EU countries say they have paid about $113 billion more for energy since the Iran war began and got no more fuel for it. The US wants them to release emergency diesel.

The stories

21 on this beat today.

Every story told the same way: what happened, who is involved, why it matters, how it works, the truth and the good news.

1. 01

   EU countries say they have paid about $113 billion more for energy since the Iran war began and got no more fuel for it. The US wants them to release emergency diesel.

   $113.5bn

   extra that EU countries have paid for energy imports since the Iran war began

   EU energy ministers met in Dublin this week to discuss a faster move to electricity [1]

   199.18p

   for a litre of diesel in the UK on Monday, a record

   the old record, 199.09p, was set in June 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine [3]

   400m barrels

   of emergency oil that about 30 countries agreed in March to release

   EU countries promised a fifth of it, and the US says some have not delivered [2]

   What happened

   • EU countries have spent more than 100 billion euros ($113.5 billion) extra on energy imports since the Iran war began, AP reported on Tuesday. [1]
   • Dan Jorgensen, the EU's energy commissioner, told energy ministers meeting in Dublin that all that money had bought no extra gas or oil. [1]
   • Drivers in some European countries now pay nearly 50% more at the pump than before the war, the same as more than $11 a gallon. [1]
   • In the UK, diesel reached a record 199.18p a litre on Monday, and filling an average family car now costs almost 110 pounds, 31 pounds more than before the war. [3]
   • The UK buys nearly 55% of its diesel from abroad, and two of its six oil refineries closed last year. [3]
   • Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency, said Europe is one of the regions most exposed to a diesel shortage as winter comes. [1]
   • The Trump administration has asked the EU to release some of its emergency diesel stocks to bring world prices down, two sources told Reuters. [2]
   • US officials say France and Germany released less than they promised in March, when about 30 countries agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil. [2]
   • President Trump has also backed a ban on US diesel exports, and diesel prices jumped last week after he said so. [2][3]
   • Jorgensen said the EU must weigh cheaper fuel now against keeping stocks for a worse emergency, and it has not decided. [2]
   • Jorgensen said the ministers would discuss moving faster from imported oil and gas to electricity made inside the EU. [1]
   • This winter Europe will also compete with Asian buyers for gas, which a Kpler analyst says could keep prices high until at least the end of the year. [7]

   about 79 poundsFill-up before the war

   vsvs

   almost 110 poundsFill-up on Monday

   Who is involved

   • Dan Jorgensen the EU's energy commissioner, who speaks for the bloc on energy; he says the extra money bought no extra fuel
   • Fatih Birol head of the International Energy Agency, which organises emergency oil releases among its members; he warns Europe is exposed on diesel
   • Chris Wright the US energy secretary; he says several EU countries released only a fraction of the oil they pledged
   • France and Germany the two EU countries US officials say fell furthest short on releasing their stocks
   • The RAC a UK motoring group that tracks fuel prices; it reported the diesel record

   How it unfolded

   1. End of Feb The war with Iran begins, and Iran shuts the Strait of Hormuz in March [4]
   2. March About 30 countries agree to release 400 million barrels from their emergency stocks [2]
   3. Last week Trump backs a ban on US diesel exports, and diesel prices jump [3]
   4. Mon 28 Sep UK diesel hits a record 199.18p a litre [3]
   5. Tue 29 Sep EU energy ministers meet in Dublin, and the Trump administration urges the EU to release diesel [1][2]

   Why it matters

   Watch whether EU governments and the International Energy Agency agree to release more emergency diesel, and whether the US decides on its export ban: either would change what Europeans pay for diesel this winter. [2]

   The truth

   • What is really going on Most of the Gulf's oil is moving again, but by longer and dearer routes, and Europe is paying the bill: EU countries say they have spent about $113.5 billion extra on energy since the war began and got no more fuel for it. [1][4][5]The US government is asking Europe to release emergency diesel to push world prices down. [2]It is also weighing a ban on selling US diesel abroad, and AP reports the US supplies about half of Europe's diesel. [1][2]
   • Why it works on people Blaming France and Germany for releasing too little of their stocks points US voters at other countries for the price of diesel, weeks before US elections in which fuel costs are a problem for the Republicans. [2]
   • Who pays Drivers and firms that run on diesel in Europe — Filling an average UK family car costs about 31 pounds more than before the war, and in some EU countries pump prices are up nearly 50%. [3][1]
   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether the US will ban diesel exports.

