Octopus Energy investment at center of Newsom’s California-UK clean energy pact as Trump lashes out and critics raise prices concern
Governor Gavin Newsom signed a new California-UK clean energy memorandum in London that will open market access for U. K. firms including Octopus Energy and deepen collaboration on offshore wind and other technologies, a move that matters for climate policy and transatlantic commercial ties amid vocal political pushback.
Octopus Energy and the commercial tie-up
The memorandum of understanding signed in London will enable better access for U. K. firms, explicitly naming Octopus Energy — described in the agreement as the country’s biggest energy supplier — to California’s market. Newsom welcomed nearly a billion dollars in clean tech investment from Octopus Energy and framed the partnership as a way to attract private capital into clean economy projects in the state.
Newsom and Miliband: what the pact commits to
The pact between California and the U. K. commits both parties, which are still pursuing net zero emissions goals, to collaborate on clean energy technologies such as offshore wind. It is designed to underpin collaboration between British and Californian research institutions and to enshrine continued commitment to international efforts under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change treaty. The Trump administration withdrew the U. S. from the UNFCCC earlier this year.
Offshore wind and the political flashpoint
Offshore wind is a central element of the agreement. The deal’s emphasis on accelerating offshore wind cooperation arrives while the U. S. president has repeatedly criticized wind power, prompting a rebuttal from the U. K. Energy Secretary who pushed back on the president’s jibe that offshore wind is for "losers. " The prominence of offshore wind in the memorandum was described as significant given that it is a recurrent target of presidential criticism.
Trump lashes out at the Newsom-Miliband deal
President Donald Trump reacted angrily to the arrangement, venting fury at the green energy deal and saying it was inappropriate for the U. K. to be striking agreements with Governor Newsom. In public remarks, the president used a derogatory nickname for Newsom and further attacked the governor’s record, calling him a loser and criticizing the state’s environmental work. The president also said it was inappropriate for the U. K. to be dealing with Newsom.
Scope beyond investment: research, AI, wildfires and biodiversity
Beyond investment and market access, the agreement creates a framework intended to scale up clean energy technologies and enhance ties between businesses and researchers in Britain and California, an economy described as the world’s fourth largest global economy. The two sides will share practical expertise on protecting biodiversity and building resilience amid extreme weather. On Monday in London, the pair also discussed AI and its implications for energy, and lessons from California’s wildfires — an issue that has been a point of public clash between Trump and Newsom, with the president blaming the fires on the state’s management.
Reactions, political context and criticism
Newsom, a Democratic presidential hopeful, framed the memorandum as part of a broader effort to demonstrate California’s commitment to climate action and to reassure European partners that the president’s shake-up of transatlantic relations and climate politics is "temporary. " He made the trip as part of a European tour and had previously been at the Munich Security Conference where he said, "Donald Trump’s administration is temporary. California’s commitment is not. "
People close to Miliband described the London meeting as productive and based on "huge clean energy jobs and investment opportunities" that the U. K. and California can deliver together. Miliband emphasized that strong international partnerships strengthen opportunities for U. K. businesses and secure investment.
At the same time, critics have seized on broader energy debates, with at least one line of criticism framed as suggesting that crippling energy prices show the folly of Miliband’s California deal. The broader political landscape also includes characterization of both Newsom and Miliband as betes noires for the new populist right: one commentator argued Miliband could be a leadership contender if leadership changes occur, and suggested that such a shift would move the party to the left.
Related diplomatic threads
The London signing follows a previous meeting between Newsom and Miliband in New York in September. Newsom used his European visit to cultivate leaders who have been outspoken in opposition to the U. S. president, meeting Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, who joined Latin American countries in condemning the recent U. S. military intervention in Venezuela, and meeting the German chancellor, Friedrich Merz, who criticized the president’s reorientation of U. S. foreign policy.
Other items in the broader diplomatic conversation include a separate row over the Druzhba pipeline between Hungary and the EU about support for Ukraine, and a domestic trade move in which Trade Minister Chris Bryant is set to head to Paris next month to lobby France, described in discussion as the EU’s toughest industrial hawk.
Details of implementation and the practical rollout of investment and research collaborations remain to be seen, and the political debate at home and across the Atlantic indicates the pact will be closely watched as it moves from memorandum to action.
