Just last week the German government gutted the heating law which was supposed to drive a transition away from gas.
The timing could not have been worse: Gas prices are up 50% today and this crisis could worsen significantly. This will happen again and again and the consumer pays the price.
Globally, roughly a third more power is being generated from the sun this spring than last. If this exponential rate of growth can continue, we will soon live in a very different world, @billmckibben.bsky.social writes.
I’m in The Times today:
“While transport emissions have dropped, the vast majority of homes still rely on gas heating, which emits harmful nitrogen oxides.”
www.thetimes.com/uk/environme...
In a new @forumenergii.bsky.social report @maciekjakubik.bsky.social, @zaniewicz.bsky.social, @keliauskaite.bsky.social , Szymon Kardas and I argue that Europe needs a profound rethink of its energy security strategy:
www.forum-energii.eu/en/download/...
Some highlights in the thread 1/14
This supports a growing body of analysis indicating the EU is developing billions in stranded fossil gas assets.
And a reminder that these are the kind of LNG companies the EU wants member-states to throw public money at with its "affordable energy" plan ...
100%. The commission should update its RePower EU plan to cut dependency on both US and Russian gas. Fortunately the solution is one and the same - European clean energy deployment
The Action Plan text is available here: energy.ec.europa.eu/document/dow...
The leaked draft read "EU joint purchasing power
should be harnessed, by exploring the option of longer-term contractual engagements to make
prices more stable, whereby the EU and/or Member States accompany EU importers in investing
directly in export infrastructure abroad..." (2/4)
We asked an oil lobbyist what to do about anything and you'll never guess what he said!
A brilliant piece by Seb Kennedy - laying out why it would be foolish for the EU to throw taxpayer money at LNG export terminals
Dismantling the EU’s flawed equity LNG plan www.energyflux.news/p/dismantlin...
Would have thought we had learned the lessons from 2022, but apparently not... A great way to undermine EU credibility on climate internationally while achieving absolutely nothing on lowering the cost of gas for EU consumers in any sort of meaningful time frame.
Is 2025 the end of the road for hydrogen boilers?
I certainly hope so. My new briefing today looks at hydrogen heating - and why Labour needs to rule it out ASAP if they want to keep energy bills down.
🧵
www.e3g.org/publications... 🔌💡
Tackling speculation in the TTF might be something that could deliver quick wins. No idea how you'd go about that but Seb Kennedy and others have reported on how hedge funds and others are basically playing casino with Europe's gas markets and how that is driving prices higher.
Genuinely bad news - EU debating return to Russian gas as part of Ukraine peace deal
First instance of the EU's competitiveness and security agendas coming into conflict
Good scoop by @henryjfoy.ft.com
www.ft.com/content/a19a...
This is actually really bad reporting by POLITICO. The requirement for 2027 is only for exporting companies to meet a reporting obligation on methane in their supply chain. Any potential fines for not reporting would be for importers and entirely at discretion of national authorities(not "Brussels")
Three years+ of these headlines now. Nice to see we've moved on from Europe having to fight Asia to death over LNG supply to....oh wait.
Like the last three years, my prediction is this ages like a glass of milk, behind a radiator, half filled with tinned tuna.
www.bloomberg.com/opinion/arti...
Yes, the EU are slow-walking ending dependency on Russian gas and there is an uptick in RU LNG imports, but it should be noted that we are now down to the last 2 sources of supply (UA transit ended Jan 1st). An EU ban on RU LNG in 2025 would still put it well ahead of its self imposed 2027 deadline.
Let’s not kid ourselves:
Europe still buys a lot of Russian gas.
Russian LNG accounted for 20 per cent of the EU’s overall imports in 2024.
The only way to sustainably drive out Russian gas is to accelerate renewable energy buildout, electrification and energy efficiency.
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said a new analysis showed that the continued pace of US LNG exports was “neither sustainable nor advisable,” according to a letter obtained by Lisa Friedman and Coral Davenport: www.nytimes.com/2024/12/16/c... 🔌💡
Today's #HydrogenSoufflé is brought to you by #Germany: "Importing green hydrogen via ships is not a viable strategy for the decarbonisation of Germany’s steel and chemical industries, government-funded Ariadne energy transition research alliance has warned."
www.cleanenergywire.org/news/shippin...
🚨DUNKELFLAUTE CONTEXT🚨
1. This is no **2022 Energy Crisis**:
# of hours German electricity prices over €300
2015 = 0
2016 = 0
2017 = 0
2018 = 0
2019 = 0
2020 = 0
2021 = 236
2022 = 2345
2023 = 3
2024 = 23 (incl to 13-Dec)
Gas price volatility will remain a feature of our newfound dependence on LNG and much of the recent price spike is driven by financial speculation rather than market fundamentals. If Europe is serious about industrial competitiveness it should move at light speed to reduce its dependency on gas.
Next phase of European gas crisis *latest*!!!!!!!!
Storages, after a brief period, are withdrawing exactly like we would expect.
No need to burn your furniture, despite what you read.
Today's #HydrogenSoufflé is brought to you by Norsk Hydro. It turns out that there are more promising ways to decarbonise aluminium production, even in a country with endless renewable electricity and a storied role in the history of electrolysis.
www.gasworld.com/story/norsk-...
Which European cities have announced to decommission the gas grid or parts of it?
Wien, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Mannheim, München, Basel, Zurich, Winterthur - the list goes on.
Much more of this to come.
A summary of our research: gasoutlook.com/analysis/eur...
Will Hydrogen be the new heating source for buildings? The answer based on a meta review of 54 studies is no. Compared to heat pumps or district heating with heat pumps, it is more expensive. 🧪🔌💡 a 🧵
