expensive

A man stayed a 20 -euro bizum sent by mistake. The judge has fined her and has come out ten times more expensive

by

With 28 million active users, Bizum is the most used system in Spain for payments among users. We send and receive a lot of money through Bizum and make an mistake when typeing the number we want to send money is something that can happen with relative ease. If we are lucky, they may return it to us, but what happens if who is on the other side decides to stay the money? Now we know. Staying a bizum sent by mistake is very expensive. As we said, making a mistake to type the number to which we want to send a bizum can be quite easy and it is just what happened to a neighbor of Benavente, as they say in Zamora’s opinion. The person who received the 20 euros did not return the amount and the woman decided to denounce him to the authorities. The Provincial Court of Zamora has proved him right and has condemned the receiver of the transfer to return the 20 euros, in addition to paying the judicial coasts and a fine of 180 euros for a slight crime of improper appropriation. More than ten times the original amount. The Civil Code says. The denounced has resorted to the sentence alleging lack of evidence and presumption of innocence, but the judge has confirmed it and considers that the woman had not consented to the transfer. This would apply not only to Bizum, but to transfers and any other payment received by error. He Article 1895 of the Civil Code It is clear, it must always be returned: When something that was not entitled to collect is received, and that by mistake it has been improperly delivered, the obligation to restore it arises. There is jurisprudence. There have been more cases that have reached the courts for transfers made by error, such as this one of an Alicante businessman who faces Three years in jail for not returning a payment of 341,000 That was done by mistake. EITHER This 2015 sentence who condemned a woman for staying with 25,900 euros of the pension plan of her ex -husband, the result of an error of the bank when rescuing the money. Bizum in figures. Bizum It has become the standard of immediate payments in Spain. Arrived in 2016 as part of an initiative among various banking entities, although it was not until 2018 when It extended and began to grow. It currently has 28 million users and it is expected to reach 30 throughout the year. In 2024 an average of 3 million operations were made per day. The record was the past Black Friday (November 29, 2024), with 4.8 million operations. Or what is the same: 55 bizums per second. In total, in 2024 1,093 million operations were made worth 44,206 million euros. We do not know the number of erroneous operations when sending money, but with these numbers it is logical that they are increasing. Bizum grows, legal doubts too. In parallel to this growth, unknowns have also been increasing from the legal and legal point of view. Many users wonder What income or payments should be declared to the Treasury. We know that it is not necessary to declare payments between friends and family, although the freelancers who use it to collect, the income that generate economic profitability as rentals or if the total amount adds more than 10,000 euros per year should do. Doubts have also emerged about whether something that has eliminated the Threshold of 3,000 euros in the control of transfers by the Treasury. In this case, if high amounts are received through Bizum, the Treasury may investigate it, just as they would do if it were a transfer or a metallic income. Little by little, light is shed and it is clear that, at the legal level, Bizum is one more method to move money and apply the same rules as any type of income In Xataka | Timo of the false bizum by mistake: how it works and how to avoid this scam

Today’s cars are more expensive because they have filled with technology. And that has another added cost: go to the workshop

