Germany nationalized gas importer Uniper on Wednesday and Britain capped wholesale electricity and gas prices for businesses as Europe spends to keep lights and heaters on amid a raging war in Ukraine. .
Russian President Vladimir Putin raised energy prices on Wednesday, pushing up oil and gas prices as he announced a partial military deployment.
European governments have already earmarked nearly 500 billion euros last year to protect citizens and businesses from rising gas and energy prices, according to research published by the Bruegel discussion centre.
Uniper is among the biggest corporate victims, with Germany earmarking another €8bn as a last step in its bailout, while the UK said its new plan would cost “tens of billions of pounds”.
Among the big spenders, France will allocate 9.7 billion euros to take full control of EDF.
“We intervened to stop companies from collapsing, protect jobs and limit inflation,” UK Finance Minister Kwasi Kwarteng said, while another cabinet member said the ultimate cost of his energy support would depend on rising prices. .
More than 20 British energy providers have collapsed, many succumbing because a government price cap prevented them from passing on rising prices.
European gas prices on Wednesday reached 212 euros per megawatt-hour (MWh), down from this year’s peak of around 343 euros, but up 200% from a year earlier.
Oil prices rose nearly 3%.
increased risks
“Partial mobilization is definitely a bullish factor as it increases the risks of a protracted war in Ukraine,” said Viktor Katona, chief oil analyst at Kpler.
The full nationalization of Uniper follows a multi-billion euro cash injection that proved inadequate.
The German government will buy the remaining stake held by Finnish Fortum to give the state a 99% stake.
“This is clearly not sustainable from a public finance point of view,” Simone Tagliapietra, a senior fellow at Bruegel, said of Europe’s overall energy crisis project.
“Governments with more fiscal space will inevitably manage the energy crisis better, outperforming their neighbors for limited energy resources during the winter months.”
Source: CNN Brasil
Joe Jameson, a technology journalist with over 2 years of experience, writes for top online news websites. Specializing in the field of technology, Joe provides insights into the latest advancements in the industry. Currently, he contributes to covering the world stock market.
