

French MPs Vote for Nationalising Energy Sector Against Government
The French public widely supports the nationalisation of the energy company, especially since the country has been plunged into an energy crisis.
The French public widely supports the nationalisation of the energy company, especially since the country has been plunged into an energy crisis.
Germany spent nearly €270 billion alone on mitigating the crisis, reveals Bruegel’s latest report.
The commission and government are considering options to restructure the bloc’s common electricity market, and move it further away from natural gas dependence while stabilising consumer prices.
Despite unanimity on the need for the project, the debates are stormy. The opposition will not fail to seize the opportunity to denounce the inconsistencies of President Emmanuel Macron, his about-face on this eminently strategic issue.
Given the importance of bread in the diet of the French, but also in their collective imagination, the increasing number of bakery closures could well be the signal of a serious social revolt.
According to the company, the tax on ‘excess profits,’ whatever boon it might be for the EU’s coffers in the short term, is ultimately “counterproductive,” since it would scare off prospective investors.
Energy analysts warn of the dangers that market intervention tools, such as price caps, present. For the EU, it is “unchartered territory.”
Germany’s left-liberal government’s ‘green energy transition’ policies will transform Germany “from an industrial country to an industrial museum,” the president of the German Chemical Industry Association said.
“It is quite possible that disaster relief will be needed within the EU,” EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič (EPP) warned.
The informal meeting, planned for October 7th in Prague, follows on the heels of an agreement between energy ministers for mandatory windfall taxes on energy companies.