by

Too much electronics. It was one of the usual criticism when electronics began to take the controls of cars mechanics and it became difficult to know what was failing without a diagnostic machine. Since then, the weight of electronics has not stopped growing but in the last five years its weight is so great that facing a breakdown compromises any pocket. And there is data. 60%. That is what has grown up for repairing a vehicle in the last five years, according to A study by Valuepenguin.comspecialized in personal finance, collected by Automotive News. The data is problematic because this is united an extra cost in the price of insurance and, therefore, a general increase in the maintenance of the vehicle. The data refers to the US market where they indicate that the average cost of having a new vehicle was $ 12,297 per year in 2024, experiencing a increase in $ 115 compared to 2023. Here you take into account the price of paid monthly payment, insurance, fuel … Less accidents but more expensive. The study ensures that the evolution of the systems have helped to report 25% less notices to insurance but, also, an increase in them because repairing the technology of a new car is extremely expensive and complex. Thus, the average cost of insurance in the United States is $ 2.101 a year. In Motorpasion They collect that these repairs are extremely expensive when we go to the most advanced security and driving help systems. Repair or replace the digital mirrors of a Audi e-tron It costs between 800 and 1,500 euros. Parking sensors (exposed if you park on the street) may have a cost of between 275 and 900 euros if they have to replace them, according to 20 minutes. And the prices of the rear view camera are around and exceed 1,000 euros. Too complex systems. The biggest problem facing who has had an accident with a new car is that the number of establishments where you can repair your car are scarce. They point out in Automotive News that manufacturers force the workshops to start an extremely exhaustive protocol to calibrate the systems. And it has logic because “a misaligned sensor in a single grade can divert its operation between 1.68 and 91 meters,” according to Hami Ebrahimi, commercial headquarters commercial for Calliber Collisionspecialists in the repair of safety systems for the vehicle. They ensure in the middle that adapting the facilities to be able to carry out these repairs can have a cost of between 600,000 and 1 million dollars per workshop. That are also not used. The paradox is that it is not entirely clear to what extent these systems are being used. According to JD Powerthe reports of unhappy customers because they do not fully understand how to activate driving aid functions or have problems with them have shot themselves in recent years. This leads customers to omit their use. Cars have been filled with a very expensive technology, Little used And that, in addition, it is extremely expensive to repair. And it is important to do these repairs because, as they point out in Automotive Newsthe interconnection of systems means that if, for example, we do not repair the sensors of a bumper we will be disabled by emergency braking functions, an aid that is only visible when you need it most. And that are mandatory. At least in Europe, where institutions force our New cars arrive as standard With the following security assistants: Reverse camera with cross traffic alert Emergency braking Lane output alert Smart Speed ​​Assistant Fatigue and drowsiness detector Black box Belt alert in the rear seats Systems to install an breathalyzer Increasingly complicated. All this results in maintaining a car is increasingly complicated. First because these systems have helped a Increase the vehicle of departure but also to a rise in insurance that In Spain they are marking records In 2025. To this we must add the fuel price increase. Issues that especially affect the low range and the prices of second -hand cars. The first because the floor of the price of the car has risen with systems that, According to brands like Daciathe client turns off just get on them. The second because the increase in the new car Raise the used price And, in addition, it makes it difficult to The client passes through any workshop to solve the possible problems that arise over the years. Photo | Maxim Hopman In Xataka | The purchase of a new car is now very expensive. And the industry knows that it can’t hold it

The motorcycle fever of the 2,000 has brought to the absurd the price of the second hand. There are more expensive than 20 years ago

by

The price of second -hand cars It has been triggered for yearsand it is more than usual to find models that cost more today than new four or five years ago. It is a sector that is not alone. The second -hand motorcycle is more expensive than everand it is not necessary to point to especially exclusive editions. Some are selling at exorbitant prices, although with a certain trick. The lucky one. The Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade It is one of the icons of the sports motorcycle. Even more in its Repsol version, painted with the colors of the MotoGP team. It was an especially expensive motorcycle, that was sold for 11,799 dollarsabout 14,000 euros in Spain. Inflation has made its own and, 20 years later, this model is sold (the current CBR1000RR-R Fireblade) is sold for 25,500 euros, a price in the line of what the great Japanese manufacturers ask for for their supercar. The price. The revaluation of a unit in perfect condition of this Honda is shocking. One of them was sold in the London Motorcycle Show for 22,000 pounds, just over 26,000 euros to change. In Motorpasion Moto They echo a second unit, with an estimated price of between 10,000 and 15,000 pounds, waiting for a new owner. He never started. To achieve these figures that exceed the original price, some requirements must be met, some of them especially complex. These units are sold as an old concessionaire stock: they have never been started, conducted or enrolled. They are motorcycles with 20 years on their backs, but without use. It’s not just nostalgia. The fever for the 2,000 superbikes is real, and there is nothing more to see the revaluation of most models in Platforms such as Milanuncios. Motorcycles of 20 years ago with prices that touch the 10,000 euros if the unit is in excellent condition and with “few” kilometers. They are motorcycles specially oriented to circuit, they do not have electronics or the restrictions on emissions of current models, and are seen as authentic candies to enjoy driving in their purest state. Beyond the sports motorcycle. Finding second -hand units almost at the same price as new units is not something exclusive to the supercar motorcycle. According to Anesdor datathe average price of the general motorcycle has risen 30% in the last five years. And, to a higher displacement, greater increase in the price. Despite the slightest attraction in the occasion market, in Spain two occasion motorcycles are sold for each new motorcycle, with an annual growth trend that is around 5% year -on -year. Image | Motorcycle auctix In Xataka | We do not trust the second -hand electric car: its value does not stop falling and it is a problem for the industry

