Gregor Macdonald
Journalist covering cities, climate, and energy.
Proprietor of Cold Eye Earth (formerly The Gregor Letter)
https://www.coldeye.earth | @coldeye.earth
- While a decline in global oil consumption is entirely off the table for years to come, we are at least in the zone already that can see demand growth convert to a sideways path. www.coldeye.earth/p/large-thing
- Terrific stuff here.
- New tariff update today from @budgetlab.bsky.social incorporating 1. Today's announcement of lower US-China tariffs (10% instead of 125% reciprocal tariffs); 2. The May 8 US-UK trade deal; and, 3. The April 29 auto tariff rebate announcement. Some high level takeaways: 1/13
- I tip my cap to @talsmith.bsky.social for asking such perfect questions, and thereby obtaining one of the more important interviews of the year. For a number of folks in macro this weekend, this is deliciously revealing. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/10/b...
- The trajectory of energy transition is controlled far more by economic growth, than renewables growth. As I like to say, a small thing growing at a high rate can be quite powerful, until it faces off against a very, very large thing growing at a low rate.
- Why do global fossil CO2 emissions continue to rise? In simple aggregated terms: economic growth (orange) is too strong to be overcome by improvements in energy efficiency & structural change (green), & CO2 intensity of energy use (blue). robbieandrew.github.io/country/?cou...
- Must admit I'm no longer clear what diversity means in university admissions. Also unclear universities ever figured this out either. If you tell me Princeton's undergraduate population is due to be 60% Asian by the year 2040 - through connection to over 40 countries - how is that not diverse?
- Stellar reporting here on a dark horse trend now emerging in the US: mobile natgas turbine arrays that, under temporary classification, escape enviro regs.
- My latest on xAI's power supply--The company wants to bring dozens more gas turbines to Memphis, according to newly-revealed EPA documents. subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eene...
