News & Views

From methane reductions in India’s rice fields to new carbon removal projects, businesses are expanding their climate efforts. This week’s ESG in 5 covers Google’s latest deal, Whirlpool’s technology portfolio and Standard Chartered’s support for suppliers, alongside record global temperatures and proposals to address growing pressure on UK water supplies.

Wildfire risk, cleaner concrete, water investment, climate legislation and a $4 billion sustainable bond lead this week’s ESG developments.

From early-stage climate research to billion-dollar infrastructure and manufacturing commitments, this week’s ESG in 5 shows capital moving across every stage of the transition. Google is backing emerging carbon solutions, SSE and CIP are mobilising large pools of finance, Samsung is adapting battery capacity, and PepsiCo is reporting progress across emissions, agriculture, packaging and water.

This week’s ESG in 5 highlights fresh investment in cleaner energy and climate solutions. KLM is backing a major sustainable aviation fuel plant, Mombak has delivered reforestation credits ahead of schedule, and Base Power and Ore Energy have secured funding to expand battery storage. Meanwhile, Google has signed a long-term agreement to support a new US solar project.

This week’s ESG in 5 highlights how sustainability is continuing to move from ambition into practical investment and regulation. Deutsche Bank and Lufthansa are supporting cleaner aviation through sustainable fuel, the EBA is tightening expectations around ESG banking products, and Vena Energy has secured major green financing for solar and battery storage. Meanwhile, Google’s latest emissions update shows the growing challenge of powering AI responsibly.

This week’s ESG update looks at new climate finance and innovation across startup funding, wildfire detection, carbon removal, carbon refining and nature-based solutions.

This week’s ESG developments highlight the growing importance of practical, finance-backed solutions across water, nature, climate infrastructure and governance. From Google’s 2030 water replenishment target and Ecobank’s $450 million nature bond, to pension capital backing climate innovation and banks supporting carbon removal scale-up, organisations are increasingly turning sustainability commitments into measurable investment and risk management action.

India is reframing climate policy around growth, resilience and energy security, signalling a wider shift among emerging economies. In Europe, Amazon and Google are backing a major grid upgrade push to unlock renewables and meet rising power demand. Bloomberg is boosting carbon market credibility by integrating credit ratings, while the UK moves toward mandatory IFRS-aligned sustainability reporting from 2027. Ford is also expanding into battery storage as demand for flexible

Global climate action gained momentum this week as Microsoft signed a major carbon-removal deal, Heineken unveiled a renewable heat project in Portugal, and Google expanded its clean-energy investments. Meta boosted its solar portfolio in Texas, while Brazil cut Amazon deforestation to an 11-year low — a strong signal of progress ahead of COP30.

Renewable energy has surpassed coal globally for the first time, marking a major milestone in the clean energy transition. Across sectors, companies are accelerating climate action—from Siemens and Airbus decarbonising UK sites to Google launching carbon reporting for advertisers. Meanwhile, sport and business partnerships, including Liverpool FC, Real Betis, Mars, and Cargill, are embedding sustainability into their core operations.