     President Trump has backed a ban, but officials are also looking at voluntary limits from refiners, and the Trump administration says no final decision has been made. [2]

   • Nobody knows yet

     How much emergency oil EU countries have actually released.

     The EU has not published the total its members have released since March, so the US complaint about France and Germany cannot be checked from outside. [2]

1. 02

   Oil from the Gulf climbs back

   What happened

   • Oil leaving the Persian Gulf rose sharply in September, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. [4]
   • Kpler, a firm that tracks tankers, counts about 10 million barrels a day through the Strait of Hormuz and 6 million by routes around it, against 19 million before the war. [4]
   • Big tankers wait at least a day and a half in the Gulf of Oman for oil from ships that shuttle through the strait under US guard. [5]
   • Hiring one for that trip cost $1 million a day on 11 September, against a usual $30,000 to $50,000. [5]

   M barrels a day

   Before the war19

   September, Kpler16

   Why it matters

   At that rate, shipping was about a quarter of what the oil cost, against the usual 1% to 3%. [5]

   Rystad, an energy research firm, says new routes, oil from storage and lower demand together keep crude near $100 a barrel, not $140 to $150. [5]

   How it works

   Why the long way round makes oil dearer

   Gulf oil now leaves by longer routes that keep each tanker busy for more days, so fewer ships are free and hiring one costs far more.

   The twist

   A longer route does not only burn more fuel: it keeps each tanker at sea for longer, so fewer ships are free and hiring one can cost twenty times the usual rate or more.

   The picture

   $30,000-50,000Usual daily tanker hire

   vsvs

   $1 millionHormuz trip, 11 September

   Step by step

   1. 1 Iran shuts the short route through Hormuz
   2. 2 Oil goes the long way: pipelines, guarded shuttles, detours through Egypt
   3. 3 Each trip takes longer, and ships wait to load
   4. 4 Tankers stay busy for longer, so fewer are free
   5. 5 Tanker hire soars, and the cost is added to each barrel

   The same force, elsewhere today

   Where this chain is also running, in today's other stories.

   • Oil from the Gulf climbs back

     Big tankers wait at least a day and a half in the Gulf of Oman to take on oil from the shuttles, so each ship makes fewer trips.

   • Saudi Arabia loads oil at Yanbu again

     The oil is piped across Saudi Arabia before a tanker can load it, and on another detour tankers queue offshore at Sidi Kerir in Egypt.

   • Asia gets through the fuel crisis

     Japan and South Korea replaced some Gulf crude with US crude, which has a far longer voyage to reach them.

   Where you've seen this

   Planes flying round closed airspace

   a longer flight needs more planes and crews for the same timetable, so each seat costs more

   A bridge closed for repairs

   delivery vans take the long way, make fewer drops a day, and the firm needs more vans

   A longer school bus route

   the same children need more buses and drivers, because each bus spends longer on every run

   The catch

   Longer routes are only one reason oil is dear today. Some Gulf oil is still missing, stored oil is being run down, and the counts of how much gets through disagree.

   And the whole of it

   A tanker crew waiting off Oman, a refiner in Japan buying oil from the US and a driver paying 199p a litre in Britain are all inside this one change of route. Each of them can see only their own part of it.

   The truth

   • Who gains Owners of big oil tankers — Demand for supertankers on the detours sent hire for a Hormuz run to $1 million a day, against a usual $30,000 to $50,000. [5]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How much Gulf oil is really getting out.

