Europe may be left without gas in two months

Experts note that against the background of the energy transition, gas reserves in the EU turned out to be insufficient, which could lead to the fact that by the end of winter, the level of reserves in storage facilities could fall to a historic low of 15%.

Today, Europe is in the midst of the so-called energy transition – countries are closing coal-fired power plants, thereby increasing dependence on renewable energy sources. And although wind and solar energy is much cleaner, these sources are fickle: last year, electricity generation in Europe fell sharply. And since there are still two cold winter months ahead, gas in European countries may simply run out. 

Storage facilities in Europe are 56% full, which is 15 percentage points lower than the average for ten years. According to analysts, if Russia does not increase gas supplies, by the end of March, the level of reserves in Europe will drop to 15%, which could be the lowest in history. Experts note that without additional supplies of Russian gas via the Nord Stream-2, 2022 will be another unstable period for European prices for blue fuel.

Last year, exchange prices for gas in Europe broke several records. On December 21, the cost of fuel for the first time exceeded $2 thousand for 1 cubic meter . This was caused by a decrease in pumping through the Yamal-Europe gas pipeline, information about the launch of Nord Stream 2 no earlier than the second half of 2022, as well as news about a possible cooling in Europe.