Daily Digest for

On October 31, 2025, Canada (Natural Resources Canada) announced 26 new investments and partnerships under the Critical Minerals Production Alliance to accelerate and unlock $6.4 billion in critical minerals projects. The announcement includes projects and commitments involving Nouveau Monde Graphite, Rio Tinto, Ucore, Vianode, Northern Graphite and up to $20.2 million in international R&D funding (including an AI‑optimized metallurgical process), with partners from Japan, Luxembourg, the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, the UK and Ukraine.

Authors Cardinale, Duffy, and Schoonover argue that ecological disruptions (habitat loss, invasive species, pests, overharvest) undermine national security across food, water, health, disaster resilience, and crime. They document cases including the 2019–21 desert locust outbreaks, 2014–2017 São Paulo drought, 2016 Chile red tide (≈100,000 MT salmon loss; ~US$9M/day sales impact), and 2024 California wildfires (>1M acres; US$3.5B ag losses; US$5B tourism decline).

Deputy Minister Sihle Zikalala launched a programme to build new small harbours in neglected South African coastal towns and will hand over Special Economic Zone (SEZ) designations to site the investments. Initial harbour locations include Port Shepstone in KwaZulu-Natal, with additional harbours planned in the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape, and the programme is linked to District Development Model, Eastern Seaboard Development, N2 Corridor and Operation Phakisa (Oceans Economy).

The UK Government will increase the electricity network charges discount for around 500 energy-intensive businesses from 60% to 90%, saving them up to £420 million per year starting April 2026. The measure targets sectors such as steel, chemicals, cement, glass and paper (around 400,000 employees) and complements the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme which will cut energy costs by 25% for over 7,000 businesses from 2027.