Spending allocated by European countries to combat the energy crisis is now comparable to the size of the EU fund to recover from COVID-19.
Since September 2021, European Union countries have spent 792 billion euros in subsidies and aid to citizens and companies to compensate for the sharp rise in energy prices. This was reported by Reuters citing data from a study by the Bruegel think tank.
It was recorded that the EU allocated 681 billion euros, 103 billion euros for the UK, 8.1 billion euros for Norway to overcome the energy crisis. The largest amount of aid was allocated by the German government – about 270 billion euros. Britain, Italy and France each spent around 150 billion euros.
At the same time, EU governments have tended to focus on off-target measures to lower retail energy prices, such as lowering the VAT on gasoline or capping retail electricity prices.
The study says the spending earmarked by European countries to tackle the energy crisis is now comparable to the size of the EU fund to recover from COVID-19, amounting to 750 billion euros.
Meanwhile, in January 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen statedEurope needs to prepare for next winter already, because the threat of an energy crisis still remains.
“This winter we will already endure. But we are still in danger. Now we need to prepare for next winter,” he said.
The politician added that the hot weather and curfew in China helped avert an energy crisis in the winter of 2023, as the country imports fewer resources, and accordingly, prices did not increase.
Focus He wrote earlier that against the background of the energy crisis, the European Organization for Nuclear Research was developing a plan to shut down some of the particle accelerators. The capacity of the organization consumes about 200 megawatts of electricity, 3 times more than the city of Geneva, Switzerland.
We also remember that under the pressure of the European Union embargo and the restrictions imposed by the G7 countries on oil prices, oil production in Russia may stop in 2023.
Source: Focus
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