Five EU ministers Call for New Windfall Tax on Energy Profits Amid Price Surge / “It would make it possible to finance temporary relief, especially for consumers, and curb rising inflation, without placing additional burdens on public budgets.” – Letter from Germany, Italy, Spain, Portugal & Austria

Windfall taxes make sense politically when companies are making outsized profits during a crisis, but they’re not always great long-term.

You want to capture excess profit without discouraging investment in energy infrastructure. Balance is the hard part, especially when you also need rapid transition to renewables at the same time.