The end of cheap energy in Europe? Macron wants to create a new energy union

In the face of geopolitical challenges, Europe needs a real energy union capable of providing industry with stable and competitive energy, said French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday in a speech at the European Industrial Forum in Antwerp.

– We must create a real energy union that will be able to provide industry with stable, predictable and competitive energy – said the French president.

As Macron emphasized at the industrial summit in Belgium, a single energy market would require large investments in energy networks and the creation of an integrated European network.

Europe must become an “independent power” in the face of threats from the United States and China – said Macron, calling for protection and support for European producers. “We need a new dimension and new momentum in our approach to end the fragmentation that weakens Europe and threatens to humiliate it,” he added.

In the president's opinion Europe should also invest in the extraction of key minerals and create their strategic reserves. According to Macron, the only way to keep up with the US and China is for EU countries to issue common debt to increase investments, among others. in security, artificial intelligence and clean technologies.

On Wednesday, the Elysee Palace also announced that within 15 years France will allocate EUR 1.6 billion of public funds to invest in decarbonization projects in seven industrial plants in the country. (PAP)

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