Germany’s power grid operators boosted the surcharge consumers pay for renewable energy by 18 percent to a record, adding to pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to act against rising electricity bills.

It's been a busy six weeks since I last updated readers on the news events driving my Ten Clean Energy Stocks for 2013 and six alternative picks. I looked into the performance of the portfolio as a whole at the start of the month, along with some comments about the four renewable energy developers. I thought at the time we might be seeing a bottom for these beleaguered stocks, but if I was right, we have yet to see the upturn. Nevertheless, the fundamental factors I discussed are still in place.

Canada’s stock exchanges have long had the lead as the place for energy infrastructure companies to list. This includes green energy, as well as the fossil fueled sort. Because Canada’s reporting rules are somewhat less stringent, and its markets less liquid than those in the U.S., the large number of offerings trade at lower valuations and higher yields than do their (few) U.S.-listed equivalents.

Brazil's latest A-3 auction, matching up developers and power purchasers to prepare renewable energy projects to meet the nation's electricity demand by 2016, was a landslide win for wind energy -- but a shutout for solar, which was included in the process for the first time.

As editors we delight in learning which of the stories that we wrote or commissioned were most popular with our readers. That’s why at the end of each calendar year, we pull reports that tell us which stories we posted got the most shares, the most views, the most comments, etc. We also look at which videos were watched the most. Often, we post articles that we know will be a big hit: like explanations of controversial solar legislation. But other times you surprise us, readers, by taking great interest in articles that we felt were solid but not necessarily ground-breaking.

We here at RenewableEnergyWorld.com value each and every one of our excellent contributors that share their important and thought-provoking insights with our readers. But we have a special affinity for our outstanding blogging community.

Renewable energy companies will derive more of their funding from bond markets as banks curb lending to the industry, Citigroup Inc.’s head of environmental finance said.

Simplifying finance vehicles for renewable energy will lure more investors and lower the costs of capital.

Bracing for greenhouse-gas rules from the Obama administration, two industries are staking out different positions. Coal companies are pledging to sue. Electric utilities are ready to talk.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed a former banker to oversee coal, power and clean-energy reforms in a move aimed at resolving fuel bottlenecks and chronic blackouts hampering economic growth.

The United Kingdom is known for its pioneering work in wave, tidal and ocean current energy. The U.S. and Canada have vast marine resources and would benefit from partnerships with UK companies in a number of ways, including building expertise, sharing lessons learned and fostering industry growth.

The European Union needs an ambitious emissions-reduction goal, targets for energy- efficiency and renewables as well as tools to foster investment under its planned 2030 policies, an advisory panel to 14 ministers said.

Caisse des Depots et Consignations, a French state bank, is setting aside 5 billion euros ($6.8 billion) for green projects after the government proposed a law to spur use of renewable electricity and boost efficiency.

South African Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson said her department wants to address weaknesses in the process of commissioning renewable-power projects.

The European Union is seeking to speed up the creation of a common energy market to help its shift to a low-carbon economy and boost security of energy supplies amid a natural-gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine.

The U.K. Green Investment Bank is set to tie up the first investments in a $1.6 billion fund by the end of March, part of Britain’s push to cement its dominance in offshore wind power.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s government will negotiate with the opposition to cut Australia’s renewable energy target and exempt industries such as aluminum and copper smelting.

Humans are causing irreversible damage to the planet from burning fossil fuels, the biggest ever study of the available science concluded in a report designed to spur the fight against climate change.

President Barack Obama pledged deeper U.S. cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions and China will for the first time set a target for capping carbon emissions under an agreement between the world’s two biggest economies.

California Governor Jerry Brown proposed spending $59 billion to fix crumbling roads and raising the state’s renewable energy mandate to 50 percent.

Actress Natalie Portman, environmentalist Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., and other high-profile Harvard University alumni are calling for demonstrations to urge divestment from fossil fuels.

Australia’s largest electricity producer committed to close its coal-fired power plants within 35 years as part of an effort to cut the nation’s dependence on the fossil fuel.

A $2 trillion push in the U.S. to blend renewable energy into the power supply and fortify transmission lines against extreme weather means that Americans must act more like Europeans to keep their power costs down.

