Are high energy prices harming Europe’s competitiveness? Assessing energy-cost competitiveness in Europe

Shale gas exploitation in the US has changed the competitiveness landscape for energy intensive industries. Prices are only part of the picture. We propose an indicator – ‘Unit Energy Cost’ – reflecting productivity and the evolution of energy prices per unit consumed. The good performance of European industries can be explained by their relatively low energy intensity (high energy productivity). The US and China are catching up – this calls for renewed efforts to limit price growth, and further improvements in intensity performance…