On April 8, 1946, a significant event occurred in history with the nationalization of EDF and GDF, led by Marcel Paul, a unionist, communist, and minister of industrial production. This was followed by the establishment of a status for electrical and gas industries on April 22.
The public service and status of the personnel go hand in hand. The need for the nation to regain control over such a strategic sector became evident after the war, with the necessity to rebuild the country.
Energy has always played a critical role in the development of nations and people. The slogans developed in struggles advocate for the right to energy for all, arguing that energy is not a commodity.
For a long time, the ownership of fossil resources has been a factor in wars, to the extent that in Africa, it was referred to as “the curse of resources.” The extraction of underground wealth only enriched multinational corporations and a few dictators, leaving people in underdevelopment and leading to war and corruption.
Equally concerning is the use of these resources to produce energy, allowing Western countries to develop, but also emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, with disproportionately harmful consequences on the poorest communities.
More recently, the war in Ukraine has highlighted Europe’s dependence on gas, particularly Russian gas. The need to develop renewable energies and move away from coal, without relying on a carbon-based and controllable energy source like nuclear power, has led to a central role for gas, even though moving away from fossil fuels implies moving away from gas as well.
The energy transition must shift from carbon-based energies to non-carbon-based energies, and the widespread use of intermittent energies leads to situations like the Iberian blackout. Furthermore, technological advancements like AI will result in a massive increase in electricity consumption, necessitating a shift towards a sustainable mode of development.
Gas can be transported through pipelines or in liquefied form (LNG) aboard tankers. Americans had long claimed that the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline connecting Germany to Russia would never materialize. It was sabotaged, and the war initiated by Russia has reshuffled the deck.
LNG is ideal for the market, with no technological neutrality. Consequently, tankers can be redirected towards Europe or Asia based on price offers, with many being rerouted to Asia regularly.
One of Trump’s objectives in wars, like the one with Venezuela and Iran accompanied by deadly repercussions across the region, is to control access to oil and strategic resources, as well as put the primary economic competitor of the United States, China, at a disadvantage by cutting off some oil supplies and hindering the construction of the Belt and Road Initiative.
As long as the idea continues that the Earth’s resources can be plundered with impunity and might makes right, hopes for global peace remain dim. Arms dealers thrive on conflict, allowing capital to find a way to accumulate socially useless and unproductive goods.
Therefore, action must be taken to breathe life into international organizations that protect workers and nature, ensuring that natural resources are common assets managed collectively in the interest of the common good. This ideal remains distant, as the struggle for control over resources necessary for development, like energy and metals, becomes increasingly sharp and violent.
As post-war generations displayed audacity in addressing new challenges, like ecological crises and anthropological shifts in human-nature relationships, we too must exhibit boldness in devising solutions to unprecedented dilemmas facing us today.
In this context, what should Europe and France do? Is the PPE provided by the government sufficient to address questions of national sovereignty? With the industry dwindling and representing only 10% of the GDP, are measures to facilitate companies’ transition to ecological and energy change moving in the right direction? What measures can prevent the energy crisis from pushing more people into poverty? What role do workers play in this scenario?
These and other questions will be discussed on May 6 during an event organized by the Gabriel Péri Foundation in collaboration with the Progressistes journal, featuring Jean-Paul Bouttes, Virginie Neumayer, and Michel Doneddu.
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