Squashed between a highway overpass and a towering suburban shopping center east of Paris, a drilling rig is completing the second of two geothermal wells aimed at capturing the earth’s natural heat for homes and offices.

Sweden and Norway will probably exceed a joint target for renewable energy production by the end of the decade, industry consultant Nena AS said.

The European Commission raised concern that the U.K. and France may not meet their 2020 renewable energy targets, saying the two countries should examine whether they’re doing enough to reach the goals.

RWE AG, the German utility whose coal-fired plants make it Europe’s largest carbon emitter, officially started the company’s largest renewables project on Thursday: a wind farm in Liverpool Bay off Britain’s coast.

Publicly, the United Nations climate-change talks look mired in disputes over everything from money to the length of the proposed agreement.

Papua New Guinea recently became the first country to formally submit the final version of its national climate action plan (called a “Nationally Determined Contribution,” or NDC) under the Paris Agreement. The small Pacific nation’s plan to transition to 100 percent renewable energy by 2030 is no longer just an “intended” nationally determined contribution (INDC) — it is now the country’s official climate plan.

Less than two weeks after 175 nations signed the pivotal Paris Agreement on climate change, a question lingers: What happens now?

The United States and China on Sept. 3 formally joined the Paris Agreement in a ceremony in Hangzhou, China, ahead of the G20 Summit. President Obama and President Xi both deposited their country’s official instrument with United Nations Secretary, General Ban-Ki Moon.

Free and fair elections in Afghanistan are crucial for the country's successful future, U.N. deputy envoy Nicholas Haysom said Tuesday.

There's a chance for Iran to reach a comprehensive nuclear agreement that would benefit its people if the rights steps are taken, President Obama said Thursday.

The Court of Appeal has dismissed a claim of disability discrimination brought by a wheelchair user who was unable to travel on a bus because the designated wheelchair space was already occupied by a passenger with a child in a buggy. The Court of A...

UK Pensions Speedbrief: Age discrimination challenge to judicial pension scheme succeedsThe Employment Tribunal has handed down its

The Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has ruled that the transitional arrangements in the New Judges Pension Scheme (NJPS) constitute unlawful age discrimination.  In a related case, the EAT has also held that the Employment Tribunal (ET) f...

Précis On the 4th July 2013 Eversheds reported on the Opinion of Advocate General Niilo Jääskinen (the “AG”) in the Case C-170/12 Pinckney. (Click here to view this article). Following ...

Cost–sharing for the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) is a subject close to the minds and pockets of all LGPS funds, employers and members. Consultation by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) on cost–sharing ...

Hot off the press is a Court of Appeal decision dated 7 April 2009 (South Tyneside MBC v The Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice and Another) which held that former employing authorities are not liable to make good their funding defic...

The Welsh Ministers have recently issued The Welsh Authorities Staff Transfers (Pensions) Direction 2012, under powers contained in Section 101 of the Local Government Act 2003 (the “2012 Direction”).  The 2012 Direction came into f...

? Pension data loss leads to £250,000 fine Lax arrangements with a supplier being used to digitise pension scheme records for a Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) administering authority  lea...

? Fair Deal: the latest developments On 19 November 2012 HM Treasury published its response to the March 2011 consultation on the future of the Fair Deal for Staff Pensions guidance. The Fair D...

? ? ? ?First detail published on employer cost cap and actuarial valuati...

SummaryThe Deputy Pensions Ombudsman has rejected a complaint by an academy against the administering authority of its Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) fund about the funding methodology used to allocate assets to the Academy when it was initi...

In an important decision for landlords, Scottish & Newcastle plc v Raguz, the House of Lords has restored common sense and commercial reality to the procedures that a landlord has to follow before it can recover arrears of rent from a former t...

A landlord is able to hold a tenant to an informal agreement to renew its short-term leases. Recent cases have brought to people's attention that leases for short periods - up to three years - do not need to be executed under seal. In fact, they do...

Realisation of security by mortgagees is a hot topic in current economic circumstances, and Horsham Properties Group Ltd v Clark is a case that underlines that mortgagees' powers can sometimes appear draconian. In this case, the mortgagee appointed...

Yesterday the Government announced its response to the Law Commission’s report on Event Fees. “Event Fees” are common in the retirement living sector. They are  fees payable on certain events such as sale, subletting or change...