Coffee is more expensive than ever. Some researchers have discovered how to make it the same as rich using less coffee

by

Cocoa and coffee have experienced a Notable price increase This 2025. different Geopolitical factors, climatic and of transport They have caused the price of coffee to reach absurd limits. For some executives of coffee companies, we are immersed in one “unsustainable bubble”And it is logical that, with coffee at the point more expensive for the last 50 yearslet’s ask ourselves how to prepare the best coffee wearing fewer grains. A group of scientists already has the answer: taking advantage of the Fluid dynamics. And they have reached the same conclusion that the baristas have been promulgating for years. The problem. 2024 meant the culmination of an upward trend: the price of coffee had Uploaded almost 170% in the last decade. A Perfect storm I was promoting that the crops were more scarce in the main coffee producing countriestariffs have not helped, transport has also been sometimes interrupted and there are brands that absorbed the impact of the price increase Until they stopped doing it. Filter coffee. This price increase affects both robust variety like Arabicaand a group of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania wondered if they could make an excellent coffee wearing less grains. Arnold Mathijssen is an assistant professor at the Faculty of University Arts and Sciences and Comment That, although there are several research on fluid mechanics and many others on particles, they have joined both to see if they can enhance coffee extraction. To do this, they focused on one of the elaborations that allows the most control when making coffee: The filter. Here we can precisely establish the temperature of the water, we control how it affects coffee, the amount of grain, the milliliters of water and, With a good millwe can find the right grain thickness to optimize extraction. The perfect point. The team used high -speed cameras to measure water penetration in coffee and the truth is that it did not use techniques that the baristas did not know, but it is interesting to know how they evaluated the process. Margot Young is co -author of study And he states that, before starting directly with coffee, they used transparent silica gel particles in a glass cone (such as the classic Chemex) to see the path that follows the water. With the high -speed chamber and several sensors, they observed how small avalanches were produced inside the “coffee” bed. Little by little, water with a constant jet, the particles mixed better, improving coffee extraction by increasing contact between liquid and grains. They played with different heights, They discovered That, when the water is poured from too much height, the jet breaks into drops that drag air to the cone and the grains, reducing the efficiency of the extraction. If the coffee is poured very close, the penetration is insufficient and the contact between water and grains is reduced. The jug with the swan neck. It is also in a bull or boiler Adequate teapot. To take advantage of fluid dynamics and maximize contact between the elements, Ernest Park, co -author of the study, comments that it is essential to use a swan’s neck. They are with an elongated and curved ‘pitorro’ that allow consistent and precise jet. “If you use a conventional teapot, it is difficult to control where the flow goes,” says Park, “and if the flow is not constant, it does not penetrate enough.” In real experiments with coffee, measurements confirmed that extraction can be optimized by prolonging the spill time using slow and constant movements to take advantage of that Avalancha dynamics. If it is not done at fair speed and height, coffee will be stronger or softer because it will be above or sub -expire. Beyond coffee. It is curious that they have used measurements and physical theories to, as we say, to reach the same conclusion that the baristas have been proclaiming in books and channels like YouTube: A swan neck, slow circular movements and a medium height when preparing filter coffee is ideal to maximize extraction and be able to make a good coffee with less grains. It is interesting to see that this booklet is the one that any coffee enthusiast can have, controlling temperatures, amounts and extraction times However, the researchers comment that they did not do this for fun. Mathijssen says they had “the tools of other projects and we realized that coffee was an interesting model system to explore deepest physical principles that go beyond the kitchen.” For example, this type of fluid behavior helps to understand how water erodes the rock under waterfalls or in the dams. ” “You can start with something small, such as coffee, and end up discovering mechanisms that are important at industrial scales” – Mathijssen The importance of science. But well, beyond “I came looking for money and found gold”, it must be said that coffee and science are very close. And it is not so much a search on how to prepare the best coffee using less grains, but a way to optimize the elaborations to have the best possible drink. He MIT has a course in which students and researchers seek to prepare the perfect cup controlling all the processes and techniques to achieve it. They combine elements, play with temperatures and pressures and calculate everything millimeter to obtain knowledge that They move to Café Diario thanks to the development of better techniques, more sophisticated tools and industrial processes (such as grinding or roasted) much more precise. Images | For City, Ernest Park, James Hoffmann

