European manufacturers penalized by energy costs compared to Americans

The argument played out like a little background music during recent announcements of factory closures in France: energy prices are too high. Michelin made this one of its main justifications for shutting down its Vannes and Cholet sites. The chemistry sector, which, according to France Chimie (the industry organization), consumes around a third of the gas and 20% of the electricity used by industry, is particularly sensitive to this.

The war in Ukraine has completely reshuffled the cards by causing gas prices to soar in Europe, now deprived of a good part of its Russian gas supplies. Certainly, since the peaks of 2022, European prices have fallen, thanks to the increase in imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), particularly from the United States. But they remain above 2019 levels. And above all, the price gap between the two shores of the Atlantic has widened: gas costs 10 euros…