US V Europe - the wail over shale

From Davos to the Brussels the world is "finally" waking up to smell the gas.  Of course shale is a game changer.  Firms in Germany and Europe will consider moving to the US - any energy intensive firm would be crazy not to think about it.

However, two things to consider.  One - how sustainable is shale in the US.  Conspiracy theorists are "all over this one".  I will comment more on this issue at another date.

Second, EU subsidies to keep the big companies in Europe - a good idea? Not efficient from a economics perspective.

CNBC now comment.

 US vs. Europe: Energy battle heats up [CNBC]

 "One of the biggest themes at Davos this year — and one that was not there last year — was "competitiveness." This concern, however, was hardly limited to the annual conclave in the Swiss Alps. It reverberated with simultaneous developments in both Brussels and Berlin that point to the beginning of a major, if difficult, rethink of Europe's energy policies. It all comes down to shale gas and the energy revolution it has triggered in the United States.  All this puts European industrial production at a heavy cost disadvantage against the United States. The result is a migration of industrial investment from Europe to the United States — what one CEO called an "exodus." It involves, not only energy-intensive industries like chemicals and metals, but also companies in the supply chains that support such industries. --Daniel Yergin".