In brief | 13 March '25

Reuters: German parliament debates borrowing bonanza as clock ticks down

Germany's outgoing lower house of parliament began a special session on Thursday (13 March) to debate a 500 billion euro fund for infrastructure and sweeping changes to borrowing rules in Europe's largest economy to bolster defence.

FT: German weapons maker says it could take over idle Volkswagen plants to produce tanks

Move comes as Germany's largest weapons contractor Rheinmetall scours the country for extra production capacity while struggling carmakers scale back.

DPA: China's Wanfeng plans to buy German air cab start-up Volocopter

Wanfeng plans to buy insolvent Volocopter for 10 million euros, but contract hasn't been signed yet.

Reuters: Why is a Peruvian farmer taking Germany’s RWE to court over climate change?

A Peruvian farmer is getting his day in court in a landmark climate case against German energy giant RWE that could shake up how the effects of companies' emissions are litigated. The Higher Regional Court of Hamm will start a hearing on Monday (17 March) between farmer Saul Luciano Lliuya and RWE.

Bloomberg: Arctic weather blast to put strain on Europe's energy systems

A blast of Arctic air will bring icy temperatures and low wind speeds to Europe over the next week, putting pressure on energy systems already struggling with depleted natural gas inventories.

INES: INES analyses significant gas storage depletion in 2025

The Initiative Energien Speichern (INES) has released its March update on gas scenarios and reassures that there is no risk of a gas shortage despite the significant depletion of German gas storage facilities in the first months of 2025.

E3G: How EU market design can make power clean and affordable

Businesses are queuing up to integrate new renewable and flexibility assets onto grids across the EU, while industry faces barriers to electrification, says E3G briefing.