The first Hermès headphones for Millionaires do not compete in technology, compete in price. For being the most expensive, of course

by

In addition to manufacturing handmade chairs, Hermès has earned her prestige of luxury craftsman for her popular (and profitable) Birkin bags. However, the exclusive Maison He has taken an unexpected step. He has tired of making covers For airpods And now it seeks to compete in the high -end technology market launching its first high -end headphones worthy of the cache of your bags. For his first foray into the technological sector, Hermès does not consider competing with The biggest As for technical benefits, but in something that the French brand dominates perfectly: its price. And not precisely because it is the most economical. Making covers for Airpods was not enough Until now, Hermès had collaborated with technological brands such as Apple, just creating leather covers For airpods and other accessories for their devices. However, the firm has decided to go a little further and manufacture its own luxury headphones, in which each unit is handed by its most experienced artisans. According to The published by Luxurylaunchesthe design and development process has been two years and each headset is the result of a thorough work, from the selection of skins to the final assembly. In fact, exclusivity is such that A few units will be producedand each of them is made on request. Touch the image to go to the original message “The idea is not to be able to replicate this 10,000 times as a great headphones manufacturer would. The idea is that the few we do are perfectly done, and that has been a very long learning process,” explains Axel de Beaufort, creative director of Ateliers Horizons. This Hermès artisan workshop based in France, has been responsible for manufacturing for the firm’s clients such unusual pieces such as canoes, disco balls and surf boards, but now faces the challenge of combining artisanal excellence with the technological requirements expected of some high -end headphonessuch as the incorporation of tactile functions to control them or Noise cancellation. The headphones are made of hand -sewn cow hunter skin, metal details inspired by their emblematic Kelly bag, as well as pads and headband coated with lamb skin. In Spain, for the moment They are only available In the color Rouge H. the 11,800 euros that cost It positions them as the most expensive in the market, even surpassing other accessories as extravagant of the brand as the fishing cane of 10,000 dollars or the Mahjong set of $ 43,000. Luxury, but high -end headphones after all Although Hermès has kept a secret many of the technical specifications, it is known that these headphones They can connect Both Bluetooth and Jack cable. In addition, it includes USB C connector and different USB C adapters and 2.5 mm jack connector. The brand promises an “intimate, faithful and envelope” auditory experience and ensures that the sound performance is at the height of the aesthetic promise, with “very high fidelity, subtle reproduction and enveloping silence”, something that we have not been able to verify. Inside they incorporate two 40 mm transducers that allow reproducing a very wide frequency range between 20 Hz and 40,000 Hz. The headphones battery offers up to 30 hours of autonomyaccording to data from the firm itself, and the materials used guarantee exceptional durability and comfort that have already been endorsed by the Hermès bags resist the passage of the passage of time. “It is not just a beautiful object, but about creating a true sound world, an exclusive auditory firm,” is indicated on its website. In Xataka | Hermés’ heir millionaire adopted his gardener. His fortune has evaporated before he reaches his garden Image | Hermes

