News about Green economy

Products with elevated levels of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) may be permitted for use in the restoration of buildings and vehicles of historical and cultural significance, subject to specific regulated exemptions.

Moldova plans to build 500 charging stations for electric vehicles by 2030. The National Electric Vehicle Development Program, developed by the government, calls for investments of more than 1.19 billion lei to develop charging infrastructure, reduce emissions, and increase the number of electric vehicles on the country’s roads. However, funding sources have been identified for less than 4% of the total amount.

The Spanish group Inditex, owner of the Zara chain, has supported a research project aimed at creating textile materials from brewing industry waste. The initiative is being carried out as part of the MIT-Spain Inditex Circularity Seed Fund program in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and aims to identify new sources of sustainable raw materials for the textile industry.

When installing solar panels and heat pumps, no contributions to the Fixed Assets Fund (0.5% of the investment amount) will be required.

Solar-powered parking lots are popping up all over Europe, but not all countries consider them a profitable investment.

On Sunday, Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar announced the closure of the country’s only nuclear power plant after record-low water levels in the Danube forced it to shut down for the first time in 44 years.

PARIS—For many years, Europe and China have embodied competing models of development and energy transition. Europe has emphasized markets, common rules, and multilateral organizations, while China has focused on industrial policy, infrastructure investment, and manufacturing. Europe developed regulations that often became global benchmarks (the “Brussels effect”). Meanwhile, China built factories.

From June 20 to 28, a powerful heat wave swept across Europe, creating conditions that led to the wildfires currently raging across vast areas of France and Spain.

European countries are increasingly turning to an unusual tool to combat wildfires: controlled grazing by sheep and goats. Against the backdrop of more frequent extreme droughts and heat waves, this traditional method is once again becoming part of modern forest protection strategies.

U.S. President Donald Trump said that the new British Prime Minister, Andy Burnham, had promised him that he would begin oil production in the North Sea.

British oil and gas company Shell more than doubled its adjusted profit in the second quarter of 2026, earning $9.84 billion compared with about $4.4 billion a year earlier. The growth was driven by high global oil and gas prices, which rose amid the military conflict in the Middle East, although the company itself warns that instability in the region is already putting pressure on production and supplies.

Apartment owners’ associations will find it easier to obtain loans for energy-efficient renovations of apartment buildings.

Extreme heat and a prolonged drought in France are forcing volunteers to rescue fish by hand from rivers where water levels are dropping rapidly and oxygen levels are becoming critically low. Amid a widespread water crisis, water use restrictions are already in effect in 99 of the country’s 101 departments, and 58 have been placed under the highest drought alert level.

Construction work on the new transfer station with a waste sorting line in the Ciocana sector (Lot II), carried out as part of the municipal project “Chisinau Solid Waste,” is 60% complete.

Since mid-December 2025, southern Africa has experienced several months of unrelenting rain. Floods submerged roads, bridges, clinics, and schools throughout the Gaza Province in Mozambique, affecting more than 700,000 people and forcing more than 200,000 to flee their homes.

The decision served as yet another confirmation that Europe’s largest automakers continue to face pressure from high import duties, slowing demand, and intensifying competition from Chinese manufacturers.

Its beneficiaries will be required to submit documents verifying the use of grant funds, as well as reports on the results of their participation in the program.

The Moldovan Parliament has removed administrative barriers to the installation of photovoltaic systems and energy storage systems.

Although official data indicate relatively small volumes, a UNDP-funded study estimates that approximately 35,000 metric tons of textile waste are generated in the country each year. Most of it ends up in landfills, where it takes up space and, over time, leaches substances into the soil that result from the processing and dyeing of the materials.

The National Energy Regulatory Agency (ANRE) will review Energocom’s application to increase the regulated natural gas rate on Friday, July 24.