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The text offers a critical reading of Sandrine Aumercier’s book, Le mur énergétique du capital (2021). First, we provide keys to understanding its theoretical presuppositions: the value criticism of authors such as Robert Kurz. What is their novelty and relevance to an analysis of the energy issue in capitalist society? Secondly, we consider the debate on the limits of Marxist materialism in the face of political ecology. The discussion of the controversy between the theory of Marx and Engels and the critical elements put forward by Sergeï Podolinsky provides a concrete example of the limits of Marxist theory for grasping the relationship between labor, agriculture and energy. The article concludes with a few quotations from Simone Weil, adding further elements to the critique of Marxist theory concerning its inability to outline a socio-economic theory that could integrate material culture and energy flows.