) under the National Security and Investment Act 2021 (NSI Act).

The UK's ambitious Clean Power 2030 strategy and Great Grid Upgrade face a critical planning challenge that threatens to derail progress. As National Grid races to build new transmission lines for renewable energy, local authorities continue granting planning permissions for developments directly on proposed cable routes, forcing costly redesigns and delays.

The UK government's new Energy Independence Bill promises to reshape the nation's energy landscape, but what will it actually deliver? With only cryptic references in the King's Speech and Labour Manifesto to guide us, the Bill's true scope remains uncertain—though it likely addresses planning acceleration for renewables, regulatory simplification, North Sea licensing clarity, and consumer protections.

The European Commission has unveiled a comprehensive package of measures designed to simplify the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), promising to slash annual compliance costs by approximately 75% while...

Many of the most valuable advances in chemical manufacturing happen quietly, in process design, catalyst choice, and scale-up know-how rather than in new compounds. Selecting the right IP strategy is critical to protecting value, supporting investment, and enabling scale-up from lab to pilot to plant. The key question at every stage of development is should protection focus on the process, the product, or be kept as confidential know-how?

The chemicals sector is experiencing unprecedented turbulence as long-standing structural weaknesses meet acute market volatility. Senior legal experts from A&O Shearman examine how corporates and creditors are adapting their strategies, what trends are reshaping the industry, and where investors and restructuring professionals should focus their attention when navigating this challenging landscape.

As of February 24, 2026, the United Kingdom (UK) government has announced that the interim approaches to adding Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC) to the UK Candidate...