!['[Norway's prime minister Jonas Gahr Støre] does not have your best interests at heart,' said Frøya Skjold Sjursæther](https://static.euobserver.com/2026/08/260128-REDIGERT-Froya-i-salen-1-2400x1600.jpg)
‘We are hoarding our wealth in our massive sovereign wealth fund, while launching PR campaigns to deepen the EU’s fossil-fuel dependence,” said Frøya Skjold Sjursæther. ‘If Støre truly cared for Europe, Norway would donate the billions we’ve made in war profits to Ukraine’s aid’
Budget flexibility is explicitly ruled out for any kind of fossil-fuel tax cut or subsidy, including income-based support aimed at cushioning high energy bills for households and businesses.
Russia’s ‘Yamal’ LNG facility is located at Sabetta, a purpose-built port in the Arctic Ocean, where ice thickness can reach two metres during winter months.
As Brussels hails its 2040 climate target, officials quietly admit that without a clear plan for the “leftover” emissions from farming, industry, and aviation, Europe’s promise of climate neutrality risks becoming a statistics charade.
A leading British forecaster said it will revise up its European gas price forecast next month, to an average of close to €60 per megawatt hour this winter, up from €45.
Eighteen shipments of oil products from refineries that run partly on Russian crude were unloaded at EU ports in July, more than double the eight recorded in the month before.
Berlin approved the export guarantee on the basis that the rig would replace older equipment, but researchers say it opened a new field instead.
With turbines winding down at Paks, bridges in darkness and freight trains halted at peak hours, Hungarians are suddenly feeling how a shrinking Danube can upend daily life and the wider economy.
Shell records disclosed in a UK court case show the company kept a major Nigerian pipeline running despite warnings that oil theft was causing spills across the Niger Delta.
The UK’s new PM is hard not to like. However, calls to drill in an untapped oil and gas field, alongside an unrealistic budget, could turn the tide against him all too quickly.
Hitting EU targets for heat pumps, solar and wind could wipe out liquefied natural gas (LNG) demand equivalent to twice Qatar’s potential LNG supply, cutting households’ exposure.
Preserving this Greek carve-out sends precisely the wrong signal. It tells companies that sufficiently valuable commercial interests may eventually secure exemptions. It tells member states that delaying agreement can produce favourable outcomes. And it tells Moscow that Europe’s political unity remains negotiable when influential industries are affected.
The Azerbaijani regime has arrested investigative journalists and dismantled independent media, leaving virtually no one on the ground to report on corruption and trade violations. And yet the EU Commission and German government are placing their trust in the authoritarian petro-state.
![[Interview] ‘Some of the resistance comes from people fearing they’ll end up without a job,’ says industry expert on Europe’s slow electrification](https://static.euobserver.com/2026/07/anja-van-de-gronde-PY7r5dJ_v-Y-unsplash-2400x1602.jpg)
According to Devan Pillay of Schneider Electric, it’s not just grids and prices holding electrification back. It’s also change-resistant engineers of the older generation that are running plants today. “Their attitude is: if it works, let’s leave it.”
![[Interview] The US Democrat trying to convince Brussels to stand up to Trump on methane](https://static.euobserver.com/2026/07/Captura-de-Pantalla-2026-07-13-a-las-18.28.15.png)
US congressman Sean Casten, a longtime champion of methane rules in Washington, recently wrote a letter urging EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen not to cave to US pressure to weaken the regulation. EUobserver asked him why he believes delay is a mistake.
THIS WEEK: EU weighs curbs on Israeli-settlement trade, as India tech ties and carbon market review top agendaThis week’s EU agenda stretches from restrictions on trade with Israeli illegal settlements and Gaza aid to a looming electrification push and carbon market review.
According to a leaked draft of the EU Commission’s Electrification Action Plan Brussels will propose a binding electrification target later this year as part of a wider post-2030 energy package.
As EU funds flow into improving the energy efficiency of homes, the failure to support deep renovations risks locking entire neighbourhoods into homes that remain expensive to heat and cool for decades. So why isn’t EU funding delivering on its promise?
The EU methane regulation “has become a defining test of Europe’s ability to maintain ambitious climate and energy policies” the US lawmakers wrote.
Nearly half of EU member states, oil and gas companies and the US administration claim the EU’s methane regulation is unfinished, causes legal risks, and could disrupt Europe’s gas supplies. But does it?