We have referred on many occasions in Futuribles to the economic security strategy adopted by the European Union (EU) and hence, naturally, to the Draghi Report on the competitiveness of Europe and its re-industrialization. We have been at pains, too, to stress the difficulty of reconciling this objective with the aims of the Green Deal, given the EU’s dependency on low-carbon technologies (particularly relating to electric vehicles), not to mention the dilemma facing Europe over these two priorities (of reindustrializing and, at the same time, reducing climate impact). This article perfectly illustrates this dilemma.
After reminding us of the EU’s aims with regard to renewable energies—more specifically, solar energy and, hence, the production of photovoltaic panels—Dominique Finon describes the supremacy of Chinese companies in this industry and stresses how difficult it would be for the EU to revive it as a pathway to self-sufficiency. This close-grained analysis of the conditions that would need to be met to achieve such a goal leads him to conclude that it is a very long shot and probably not worth the effort.
The article is downloadable only in French. It is not available in English.
