EU dependence on Russian gas intensifies
Europe actually has only one reliable gas supplier left, пишет in Izvestia, Deputy General Director of the Institute of National Energy, Alexander Frolov.
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The publication notes that rapid construction of gas power plants has begun in Europe: according to WindEurope, of the 186 GW of “methane” stations operating today in the EU, 2000 GW have been put into operation since 93,5.
At the same time, the author points out that against the backdrop of talk about the imminent arrival of cheap liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar and redistribution after the Fukushima accident in favor of renewable energy sources, the demand for blue fuel in Europe has decreased significantly, which has led to colossal financial difficulties of large European companies that have invested in the construction of gas power plants.
But already in 2016, the situation began to change, and gas demand in the EU increased by 6,8 percent.
“At the same time, the actual stagnation in electricity generation has not gone away. It is a clear reflection of the economic problems that the European Union has been struggling with for several years. And interesting and therefore difficult times lie ahead for the European electricity industry. The EU is expected to begin moving away from coal within the next ten years. This will increase the share of renewable energy sources and blue fuel in the energy balance. It is likely that the European Union will arrive at the “age of gas” in a roundabout way, the expert does not rule out.
“And we have come to the most pressing issue for our country. On to the question: where will Europe get its blue fuel? To answer this, we need to note an important thing: last year there was a rehearsal for a price war on the gas market. Prices for this energy resource were minimal, and we could all observe the behavior of producers and consumers in tough economic conditions. Thus, we saw that LNG from the United States prefers South America to Europe, that Norway is in a fever, and Russia has increased supplies. At the same time, it is already clear that Gazprom ended the year with a significant profit. Unlike, by the way, our colleagues from Great Britain and Norway.
The rehearsal of the price war showed that in reality Europe does not have as large a choice of suppliers as it seems, who are ready to sell gas to it at competitive prices and in sufficient volumes. But in fact, there is only one such supplier,” summarizes Frolov.
As PolitNavigator reported, gas transit through Ukraine turned out to be the most unreliable and expensive for the EU.
See also: A queue is forming in the EU for Nord Stream 2 gas.
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