     Kpler, as reported by the New York Times on Tuesday, counts about 10 million barrels a day through the strait and 6 million around it. A week earlier Rystad put it at 6 to 7 million through the strait and 2 million around it. Tankers are hard to track, the Times notes. [4][5]

1. 03

   Saudi Arabia loads oil at Yanbu again

   What happened

   • Saudi Arabia has started loading tankers again at Yanbu, its oil port on the Red Sea, according to traders and shipping data. [6]
   • Yanbu is fed by the East-West pipeline, which carries oil across the country from the Gulf. [5]
   • Drones shut the pipeline on 11 September. [6]
   • It now carries about 2 to 2.65 million barrels a day, far below its 7 million capacity, and Kpler says a full return could take another month. [6]
   • On another detour, tankers still queue offshore at Sidi Kerir, a terminal in Egypt. [6]

   Why it matters

   Oil from Yanbu reaches buyers without passing through Hormuz. [5]

   News of the restart pushed world oil prices down on Monday. [6]

   How it works

   The oil is piped across Saudi Arabia before a tanker can load it, and on another detour tankers queue offshore at Sidi Kerir in Egypt.

   The idea, in story 02: Why the long way round makes oil dearer →

   Good news

   • Saudi Arabia is loading about 2 million barrels of oil a day at its Red Sea port of Yanbu again, less than three weeks after drones shut the pipeline that feeds it.
2. 04

   Asia gets through the fuel crisis

   What happened

   • Most Asian countries have found replacements for the Gulf oil and gas they lost, a Kpler analyst told the New York Times. [7]
   • China drew on its large oil reserves, imported about a third less oil in July and August, and was helped by its growing number of electric cars. [7]
   • Japan and South Korea bought more crude from the US, and US oil shipments to Asia rose to 2.3 million barrels a day in July. [7]
   • In Pakistan and Bangladesh, high gas prices forced rationing and rolling blackouts. [7]

   Why it matters

   Asian buyers of gas for quick delivery now pay more than double what they paid a year ago. [7]

   This winter they will bid against Europe for the same cargoes. [7]

   How it works

   Japan and South Korea replaced some Gulf crude with US crude, which has a far longer voyage to reach them.

   The idea, in story 02: Why the long way round makes oil dearer →

   The truth

   • Who gains US oil and gas sellers — Asian buyers replaced lost Gulf supply with US cargoes, and US oil shipments to Asia rose to 2.3 million barrels a day in July, from 1.5 million a year earlier. [7]
   • Who pays Households in Pakistan and Bangladesh — Their countries struggled to replace Gulf gas, and high prices forced rationing and rolling blackouts. [7]
3. 05

   TotalEnergies hands more cash to its owners

   What happened

   • TotalEnergies, the French oil and gas company, will spend $2.5 billion in the last three months of the year buying back its own shares, which hands cash to its owners. [8]
   • That is up from $1.5 billion in recent quarters. [8]
   • Its profits are up this year on higher oil prices, strong trading and bigger refining margins, with second-quarter earnings the highest in nearly three years. [8]
   • It plans to invest $14 billion to $17 billion a year from 2027 to 2032, slightly less than it planned last year. [8]

   $1.5bnBuybacks, recent quarters

   ↓→

   $2.5bnBuybacks, Oct to Dec

   Why it matters

   The war's higher fuel prices have cost EU countries about $113.5 billion extra. [1]

   At TotalEnergies they have become bigger profits, and those now go back to its shareholders. [8]

   The truth

   • Who gains TotalEnergies' shareholders — High oil prices and refining margins lifted profits, and the company raised its share buybacks for October to December from $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion. [8]
4. 06

   Electric lorries now cheaper than diesel

   What happened

   • Electric lorries bought in 2026 are now cheaper to own and run over five years than diesel ones in six EU countries, the Brussels campaign group Transport & Environment found on Monday. [9]
   • The six, including Germany and the Netherlands, make up 46% of the EU's heavy-truck registrations. [9]
   • Dearer diesel since the Iran war tipped the sums. [9]
   • Owners win back the higher price of an electric lorry in about two years, and save up to 100,000 euros in the Netherlands, 85,000 in Germany and 69,000 in Denmark. [9]

