It is a fact that we must save our environment from mega- hazardous carbon emission, ensure restoration and smooth energy transition. However, it is a colossal mistake to allow the trending geopolitics of global energy transition to dwarf our thinking that swift total decarbonization will save the world. Rather, that idea of decarbonizing the world in a swift of an eye will lead the world to hell before saving it.

The current surging price of crude which is at $86/barrel with the growing tendency of hitting $100/barrel before the end of the 2QTR of this year, the catastrophic energy crisis looming in Europe which is tearing consumers income is a clear testimony that the world was rash in their thinking that we should erode the use of fossil fuel in our time in a twinkle of an eye.

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Demand for crude oil and natural gas have continued to skyrocket, supply is low, withdrawals in investment in that sector have all culminated in the harsh realities of the market today.

Speaking to Euronews last year after the gathering of Europe energy and transport ministers from about twenty-seven member states, Czech Deputy Prime Minister Karel Havlíček said, "The future energy mix must be balanced. There has to be stable sources like nuclear, as a transition [energy] gas, and of course renewable sources - but it must be balanced, and let us say, the way of decarbonisation must be perfectly planned."

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The Czech Deputy Prime Minister Karel Havlíček nailed it. It is common sense to know that there should be a balance between living in the present and pursuing future goals.

The geopolitics and rushed rhetoric on the abracadabra of achieving energy transition overnight have made the world to brew a deadly concoction which Europe sipped the first dose and likely to trigger later political upheavals in France, USA, and other parts of the world if not clearly amended and balanced.

 

Writing on the article with the title “How Europe’s Energy Crisis Could Force the EU to Adopt More Sensible Policies” David Blackman a Senior Contributor for Forbes Energy said, “These stories and others show that the energy world in which we live today is one of rapidly growing global demand for energy in all its various forms, meaning that government efforts to pick winners and losers in the energy markets are almost doomed to ultimate failure. As has traditionally been the case in the energy sector, it always takes a crisis like the current one in Europe to force government officials to take a step back from the precipice of disaster and begin to adopt more sensible, viable policies to meet energy needs of the future.”

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As the winter cold creeps in Europe, average electricity bill per household has gone up to $2,000 tearing household incomes and economies, saving Europe from disaster has become a big move.

The reality is today’s world runs on crude oil and gas, Investments in renewables have not matched up to meet the exigencies of today. Electricity for instance is generated through coal and natural gas albeit that nuclear energy generation has started coming in the fore.

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It is an irony that USA which is at the front of pushing global decarbonization is sending ships of LNG to Europe to save the market. Russian, through the clever politics of Putin has proved to be the expert in the game. Though Putin has allowed the Nod stream 2 gas flow to Germany and other parts of Europe to commence, he controls supply and shuts the valve based on his political thinking and agenda he wants to achieve. The fear which USA is working assiduously to know how to salvage is: What of Putin invades Ukraine or decide to stop supply of gas to Ukraine, what happens?  It clearly, shows that not only Ukraine, with the ongoing energy crisis in Europe, Putin has the region in his grip.

Clear enough to understand, that gas storage of Europe is at the lowest ebb. There is long way to go to boost storage and balance demand and supply,

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Dennis Hesseling, Head of Infrastructure, Gas and Retail at European Union Agency, on speaking to EuroNews said, “One of the current problems is that European gas storage is at a seven-year low. The gas storage level is at around 49% compared to 65% at the same time last year, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe.

“There are concerns about the storage withdrawals because of course, storage is needed to make sure that there's enough gas available throughout Europe through the whole winter period and especially in the last part of the winter, you still need sufficient supplies in storage to withdraw it properly.”

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While saving Europe from the energy crisis, hindsight makes it known that this may not be temporary thing if solutions if serious steps are not taken to avert it. China is mustering its economic muscle with every market sensibility to ensure that energy crisis does not creep into the red Dragon region to add injury to its economy, same is the approach among other Asian economies that depend much on the importation of crude oil, natural gas and LNG.

 

The truth of the matter is energy transitory should work on a balanced wheel. There should be investment in the renewables, and a continued investment with the Fossil energy, while technologies to reduce carbon in that sector should also be invested in and developed. The world of today and years to come until the energy mix has moved up to 70% renewables to 30% fossil cannot do without Fossil fuels.