[vimy]

> In Europe we don't have much fossil fuels, so our "hippiness" is not really a choice.

We have plenty of oil and gas (normal and fracking). We have just convinced ourselves its better to leave it in the ground and pay foreign countries instead. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The energy crisis in Europe is a self-inflicted wound.

[standardUser]

I hope someday the word 'crisis' gets a breather. That poor, abused, overworked and misunderstood word :(

[vimy]

Gas price are still twice as high as four years ago. Whole industries are collapsing because electricity is too expensive for factories. Personally, just heating my home has become very expensive.

Europe is deindustrializing. Especially Germany, the EU economic engine, has been hit hard. So yes, the word crisis is used correctly here.

> For instance, BASF, a global chemical giant, recently announced plans to downsize its operations in the country with the reason being unbearably high energy prices in Germany. Now, the company is shifting its focus toward expanding its production efforts in China and the U.S. to access more stable energy costs. Germany’s prime power- the Automotive industry, is also struggling due to immense pressure caused by rising energy costs. A recent study revealed that energy costs for Germany’s automotive sector increased by 20% in 2022 and a similar trend followed in 2023. https://ceinterim.com/deindustrialization-in-germany/

[standardUser]

> Whole industries are collapsing

Ok, I'll bite, name 3 collapsing industries - on the verge of extinction due to rising energy prices - that could be fixed by building highly-polluting power generators ASAP?

[vimy]

It’s late, my brain has shut down but I can name 2 on top of my head:

Steel.

Anything chemical. We already lost half our production. :o

You should read some financial newspapers. Things are really bad.

[standardUser]

So no one makes chemicals anymore? Of course they do, but like all industries they're subject to market and government forces and what made sense for an industry in one era does not mean that's true for all of eternity. No one ever said that a 1,000 generations of Dutch chemical engineers are entitled to chemical engineering jobs, let alone near their homes.

[vimy]

Lol, if you don’t understand we need jobs in Europe this debate has no point.

Wow…

> The European Union’s chemical sector is facing a series of headwinds that the European Chemical Industry Council, Cefic, says are pushing the industry to ‘breaking point.’

A joint study by Cefic and Advancy: The Competitiveness of the European Chemical Industry, paints a bleak picture, with the report saying that between 2023 and 2024 announcements were made indicating that 11 million tonnes of production capacity would be closed across 21 major European production sites

[atq2119]

To be fair, keeping your own resources in the ground as long as possible is often the strategically right move if your time horizon is long enough. It means they will still be there when other world regions run out.