The first of 28 Greenpeace activists and two journalists detained in Russia’s Arctic is a step closer to home.

Anthony Perretta, a company director from Newport, Wales, believes that investing in renewable energy solutions rather than exploiting fossil fuels will eventually help stabilise the Earth’s climate and environment.

He was granted amnesty under the same Russian law passed last week that pardoned and freed former oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky and the last two Pussy Riot activists.

Several more of the so-called Arctic 30 are expected to receive similar amnesty notifications soon.

In September activists on board the Greenpeace ship ‘Arctic Sunrise’ attempted to scale a Gazprom oil rig in the Barents Sea to call attention to the threat of climate change and oil drilling in the Arctic.

They were detained by coastguards and originally accused of piracy, a charge that was later downgraded to hooliganism.

The remaining 27 activists and two journalists are expected to have their amnesties processed shortly.