The EU faces a winter gas shortage of up to 14 billion cubic meters due to disruptions from the war in Iran, potentially affecting energy supplies for 10-12 million households and risking higher power bills and mandatory energy conservation measures.
Ethereum's Sepolia test network activated the Glamsterdam upgrade on October 6, raising the block gas limit to nearly 200 million, over three times mainnet's 60 million limit. The increase allows blocks to accommodate more computational work during high demand periods, helping prevent transaction fee spikes, though actual block usage remained well below capacity at 24-43% of the limit.
Curve Finance says Ethereum's Glamsterdam upgrade could improve DeFi transaction access during network congestion by increasing blockspace capacity. Mainnet tests showed leveraged borrowing using 15 times more gas than direct stablecoin swaps. Curve emphasizes that the upgrade's success should be measured by transaction performance under heavy demand, not just block gas limits.
Ethereum's Glamsterdam upgrade is being tested on Sepolia testnet with a processing budget increased to nearly 200 million gas per block, more than triple the previous 60 million. Early test blocks used only 26–46% of the new allowance, suggesting the network can handle higher transaction volumes without reaching capacity. The upgrade also restructures how transaction processing is divided among network participants and adjusts gas costs for data storage.