more expensive light and marketers to the limit

by

It has been a month since the great blackout that left the entire Iberian Peninsula. Since then, the national electrical system has been operating under a new extreme surveillance protocol: “reinforced operation.” Its goal is simple, but ambitious: avoid another total collapse. Its effect, however, begins to feel in the pocket of companies, marketers and consumers. Reinforced operation? Electricity and the Government have chosen to contain renewables and activate backup technologies such as gas, hydraulics or nuclear to gain stability. These sources, although more predictable, are also more expensive. But this operational turn has a price: renewable energy is being left out, cheaper, in favor of more expensive conventional technologies. As He has collected Five days, this new strategy has triggered the participation of traditional plants in the so -called adjustment markets or technical restrictions. So is there a contradiction? After the blackout, many pointed to the low inertia of the system, associated with the high penetration of renewables, such as the great culprit. However, like has collected this medium In an analysis by Matías Zavia, the peninsular electrical system counted in the moments before collapse with an “according to European recommendations” levels: 2.3 seconds, above the minimum threshold of 2. Both Minister Sara Aagesen and Secretary of State Joan Groizard have confirmed this data in parliamentary headquarters. The technical explanation that gains force points to a chain of failures: anomalous oscillations, Almost simultaneous generation surgeons and disconnections. It was at that critical moment, with the peninsula already isolated from France, when the low inertia aggravated the final fall. It was not the cause, but the collapse accelerator. In the absence of the official report, planned for the coming months, the blackout is emerging as a complex structural failure, not as a simple excess photovoltaic. The real problem: a shooting price. Since this reinforced operation was activated, the costs of the electrical system have shot. According to El Confidencialthe so -called restrictions techniques and Adjustment services – requirements necessary to maintain the stability of the network – have been remarkable. The problem is that these costs are initially assumed by marketers, especially the smallest and independent, which do not have their own generation capacity and have to buy this energy in markets managed by Red Electric. According to data the Independent Energy Marketers Association (ACIE), collected by the confidentialthe average cost of technical restrictions has gone from € 11/MWh in April to € 24/MWh in May, and at specific times it exceeds € 30. This pressure has led to several marketers, such as totalenergies, Moeve or Factorenergy, to send a letter to Red Eléctrica requesting clarity and a temporary forecast of these extraordinary measures. It has already been seen in the light bill. Starting with the almost 10 million consumers host of the regulated rate (PVPC) that have seen how their receipt At least four euros rose in May. And what began as an extra cost for companies, also begins to move to private clients and companies of the free market. In B2B contracts, some marketers have begun to introduce an “antiapagon rate”. As it picks up fiftiesthe client assumes up to € 12/MWh in adjustment costs, and what exceeds that figure is impact at the end of the month. In the case of households, where contracts cannot be modified easily, companies choose to raise the price of the megavatio in renewals or new offers. The dilemma is clear: raise prices or assume losses. A market to the limit. Independent marketers denounce that Red Electrica has increased costs without offering clarity on how they are calculated or until when they will be maintained. This uncertainty prevents planning and leaves those who do not have financial muscle to cover this volatility, According to El Confidencial. The pressure of the sector has also reached the institutional level. Acie, which brings together 20% of the market, has sent formal letters to Red Eléctrica and the Ministry for Ecological Transition asking for explanations and collaboration, such as He explained Fifodies. To date, they have not received a response, which increases the tension between the operators of the system and the most vulnerable actors in the electricity market. With an ignition system … The risk is not only a more expensive invoice, but a more concentrated and less competitive market. If independent marketers continue to carry costs without certainty or regulatory support, many will not survive. And if they disappear, consumers will have fewer options, more dependence on large electricity and less power to negotiate prices. The reinforced operation maintains the system on, yes. But it can also be extinguishing an essential part of the market: its diversity. With the technical report even on the horizon, what happens in the coming months will mark not only the stability of the network, but also who can continue to compete in it. Image | Pixabay Xataka | The more you know about the blackout in Spain, the less guilty the lack of inertia seems to be renewable

A man has survived an accidental flight of 8,000 meters high. The video of the feat has cost him expensive: it occurred in China

