When the EU bombarded Russia with sanctions following the invasion of Ukraine back in 2022, gas was in the spotlight. Russia was the continent’s biggest supplier, and it was about to stop being that. At the time, the dominant mood in Europe was confidence—that even if Russia were to turn …
Read More »U.S. and Europe Race to Reduce Dependence on China for Lithium Supplies
Dubbed “white gold,” lithium is immense valuable in the modern world. Though lithium prices dropped dramatically from the highs achieved in late 2022, China still dominates the lithium supply chain. This continues to spur on multiple countries looking to lay their hands on this valuable metal. Lithium is a critical …
Read More »Europe’s Natural Gas Prices Rally amid Supply Concerns
European benchmark natural gas prices rallied on Wednesday and early Thursday amid growing supply concerns and forecasts of lower wind power generation later this week. The Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, hit on Wednesday their highest level since January after Austria’s OMV warned the …
Read More »Europe Needs to Address Intermittent Renewables Generation
While solar and wind power installations and power generation are booming in Europe, policymakers need to address the growing gap between baseload capacity and soaring intermittent renewable electricity. Europe still has a lot of work to do in providing flexible and reliable grids to handle the soaring share of renewables …
Read More »Caspian Power Trio Aims to Electrify the European Union
Economic integration efforts among CentralAsian-Caspian Basin states are gaining momentum. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are developing a green energy plan to link their power grids with an eye towards exporting electricity to the European Union. The energy ministers of the three countries announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding …
Read More »Europe’s Love Affair with Electric Cars Wanes as Sales Plunge
Europe is “returning to petrol”, according to a new article from Yahoo Finance which highlighted Volkswagen’s EV sales as the canary in the coalmine. Sales of Volkswagen’s electric vehicles have declined by nearly 25% in Europe, with a noticeable shift back to gasoline-powered cars amid waning interest in battery-operated models, …
Read More »U.S. Attracts Europe’s Beleaguered Solar Companies
It’s nearly two years since the United States Congress passed the historic Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), with the country’s solar sector expected to be one of its biggest beneficiaries. According to the U.S. Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the IRA will drive an additional 160 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity …
Read More »Europe Makes it to the Other Side of Winter with Record Levels of Natural Gas
Europe has managed to make it through this winter season with record levels of natural gas in storage, setting it up to head into next winter on solid ground. With the end of March essentially wrapping up the typical winter season, natural gas stores in Europe remain 58.7% full, Gas …
Read More »Steel Prices Stall as European Economies Slow
Market sources report that hot rolled coil steel prices in northern and southern Europe continued to decline in recent weeks due to slowing economies in Europe as well as overcapacity. “I’m a little scared about Germany,” one trader told MetalMiner, referring to that country’s current economic situation. Germany’s economy is …
Read More »EV Makers Worried about Europe’s Charging System
Carmakers preparing new EV models in a bid to take over the European market are worried grid and charging network constraints could challenge sales. According to a Bloomberg report, executives from some of the largest carmakers are flagging a lack of fast-enough grid expansion and the absence of a single …
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