Natural gas still not getting through in Europe
Coal still beats natural gas in many European markets, notably Germany. This makes no sense, says Wintershall chief executive Mario Mehren
It was supposed to be simple: gas would be the bridging fuel—the relatively clean hydrocarbon that underpinned the EU's transition to a bright renewables-led future. But the reality has proved more complex, with political disputes hampering prospects for further Russian pipeline supply and energy policy designed to promote renewables failing to curb the use of more-polluting coal. Yet the case for gas remains overwhelming, according to Mario Mehren, chief executive of German-based producer Wintershall, a subsidiary of BASF. Both EU domestic gas and piped volumes from Russia, Norway and North Africa, (complemented by liquefied natural gas from wherever is cheapest) will provide the continent
Also in this section
10 November 2025
The Russian firm made a significant attempt to expand overseas over the past two decades but is now trying to divest its global operations
10 November 2025
OPEC+ has proven to be astute at bringing back oil production, but mysteries around Chinese buying, missing barrels and oil-on-water have left the group in wait-and-see mode
7 November 2025
The Russian company’s German assets are under Berlin’s management and are exempt from sanctions, for now, but a permanent solution still needs to be found
6 November 2025
After years of pursuing ideologically driven climate leadership, Western powers are now stepping back under mounting political pressure and rising populist opposition—prompting concern essential climate action could be sidelined