by

To get an idea, 8,000 meters high equals what is known as “Death” area In mountaineering, that point where the atmosphere is so thin that the human body cannot survive much time without supplementary oxygen. We talk about an altitude similar to CIMA DEL Mount Everest (8,848 meters), and higher than the usual flight of many small commercial aircraft (below commercials, of course, which usually operate between 10,000 to 12,000 meters). Well, a man has reached that altitude accidentally. Also He has survived And there is A video. An accidental feat. In architectural terms, those 8,000 meters high would be like stack Torres Burj Khalifathe highest skyscraper in the world with 828 meters, or place several times Mount Fuji one over another. At that point, temperatures fall to tens of degrees below zero, atmospheric pressure is reduced to less than a third of the sea level, and without specialized equipment, even breathing becomes a small miracle. And yet, what began as a simple equipment test ended in an odyssey at such a height for Peng Yujiang, a Chinese parapetist who, without pretending to really take off, was caught by a powerful ascending current in the Qilian mountain range. It started from about 3,000 meters of altitude and, in just twenty minutes, it was driven another 5,000 meters to the sky. With temperatures up to -35 ° Ccovered with ice and with frozen hands, Peng tried to maintain paragliding control and communicate by radio with his friend on land, Gu Zhimin. The man remained more than an hour In the air, he momentarily losing consciousness and landed 30 km beyond of your starting point. A feat, but not recognized. Although the Chinese authorities have recognized the survival of Peg As something exceptional“No one can be 8,000 meters without oxygen and remain alive,” They saidexpensive has come out: a hard sanction has fallen with six months of prohibition to fly for not having registered his flight, which placed him outside the legal framework. The video of the incident we see above, engraved by PEG and disseminated by GU in the social network Douyin, became viral, generating admiration between the public and criticism among the officials, who also punished Gu with Six months of disqualification for disseminating the material without permission. By the way, although some have suggested that Peng could have broken a world record, the authorities ruled out for the Lack of official registration of the flight. Parallelism with an identical accident. Peng’s story remembers that of the record established in 2007 by the German Ewa Wiśnierskawho was also absorbed by a thermal current while flying in Australia and reached no less than the 9,946 meters high. As Peng, Wiśnierska lost knowledge during his flight, although he survived and discovered the altitude reached by reviewing his instrumentation after landing. The difference is that this record was officially recognized, and that of Peng, however extremely it would be, will be relegated to the chronicle of what impossible But not certified. For the Annals, an involuntary, amazing feat … and punished, first in China for the dissemination of graphic material, and then not fitting on the bureaucratic margins of air sport. A true penalty for such a flight. Image | X In Xataka | The British army wanted to celebrate the day D unfolding its paratroopers in Normandy. French customs were waiting for them In Xataka | Jesús Calleja is already a history of Spanish space exploration: its launch is a success and has taken him to space

Ryanair’s most expensive summer is just around the corner. The reason: to have sold too cheap

by

The greatest Low Cost from Europe is about to upload their prices. After a year with tickets up to 7% cheaper, Ryanair has announced price increases for this summer. Your benefit fell into the last quarter16%, up to 1.6 billion euros, dragged by the war with online agencies and failed deliveries of Boeing. In detail. Michael O’Leary, his CEO, sells it as a “remarkable robustness” in a difficult year. But the real margin per passenger has remained at just 8 euros, less than its more than 10 euros of 2024. Ryanair has had to give part of the cheap seat with a discount. Online agencies stopped selling their flights and that forced him to lower prices to maintain occupation. It is a serious problem for an airline whose model lives to fill each 95% flight. Why is it important. Ryanair, with his very particular brand image, is a European air transport thermometer. If she suffers, the rest too, because paradoxically anyone, not even the big ones, approach the return of the queen of the flight Low Cost. The balance between costs at bay, constant growth and permanent tensions with their partners (aircraft manufacturers, travel agencies, governments under the command of airports) sometimes cracks. And if even Ryanair has to raise prices, this summer fly will be presumably more expensive. Even for the rest. In perspective. Ryanair has trimmed his expectations. Of the 215 million passengers he expected by 2025-2026, it goes to 203 million. Its long -term objective (300 million in 2034) is still standing, but has stopped the rhythm. In addition, the tension on both sides of the Atlantic can lead to tariffs for the Boeing aircraft that Ryanair resorts (one of the secrets of its prices is the homogeneity of its fleet). AND Ryanair is clear: If you have to enroll the planes in the United Kingdom to avoid those tariffs, it will. The idea of ​​buying Chinese airplanes Sounds more to order, modus operandi. The important thing is that tariffs do not translate at a cost for them. The backdrop. Ryanair’s story does not change: growth, low prices for seats surrounded by accessories to monetize, pressure to suppliersReturn to the shareholder. But sometimes the seams appear. O’Leary, his CEO, boasts of muscle, but has had to resort to discounts, adjust expectations and distribute dividend to calm the markets. Outstanding image | Xataka In Xataka | The great secret of Ryanair’s success is that he does not earn money to fly: he does so squeezing you in everything else

