Raise tax on energy after Europeans acquire oil finally (7)
I believe the answer is:
elevate
'raise' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'tax on energy after europeans acquire oil finally' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'tax' could be 'vat' (UK Value Added Tax) and 'vat' is found within the answer.
'energy' could be 'e' (physics symbol as in E=mc2) and 'e' is present in the answer.
'europeans' could be 'ee' (an abbreviation for European written twice) and 'ee' is located in the remaining letters.
A single letter 'l' remains which might be clued in a way I don't understand.
This may be the basis of the clue (or it may be nonsense).
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for elevate that I've seen before include "Put on a pedestal" , "Raise or lift" , "Raise, exalt (in rank)" , "Raise to a higher position" , "Improve morally" .)