The Irish government launched a test phase of its digital wallet Friday including an age verification capability to keep teenagers safer online. The digital ID will be able to facilitate age verification to help protect children and young people from harms on social media platforms, according to a statement from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. Ireland, home to the European headqua...
The Irish government launched a test phase of its digital wallet Friday including an age verification capability to keep teenagers safer online. The digital ID will be able to facilitate age verification to help protect children and young people from harms on social media platforms, according to a statement from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. Ireland, home to the European headquarters of the world’s biggest tech companies, is one of several countries looking to ban social media for teens. The movement has gained traction following Australia’s move to block under-16 accounts in January. Read More: Ireland, Home to EU Tech Hubs, Mulls Teen Social Media Ban Ireland sees age verification for social media as one step toward a wider ban on platforms operated by the likes of Meta Platforms Inc. Earlier this year, Finance Minister Simon Harris said teens on social media amounts to a “major public health issue,” citing the impact it has on mental health. The digital wallet will also be able hold digital versions of birth certificates, driving licenses, and other official documents, the statement said. All European Union member states are required to have one by the end of 2026, but how they use it is up to each individual state.
Israel’s largest gas field resumed production after a 33-day shutdown triggered by the Iran war, likely providing some relief for markets that are struggling with supply. The Leviathan project can now resume supply for both the domestic market and exports, a spokesperson for stakeholder Newmed Energy LP told Bloomberg, a day after Israel’s energy ministry had said the restart was imminent. Leviath...
Israel’s largest gas field resumed production after a 33-day shutdown triggered by the Iran war, likely providing some relief for markets that are struggling with supply. The Leviathan project can now resume supply for both the domestic market and exports, a spokesperson for stakeholder Newmed Energy LP told Bloomberg, a day after Israel’s energy ministry had said the restart was imminent. Leviathan is a massive gas field operated by Chevron Corp. in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea that’s crucial for supplying not just local Israeli requirements, but is also key for Egypt. Israel had ordered the temporary shutdown of some gas fields as a security measure after the conflict broke out on Feb. 28. It added to the crunch in the global market as the war snarled ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and missile attacks damaged the world’s largest liquefied natural gas plant in Qatar. In response, Egypt announced a series of energy-rationing measures because of soaring costs. The country typically receives about 1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day via a pipeline from Israel, and the cutoff of supplies has previously sent Cairo scrambling to boost imports of liquefied natural gas. Read More: Egypt to Dim Lights Early to Conserve Energy Amid Iran War Leviathan’s resumption comes amid a spate of attacks around the Middle East. Hours after US President Donald Trump issued fresh threats against Iranian infrastructure to pressure Tehran to start peace negotiations, the Islamic Republic launched fresh attacks that caused a fire at an oil refinery and damaged power and water desalination plant in Kuwait. A major gas processing facility in Abu Dhabi also halted operations after falling debris from interceptions resulted in a blaze. Newmed said in a filing Friday that initial assessments indicate the monthlong stoppage of Leviathan is not expected to have a material impact on the expected cash flow in 2026. The partners in the project intend “to examine the possibility of ...
Germany's Economy Minister Urges Nuclear Rethink As Energy Prices Surge, Growth Forecasts Slide Germany’s Economy Minister Katherina Reiche has openly called for a fundamental reassessment of the country’s long-standing rejection of nuclear power, warning that heavy dependence on gas has left Europe’s largest economy dangerously exposed to repeated energy shocks. Speaking at the launch of a new in...
Germany's Economy Minister Urges Nuclear Rethink As Energy Prices Surge, Growth Forecasts Slide Germany’s Economy Minister Katherina Reiche has openly called for a fundamental reassessment of the country’s long-standing rejection of nuclear power, warning that heavy dependence on gas has left Europe’s largest economy dangerously exposed to repeated energy shocks. Speaking at the launch of a new international investor conference aimed at drawing foreign capital into Germany, Reiche told the Financial Times that the decision by previous governments to phase out nuclear generation has eliminated any realistic alternative for reliable baseload electricit y. “ We need gas to secure our supply - that is the only baseload supply I have left, ” she said. “Politically speaking, I have no alternative.” Reiche, a senior figure in Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Christian Democratic Union, made the remarks as fresh data highlighted the mounting costs of the nuclear exit, originally decided under Angela Merkel in 2011 and completed under Olaf Scholz. While the policy was accompanied by a massive push for renewables, it has left Germany more reliant on gas-fired power stations to keep the lights on when the wind doesn’t blow and the sun doesn’t shine. Related: German Chancellor Merz Admits Shutting Down Nuclear Energy Production Was A "Severe Strategic Mistake" Germany Blows Up Last Nuclear Plant Towers While Economy Collapses The US Shows A Way Out Of Germany's Energy Trap European gas prices have risen more than 60 per cent since the outbreak of conflict in the Middle East , delivering the continent’s second major energy price crisis in under five years. Futures contracts for German electricity in May are trading at four times the level seen in France, Europe’s biggest nuclear producer, according to the energy exchange EEX. Reiche urged Germany to stop sitting on the sidelines of Europe’s nuclear revival. France, Sweden and Poland are all either building new reactors or extending t...