Europe has started a race against the clock. And China has entered to make prices more expensive

by

Winter has left Europe with reservations practically empty and needs to reach a level of 90% before November. Meanwhile, China has emerged as a direct competitor in the global gas market, putting Europe in a counterreloj race to guarantee its supply before prices shoot. Short. The European Union will have to spend 10,000 million euros more than last year to fill its gas reserves, According to the Financial Times medium. The reason behind this increase is due to a colder winter, an increase in demand for less renewable generation and greater dependence on liquefied natural gas. The background. It all started with the war in Ukraine, since until that moment Russia supplied about 40% of the gas To the EU. However, commercial reprisals and sanctions drastically reduced that supply, to the point that an agreement has been signed to fully close exports in 2027, According to Euronews. A vicious circle. The European bloc had to look for other alternatives, such as the GNL imported from the United States and Qatar. However, it continued to supply Russian gas Through third countries or by calls “Ghost ships”. At the same time, the European Union was trapped in a price instability cycle, caused in part by the spot market dependence for LNG purchases. As He explained The London medium, this situation caused governments to compete with each other to ensure cargoes, inflating prices and generating distortions in the market. Flexibility in storage. Given the difficulties in maintaining 90 %reserves, the European Commission is considering granting greater flexibility in the storage objective, especially after Germany – the country more dependent on gas – requested adjustments to avoid price peaks in summer. However, in parallel, Germany has reached an agreement with France to receive energy support through the nuclear energy supply. A strategic movement that seeks to ensure its energy stability while storing objectives are readjusted. This measure aims to relieve pressure on markets, although it generates uncertainty due to the possibility that changes are not promulgated in time. The recharge dilemma. According to Kuhanathan, an analyst from Allianz Trade, has declared Financial Times That many gas merchants are delaying reservation recharge, waiting for prices to fall further. However, this attitude could generate a sharp increase in demand at the end of summer, shooting prices just before winter. In addition, Peder Bjorland, Vice President of Equinor Gas Commerce, has warned in the same medium that Europe will have to pay higher prices to overcome Asian competition if China’s demand is replenished. China, a determining factor. The largest world buyer of liquefied natural gas is China. Last year, LNG’s Chinese demand was reduced due to an unusually favorable climate and economic slowdown. This drop in consumption allowed Europe to access cargoes that, otherwise, would have gone to Asia, contributing to stabilize prices in the short term. However, projections for the coming months indicate a possible rebound in Asian demand. The commercial truce between Beijing and Washington, Recently announcedcould activate an increase in Chinese industrial activity, which would raise the demand for LNG, According to estimates of the Financial Times. In addition, a hot summer in Asia can further increase gas consumption, putting Europe in a direct competition situation with Asian buyers. According to Morgan Stanley analysts for the same medium, this additional pressure would boost gas prices up to 10%. A decisive actor. During the commercial war with the United States, Beijing He hinted that he could sell American liquefied natural gas to Europe, but the situation has taken a totally different nuance. Now it is key to observe The development of the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline With Russia, as well as China’s ability to DNA. Leaving the framework of the global energy future open. Image | Pixabay Xataka | Putin’s not so secret plan to survive without Europe: a giant gas pipeline to China

Specialty coffee is expensive and there is something that increases it even more: to remove caffeine