   Thousand euros

   Netherlands100

   Germany85

   Denmark69

   Why it matters

   It also lands on Europe's lorry makers. [9]

   The group puts a Chinese-built electric lorry at about 210,000 euros, against 265,000 for a European one. [9]

   The truth

   • Who gains Electric lorry makers, Chinese ones most of all — Dear diesel made electric lorries cheaper to run in six EU countries, and a Chinese model costs about 210,000 euros against 265,000 for a European one. [9]

   Good news

   • Electric lorries bought this year now cost less to own and run than diesel ones in six EU countries, which together make up 46% of the EU's heavy-truck registrations.
5. 07

   Floods kill 56 in India and swamp Thailand

   What happened

   • Floods and storms have killed 56 people in India, Reuters reported on Tuesday. [10]
   • Uttar Pradesh, India's most populous state, got 66.5mm of rain in two days, against a normal 7.6mm. [10]
   • In Thailand, floods since 16 September have hit 41 provinces, killed at least eight people and disrupted more than 580,000 homes. [10]
   • In western Nepal, a government building in Baglung fell into a river on Sunday, and nobody was hurt. [11]

   Why it matters

   Thailand's floods could cost at least 11 billion baht, about $327 million, a Rangsit University economist estimates. [10]

   Nepal has warned of flash floods in 49 of its 77 districts. [10]

   The truth

   • Who pays Families in Thailand's flooded provinces — More than 580,000 homes were disrupted, and damage could reach at least 11 billion baht. [10]
   • Nobody knows yet

     How many people Nepal's latest floods have killed.

     Reuters reported 14 dead and 11 missing on Tuesday. The BBC, citing Nepal's disaster agency, put deaths from floods and landslides over recent days at 27 or more. [10][11]

6. 08

   Antarctic sea ice has its third-smallest winter peak

   What happened

   • Sea ice around Antarctica reached its third-smallest winter peak in 48 years of satellite records, provisional data from the US National Snow and Ice Data Center show. [12]
   • A scientist told Carbon Brief, a climate news site, that it is concerning to see such low values continue. [12]
   • Scientists say they need more time to tell whether this is a lasting change. [12]

   Why it matters

   At the other end of the planet, Arctic sea ice tied for its 10th-smallest summer low on 12 September, NASA says. [25]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether Antarctic sea ice has shifted for good.

     The winter peak data are provisional, and scientists say they need more years to tell a lasting change from a run of low ones. [12]

7. 09

   Thirty countries pledge money to watch the oceans

   What happened

   • Thirty countries pledged 211 million euros at the UN General Assembly last week to OceanEye, an EU-led system for watching the world's oceans, Carbon Brief reports. [12]
   • Canada, Costa Rica, South Korea and the UK are among them. [12]
   • The money supports the Global Ocean Observing System, the largest network of ocean sensors, and aims to fill gaps in the southern hemisphere, the Arctic and the deep sea. [12]

   Why it matters

   Ocean data feeds weather forecasts and climate predictions. [12]

   Scientists had warned the network was at risk after the Trump administration threatened to cut parts of it. [12]

   Good news

   • Thirty countries pledged 211 million euros at the UN last week to OceanEye, an EU-led system for keeping watch on the world's oceans.
8. 10

   Metals in Maui fire survivors linked to weaker lungs

   What happened

   • Metals in the bodies of people who lived through the 2023 Maui wildfires are linked to weaker lungs, a University of Hawaii study published on Monday finds. [13]
   • The fires killed at least 102 people and razed the town of Lahaina. [13]
   • Tests on 1,400 residents found 40 times the reference level of antimony and more than twice that of manganese, barium and arsenic. [13]
   • The worst lung readings came from Lahaina and Kula, the places hit hardest. [13]

   Why it matters

   The researchers cannot yet prove the metals came from the fires. [13]

   Their next phase will look at older pollution left from Maui's plantations. [13]

   The truth

   • Nobody knows yet

     Whether the metals in Maui survivors came from the fires.

