Exxon Mobil chief criticizes Europe’s approach to the oil and gas industry and said Europe is hitting the oil and gas industry with punishment such as the bloc’s windfall tax.

• After years of deterring investment in oil and gas, Europe had no alternative but to burn coal to keep the lights on when Russian gas stopped flowing. But by continuing to hit the oil and gas industry with “punishing” measures like the European Union’s windfall tax, things will only get worse, Exxon CEO Darren Woods said.
• “What we saw in Europe should be a wake-up call,” he said. Exxon “stepped back and re-evaluated” its investment strategy in the continent, he continued.