by

For many, drinking coffee is almost a daily ritual. There are those who take it for pleasure or by necessity, but there is also the case of Who wants all their benefitsexcept Caffeine. There are many ways to decaffeinate coffee, and not all are equally healthy. Among all methods, we know two that are employees for specialty coffee to remain specialty. Now, they are tremendously technical and more expensive than the most general methods. Market. The demand for decaffeinated coffee is experiencing sustained growth in recent years. In more commercial coffees Like capsules Or snapshots, we have decaffeinated varieties for a long time, but increasingly easy to find options among specialty coffees. Depending on the indicator we take (total market or only grains), and depending on the analysis, it is esteem That the decaffeinated coffee bean market was $ 31,580 million in 2024, with a projection to 41,050 million dollars by 2032. Others analysis They estimate it at 6,740 million in 2023, with a growth up to 12,330 million by 2031. The way they are, in what they coincide is that it is a upward market. Controversy without decaffeinar. Something that has also increased is awareness about what we eat. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle depends on a lot of factors, and that saying of “we are what we eat” points in an adequate direction. Why do I say this? Because there are several ways to eliminate coffee from coffee (although there is always a certain residual percentage), but not all are as natural as we would like. The two most used methods are precisely the most controversial. One is the one who uses methylene chloride to dissolve caffeine. In the process, the solvent is eliminated by evaporation and grains, subsequently, it is washed and dry, passing controls so that the solvent residues are maintained below the legal limits. The other uses ethyl acetate, which is a compound that is found naturally in some fruits and the process is the same as in methylene chloride. Although it is considered more natural, it is still a chemical solvent that can also leave an aroma impregnated in coffee. More natural processes. These processes in which solvents are used have been at the point of view of organizations such as the United States Food and Medicines Administration, being the methylene chloride in the conversation. But there are other methods that are used to substantially reduce the coffee level of coffee. One is the swiss water process. In it, the grains immerse themselves in hot water to dissolve caffeine. Then, the water goes through active carbon filters that retain only caffeine and this process is repeated until the grains contain a minimum percentage of caffeine. Image: Swiss Water Process Another is the one who uses Supercritical co₂. In it, the grains undergo high pressures and expose themselves to CO₂ in a supercritical state, acting as a selective solvent for caffeine. Decaffeination through the supercritical co₂ method | Image: James Hoffmann Technology to coffee power. That they are more natural does not imply that there is no sophisticated technological network after the process. James Hoffman, one of the reference baristas for coffee world lovers, has visited facilities in which this decaffeination process is carried out through the Swiss Water technique and we can see that … it is a fairly boring environment: There are simply drums, silos and warehouses in which that “soaking” of the grains, drying and storage is being carried out. But the key is in the control room. Hoffmann cannot show us the graphs that are used to control these processes, but comments that they have computers connected to probes that, in real time, send information of the caffeine present in the grains in several points of the process. Thus, the technicians are adjusting the process until leaving the caffeine necessary to be considered decaffeinated without altering the properties of the grains themselves. The great drums | Image: James Hoffmann And the cabin in which the information of all the sensors is collected to send it to the technicians responsible for supervising the process | Image: James Hoffmann Specialty. These are two more natural methods because they do not use chemicals or solvents, and something for which they are appreciated is because they better retain both the aromas and the original aromas of the grains. And there is a segment that interests that this is: that of specialty coffee. In the search for a coffee with a better flavor, but above all more sustainable for both farmers and the planet, the specialty coffee is earning a hole between palates both understood and profane. In regions such as Europe and North America, the global specialty coffee market is growing at a 10% annual rate. Of $ specialty coffee. Now, decaffeinated specialty coffee is 1 + 1. The specialty coffee is expensive because there is a meticulous process behind. They are selected crops, the harvests are usually done by hand, they have strict control processes for washing and drying, implies fair trade, more sustainable practices and a lower volume. All that makes it a more expensive coffee both to produce and buy. But, in addition, processes such as Swiss Water or the Supercritical Co₂, due to its complexity, the time that is required and, especially in the case of the supercritical co₂, due to the infrastructure to be mounted, make this type of coffee even more. They take away the caffeine, but add some cents to the price. Tags. That is why the methods without solvents are more used in the decaffeination processes of instant coffee, capsule or the most common mixtures that we find in the bar and the supermarket, while the most natural and expensive methods are those associated with decaffeinated specialty coffee. If you are a consumer worried about this, the way of knowing how your favorite coffee has been decaffiled is … Looking for information and look at the labels. When a coffee uses methods such as the supercritical CO2 … Read more

Log In

Forgot password?

Forgot password?

Enter your account data and we will send you a link to reset your password.

Your password reset link appears to be invalid or expired.

Log in

Privacy Policy

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.