     The researchers say they cannot pinpoint the source, and some of the exposure may be older than the fires. [13]

9. 11

   Few US homes at flood risk have flood cover

   What happened

   • Just 2.4% of US properties are covered by federal flood insurance, but 8.4% are at severe or extreme flood risk, an Associated Press analysis found. [14]
   • Ordinary home insurance does not cover floods, and the federal flood insurance scheme dates from 1968. [14]
   • In the part of eastern Kentucky flooded in 2022, only about 2.1% of properties are insured, while about 47% face severe or extreme risk. [14]

   2.4%Have flood insurance

   vsvs

   8.4%At severe or extreme risk

   Why it matters

   A typical policy now costs $1,100 a year, up about 90% in five years, as prices were set closer to each home's real risk. [14]

   The least insured places tend to be poorer. [14]

   The truth

   • Who pays People in the poorest flood-prone parts of the US — Few of them are insured, and a typical flood policy now costs $1,100 a year, up about 90% in five years. [14]
10. 12

    London's trees are dying in the heat

    What happened

    • At least 400 trees at London's Kew Gardens will have died this summer, its tree curator Kevin Martin estimates, as many as in the record year of 2022. [15]
    • Half the young trees the charity Trees for Cities planted in London in the past year died this summer. [15]
    • Normally 80% to 90% survive. [15]
    • South-east England is moving towards a semi-arid climate, with hotter summers and no more rain, Martin says. [15]

    5 of 10

    young trees that died

    Why it matters

    London's trees cool the city by up to 5C on hot days. [15]

    A 2025 study by Martin's team found 73% of London's public trees would struggle by 2090 if emissions stay high. [15]

11. 13

    A second judge restores Solar for All

    What happened

    • A second US federal judge has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency broke the law when it scrapped Solar for All, a $7 billion programme to help low-income households get solar power. [16]
    • Judge Tanya Chutkan ruled on 22 September in a case brought by Harris County, Texas, home to Houston. [16]
    • She said her decision covers every grant in the programme. [16]
    • A Rhode Island court ruled against the cancellation days earlier, and the agency says it is considering an appeal. [16]

    Why it matters

    Harris County says the money pays for solar-powered community hubs to use when the Texas power grid fails. [16]

    The truth

    • Nobody knows yet

      Whether Solar for All money will actually flow again.

      The Environmental Protection Agency is reviewing both rulings and considering an appeal. [16]

    Good news

    • Two US judges have now ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency broke the law when it scrapped Solar for All, a $7 billion programme to help low-income households get solar power, and the second ruling covers every grant in it.
12. 14

    A lawsuit challenges a halt to rural solar grants

    What happened

    • Two environmental legal groups and a solar installer sued the US Department of Agriculture on Monday for stopping solar grants under its Rural Energy for America Program. [17]
    • The programme, created in 2002, sent nearly 70% of its awards to solar projects from 2011 to early 2025. [17]
    • The lawsuit cites an internal email in which an official, asked to back up the department's claims about solar, wrote that the press office should find the reasoning behind the statistics. [17]

    Why it matters

    Farmers who built solar after being told they qualified now face losses, the plaintiffs say. [17]

    The department says farmland should be kept for growing food. [17]

    The truth

    • Who pays Rural businesses that built solar expecting US farm grants — The farm department stopped paying out and told selected applicants to reapply under new rules, the lawsuit says. [17]
13. 15

    Lawmakers ask regulators to block the AES sale

    What happened

    • A group of US lawmakers including Senator Elizabeth Warren asked the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which oversees US power grids, to reject the sale of AES, a big power company, Reuters reported on Tuesday. [18]
    • Global Infrastructure Partners, owned by the investment firm BlackRock, and partners including EQT agreed in March to buy AES for about $33.4 billion including debt. [18]
    • The letter says the deal could push up electricity bills. [18]

    Why it matters

    Record US electricity demand, driven largely by data centres, has set off a wave of deals for power companies. [18]

    Some would take public utilities private. [18]

    The truth

    • Nobody knows yet

      What the $33.4 billion sale of AES would do to power bills.

