Europe
Government chaos in Italy + Commodity package + Gas crisis
Dear reader,
These are chaotic days in Rome. After ongoing tensions within the governing coalition, the Five Star Movement abstained yesterday from voting on a multi-billion euro economic stimulus package. Italy's Prime Minister Mario Draghi then announced his resignation, but the president rejected it. Isabel Cuesta Camacho reports on the background of the government crisis and analyzes who could now benefit.
"Time is running out," Peter Handley, head of the unit for raw materials in DG Grow, told the Industry, Research, and Energy Committee yesterday. Europe needs certain raw materials for the energy and mobility transition – and is thus exposed to the risk of being massively dependent on countries like China or Turkey. The Commission wants to take countermeasures with a raw materials law. Handley presented the first elements of the legislative package yesterday at ITRE, and Leonie Düngefeld summarizes the most important points.
Cocktails flambés in Brussels: the coming weeks will be dominated by the gas crisis. On Wednesday, the Commission will present its plan for "winter preparedness," and on July 26, an extraordinary meeting of the Energy Council will take place. The negotiations are likely to be intense, writes Claire Stam in her weekly column What's cooking in Brussels.
