We are all facing unexpected shocks in these uncertain times. Oil shocks. Climate shocks. War and political shocks of all kinds. Even words from the world’s most powerful people shock. These are things we can’t control. We simply absorb them as they come, usually from the media, the social or traditional varieties. Some are just Read More

Why should we be interested in brownfield sites? These are wastelands that have been previously developed and are no longer in use. There are LOTS of them in Europe waiting to accommodate new homes or parkland. And they are much more accessible than increasingly scarce greenfield sites. Why then are they not developed? Because we Read More

If your company produces nothing you can drop on your foot, works in the service sector and is expanding internationally, you can probably deliver your digital offering from anywhere in the world. There are, however, a few things that you might consider before relocating your business to the Ross Ice Shelf. It would help if Read More

Many of us would like to be like Gunter, the car parts tycoon. How did he become so rich? A school classmate wanted to know how someone who never did his homework and who spent all his time with the best-looking girls managed to get where he was. Gunter, who later became very good at Read More

There are three Scandinavian countries: Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Together with Finland and Iceland, these five are known as “Nordic”. On the European business map, they are lumped together, mostly for the wrong reasons. Each has its own currency, language and history. 3 are members of the European Union, but only one uses the euro. Read More

E.ON Sweden is part of the international E.ON energy group that employs 70,000 people in 15 different countries. It has four plants and employs 2,100 people in Sweden, offering electricity, heating and smart energy solutions to a million private consumers and businesses. In 2020, E.ON Sweden decided to streamline its fuel acquisitions with its plant Read More

90% of the world’s trade is transported by ships. However, they contribute only 2% of global energy-related emissions. So ships sound like an efficient and environmental-friendly way of moving goods around. And this is true until they start getting to ports. Here they encounter MANY problems that make the whole marine goods delivery process inefficient, Read More

There is no dearth of criticism of the EU for its bureaucracy and labyrinthine rules. It is one of the stated reasons that the Brits left it. However, even they admit to its world leadership in standards-setting. If no one else has come up with a regulation or standard, you can be sure that the Read More

Humans have canines, so we must have evolved to eat meat. But so do gorillas, and they are vegetarians. Almost all the amino acids and essential nutrients humans need can be found in plants. So do we really have to kill 77 billion land animals every year to sustain our addiction to meat? And is Read More

The French state has always believed in industrial planning. The country’s governing elite knows better than its CEOs what the consumer really needs. The announcement on EVs a few years ago by President Macron also follows this logic. It places EVs “at the heart of the strategy of the French automotive industry.” It is a pronouncement Read More

World trade is some 60% of world GDP. Most of it takes place between countries of the developed world: in 2022, 65% of world exports were made by 16 rich countries — plus China, Mexico, India and Brazil. And these exports were made mostly by very large companies. SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) make up Read More

Here is a condensed version of a pre-Brexit article from the Economist of a few yeas back:  “As island dwellers, it is hard for the British not to think in an insular way. Brexit (then the prospect of Britain departing from the European Union) was a major talking point around dinner tables in Britain, but Read More