First it was rental cars, then building materials. Then it was housing, food, petrol. We are experiencing price rises not seen since the 1970s, or at least since the introduction of the euro, as we used to complain. First, we tried to talk it down. It will be ‘transitory’, was …
Read More »As Oil Eyes $100, Consumers Ask OPEC+ for more Supplies
For the past year, oil consuming countries have become increasingly anxious at crude’s resurgence: first to $50 a barrel, then $75 and now to more than $85. And when Vladimir Putin, one of the leaders of the OPEC+ alliance, warned that $100 a barrel was a distinct possibility, the alarm …
Read More »Nord Stream 2, the Russian Pipeline that Everybody’s Talking about
Remote, quiet but energy-rich: the coastal area of Lubmin in north Germany hosts the world’s most controversial gas pipeline. Nord Stream 2 stretches for 1,200 kilometres from Vyborg in Russia through the Baltic Sea to Lubmin in Germany, bypassing Ukraine and Poland. The gas pipeline is finished, but it is …
Read More »IEA: Energy Transition to Renewable Energy Too Slow
A global transition to “clean energy” is still far too slow to meet climate pledges and risks fueling even greater price volatility, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said yesterday. “We are not investing enough to meet future energy needs and the uncertainties are setting the stage for a volatile period …
Read More »Google Is Updating Maps, Search and other Products to Help Consumers Save Energy and Reduce Emissions
On Wednesday, Google launched a suite of changes to many of its core products to help consumers make sustainable choices more easily. “Today, climate change is more than a threat,” Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google and parent company Alphabet, said in a prerecorded video during a virtual press event …
Read More »Time for China’s Belt and Road to Go Green
Chinese President Xi Jinping recently announced at the UN General Assembly that China “will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad.” Chinese banks have already swung into gear. Three days after Xi’s speech, the Bank of China declared it would no longer provide financing for new coal mining and power …
Read More »The Harsh Truth behind Europe’s Energy Crisis
Europe’s energy crunch is continuing, as gas storage volumes have shrunk to 10-year lows. A possible harsh winter could lead to severe energy shortages and possible shutdowns of large parts of the economy. While the main discussion is currently focused on the potential role of Russia in the energy crisis, …
Read More »Is Gazprom about to Lose Its Natural Gas Export Monopoly?
The long-awaited Nord Stream 2 (NS2) pipeline is arguably the world’s most contentious energy project. While its completion was uncertain for a long time, favorable political, economic, and environmental developments have worked in its favor. Recently, Gazprom, the owner and operator of the pipeline, announced its completion. However, legal challenges …
Read More »Europe Faces a Winter Energy Crisis Years in the Making
Europe is bracing for a tough winter as an energy crisis that’s been years in the making leaves the continent relying on the vagaries of the weather. Faced with surging gas and electricity prices, countries from the UK to Germany will need to count on mild temperatures to get through …
Read More »IEA Head Birol Named Among Top Influencers
Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), has been named one of the most influential 100 persons of 2021 by Time, a political magazine based in New York City, United States. Birol, 63, who has been the executive director of the agency since 2015, is the only …
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