Eurozapping: oil drilling in the United Kingdom, chemistry undermined in Germany

On the BBC, green light for Britain’s biggest oil drill. Discovered in 2004 off the coast of the Shetland Islands, the Rosebank deposit is expected to produce more than 300 million barrels in 25 years, in the midst of a climate crisis. “There will be an observed demand for oil and gas throughout the energy transition”, explains Arne Gürtner, vice-president of the Equinor company. This project has been supported for months by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. A disastrous day for climate defenders.

Switzerland on the road to the energy transition

In Germany, the chemical industry is being strangled by electricity prices. The bosses were received for a summit in Berlin. They are sounding the alarm, the price of energy is too high, up to 20 times more expensive than in the United States or Asia. “The only question is ‘Does chemistry still have a future in Europe?'”, asks Michael Vassiliadis, president of IG Bergbau. Without help, chemistry will have to relocate. It represents more than 550,000 jobs in Germany.

In Switzerland, a law for the energy transition. The country will build 16 dams by 2050 and install thousands of solar panels and wind turbines. Nine times more than today. The only one absent is nuclear power, to the great dismay of the conservative opposition. Switzerland still has four nuclear power plants in operation. Supporters of this energy would like a new power station to be built in the years to come.