Russia and Ukraine reach deal at Geneva meeting 2014
Russia, Ukraine, the US and the European Union have agreed to a de-escalation of tensions in eastern Ukraine. After meeting for seven hours in Geneva, Switze. Subscribe: April 17 - As an...
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Russia and Ukraine reach deal at Geneva meeting 2014 - Video
European Union Ryan and Isaiah
European Union Project.
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European Union Ryan and Isaiah - Video
Conversations in Culture: Celebrating Europe #39;s New Vibrant Members
Cameron Hewitt, author of Rick Steves Central and Eastern Europe expert and guidebook author extraordinaire, takes us on a quick trip through all 10 countries that entered the European Union...
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Conversations in Culture: Celebrating Europe's New Vibrant Members - Video
The European Union has enough gas trapped in shale to free the bloc from reliance on Russian energy supplies for about 28 years if only the constituent countries are prepared to extract it.
The CHART OF THE DAY ranks EU countries by recoverable shale-gas reserves expressed in years of domestic consumption, led by Sweden with 250 years, according to Bloomberg calculations using U.S. Energy Information Agency data of 10 European countries. Among them, France and Bulgaria have outright bans on extraction, while the Netherlands and Germany are among states that have issued moratoriums.
The 28-nation bloc, which looks to Russia for about a third of its oil and gas needs, is discussing ways to diversify its energy sources following Russian threats to cut natural gas supplies to Ukraine, a former Soviet republic engulfed in separatist violence. As EU nations debate the technologys effect on the environment, the U.S. has used fracking to become the worlds largest producer of natural gas.
Effective exploitation of these assets could significantly increase Europes energy security, said Zhenbo Hou, an analyst at the Overseas Development Institute in London, in a telephone interview. Its possible to see the Ukrainian conflict as a catalyst for fracking momentum in Europe, but I still see it as a long shot.
European environmentalists have been able to corral efforts to expand fracking, which liberates trapped gas by blasting shale rock with a mixture of water and chemicals.
Poland, with 63 wells completed, is the only EU state so far that expects to begin commercial production from one well this year, according to the countrys environment minister. The U.K. government, while supportive of fracking, has faced popular opposition.
To contact the reporters on this story: Ladka Bauerova in Prague at lbauerova@bloomberg.net; Radoslav Tomek in Bratislava, Slovakia at rtomek@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: James M. Gomez at jagomez@bloomberg.net Sheldon Reback
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Europe Has 28-Year Shale Gas Rebuff to Russia: Chart of the Day
Brussels: Often criticised as a red-tape bureaucracy removed from the everyday concerns of people, the European Union in fact directly impacts on the lives of its 500 million people.
Recent key decisions by the parliament and the European Commission have affected every area of public policy, from the mundane to the critical, from mobile phone roaming fees to food security and the right to open a bank account.
- Europe and mobile phones
By the end of 2015, roaming fees on calls and SMS messages sent between EU countries should be a thing of the past.
Fearful of hefty charges when they return home, many Europeans avoid using their mobile phones and devices while abroad.
The European Commission, the EUs executive arm, campaigned long and hard to get roaming fees scrapped and the European Parliament approved the measure in April. The European Council, representing the blocs 28 member states, still has to sign off on the deal.
This is what the EU is all about getting rid of barriers to make life easier and less expensive, said EU Commissioner for the digital agenda Neelie Kroes.
Under the deal, mobile phone companies will have to offer customers roam like at home packages covering the whole of the EU, or allow them to subscribe to separate service providers when crossing a national border, without having to change their original SIM card.
The EU has been working for years to cut smoking rates, despite the best efforts of the tobacco industry, with a particular focus on stopping young Europeans taking up the habit.
By 2016, two-thirds of the surface of tobacco packets will carry graphic health warnings and horrific photos of smoke-damaged lungs. Flavoured cigarettes, including menthols, will be banned from 2020.
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How EU policy affects everyday lives of Europeans