Iran Energy News Oil, Gas, Petrochemical and Energy Field Specialized Channel
Related Articles
The European Union is “massively” underestimating the cost of weaning itself off Russian natural gas by billions of euros unless it can speed up its shift to renewable energy.
Europe is so reliant on gas that even cutting Russian supplies still means governments could be on the hook for about 203 billion euros ($214 billion) of extra energy spending by 2030 at current prices, according to a report by climate think-tank Ember and Global Witness, an anti-corruption group. Without the bloc’s plan to diversify supplies and boost renewables, that figure could hit 250 billion euros.
The soaring bill highlights the need for the EU to speed up its transition to renewable energy sources, which could help shave those costs by about a half, the groups said in the report. The European Commission is due to come forward with its plan on how to reduce Russian gas supplies by two-thirds this year on May 18. As it currently stands, the bulk will be replaced by gas from other countries.
“Decades of over-reliance on fossil gas has made Europe incredibly vulnerable to volatile prices,” said Tara Connolly, a senior gas campaigner at Global Witness. “The Commission has massively underestimated the cost to consumers of continuing to rely on gas.”
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and concerns that EU countries could be cut off from its biggest supplier of gas helped push energy prices to record highs this year. Renewables are seen as a key part of reducing that dependence.
The EU should increase its renewables target to 50% of the bloc’s energy mix by the end of the decade from the current proposal of 40% and also boost its energy efficiency goal, the groups said.