      The lawmakers say bills could rise, but the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has not ruled, and the letter, as Reuters reports it, gives no figure for how much. [18]

14. 16

    A solar developer buys projects near data centres

    What happened

    • Exus Renewables North America, a power developer based in Pittsburgh, has bought four large solar projects in Louisiana and Wisconsin from ibV Energy Partners, Reuters reported on Tuesday. [19]
    • Together they add up to about 715 megawatts, enough for more than half a million homes, and nearly double Exus's portfolio. [19]
    • Both states are fast-growing places for data centres, and Exus is in talks to sell the power to them. [19]

    Why it matters

    Projects that already have a grid connection now sell at a premium. [19] ibV began securing these connections about five years ago. [19]

    The truth

    • Who gains Solar projects that already have a grid connection — Data centres need power quickly, so ready-to-build projects like the 715 megawatts Exus bought now sell at a premium. [19]
15. 17

    Energy Vault grows its battery plans

    What happened

    • Energy Vault, a US energy storage company, is buying a 2.3-gigawatt pipeline of battery projects from Goshe Energy Storage, including 350 megawatts ready to build that could come online in early 2028. [20]
    • It told Utility Dive it is checking each project against President Trump's order limiting foreign-made parts in the power grid. [20]
    • It also has a deal for up to 1.5 gigawatt-hours of US-made sodium-ion batteries, which use sodium instead of lithium. [20]

    Why it matters

    Its sales chief said a battery can store power but cannot add power lines. [20]

    So its projects still depend on getting a grid connection. [20]

16. 18

    Two Chinese carmakers join their charging arms

    What happened

    • Nio and Geely, two of China's leading electric carmakers, said on Monday they will combine their battery-charging and battery-swapping businesses. [21]
    • Nio will also buy a 10% stake in another part of Geely. [21]
    • The deal comes two weeks after Guangzhou Automobile Group announced a tie-up with First Automotive Works. [21]
    • China has enough car factories to build every car sold in China plus everything the US and Europe make. [21]

    Why it matters

    Car sales in China fell 20.8% in the first eight months of the year. [21]

    Makers are merging and exporting more, and China's car exports are expected to reach at least 10 million this year. [21]

17. 19

    A grid delay holds up a Welsh steel furnace

    What happened

    • Tata Steel is in talks with the UK government after reports that its new 1.25 billion pound electric steel furnace at Port Talbot, in Wales, may not start until late 2028. [22]
    • The hold-up is the connection to the national grid, Wales Secretary Stephen Kinnock said this week. [22]
    • The UK government is already putting 500 million pounds into the project. [22]

    Why it matters

    Tata is reported to be seeking compensation for the delay. [22]

    Kinnock said the UK government would consider any request for financial support. [22]

18. 20

    Volkswagen's best-seller goes electric

    What happened

    • Volkswagen will sell an electric Tiguan, its best-selling car, from early 2027, starting in Europe, replacing its ID.4 and ID.5 electric models. [23]
    • More than 950,000 ID.4s and ID.5s have been sold since 2021. [23]
    • In the past year Volkswagen delivered over a million Tiguan and Tayron cars worldwide, all with petrol, diesel or plug-in hybrid engines. [23]
    • The electric car is due to be shown in early October. [23]

    Why it matters

    Buyers will be able to choose the same car with or without a fuel tank. [23]

    Diesel is at a record price in the UK. [3]

19. 21

    Arctic clouds may change in opposite ways

    What happened

    • Tiny particles that form in Arctic air and help clouds make droplets could rise 3% to 16% over the high Arctic by 2090-2100, a study in Nature Geoscience estimates. [24]
    • Over the Arctic's seas they could fall 15% to 31%. [24]
    • The authors used field measurements from across the Arctic from 2003 to 2024, plus satellite data, and found three regions that behave differently. [24]

    Why it matters

    Clouds can warm or cool the Arctic, depending on their height and the season. [24]

    How they change is one of the biggest uncertainties in forecasts of Arctic warming. [24]