Rosatom’s recent deal with Egypt to build a 4800 MW capacity nuclear plant is one of the largest nuclear energy deals in this century, writes Dan Yurman nuclear energy specialist and author of the Neutron Bytes blog. It is one of several giant nuclear projects taking shape in the Middle East, Yurman notes. … [Read more...]
New Gas Market Directive will change balance of power between EU and Member States
The European Commission has proposed amendments to the Gas Market Directive essentially to acquire control over Nord Stream 2. But once they are approved, the EU will have much more authority over Member States’ overall security of energy supply than it has now, warns Bent Ole Gram Mortensen of the University of Southern Denmark. According to Mortensen, there is no need for such far-reaching legislation: if Gazprom were to abuse its market … [Read more...]
Poland’s love affair with coal: can the EU do anything about it?
The Polish government’s strong commitment to coal goes against EU policy direction and against market conditions, write Anna Mikulska of the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies and Eryk Kosinski of Adam Mickiewicz University. But coal has a special place in the nation’s collective heart. To wean Poland off coal will require EU support to coal-dependent regions and for alternative energy sources, the authors argue. … [Read more...]
Can the U.S. break Russia’s gas monopoly In Europe?
The U.S. government has said it considers "sending energy supplies" to Eastern Europe to contain Russian influence. But challenging Russia’s dominance in European gas markets won't be easy, writes Tim Daiss of Oilprice.com. Russia already supplies nearly 40 percent of the continent’s gas, and its position may further be secured when the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is completed. … [Read more...]
What’s behind Gazprom’s decision to cut off supply to Ukraine
Gazprom’s announcement that it would terminate gas supply to Ukraine has been a shock to many observers, but it is not as radical nor as surprising as it may seem, writes Anna Mikulska of the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. It will only become effective in 2019 and is consistent with the company’s earlier announcements and long-term plans. Nevertheless, Mikulska adds, there is reason for the EU to … [Read more...]
A grand bargain with Gazprom?
Can Europe, including the Eastern part, continue to profit from cheap Russian gas without succumbing to Russian energy dominance? According to a new paper from the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES), the EU should not shy away from “countervailing measures”. But these should preferably take the form of a “grand bargain” with Russia rather than a confrontation. … [Read more...]
Gazprom’s toughest competitors may be from… Russia
Much of Gazprom’s future prosperity depends on whether it can defend its position domestically, writes Anna Mikulska of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies. Companies such as Russian Rosneft and Novatek have pushed for some time to weaken the company's export monopoly. … [Read more...]
Russia starts LNG exports from Yamal – what it means for Europe
Russian company Novatek has started exporting LNG from Yamal in the Arctic. It is in many ways a game-changing project, writes Anna Mikulska of the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and the Baker Institute’s Center for Energy Studies. It puts Russia on the map as LNG exporter, it provides a challenge to Gazprom, is a significant step in the development of the Arctic region, and it expands energy relations between … [Read more...]
Looking ahead to 2018 for nuclear energy
Dan Yurman, author of the Neutron Bytes blog, presents a “realist’s perspective” on the state of affairs in the global nuclear industry and discusses what we might expect to happen next year. His account shows there is more going on in the nuclear sector than many people might realize.  … [Read more...]
The Gas Directive and its application to EU-Third Country pipelines
The existing EU Gas Directive regulates issues pertaining to the transmission of gas from third countries to the Union, but is ambiguous. It can be interpreted in such a way that gas pipelines from these countries are not covered by EU energy regulations, leaving room for abuse. The European Commission’s proposal to clarify  the application of the Gas Directive to these pipelines is therefore to be welcomed, writes Szymon ZarÄ™ba, international … [Read more...]
The European Commission’s last-ditch effort to stop Nord Stream 2: how likely is it to succeed?
The European Commission’s proposal to extend the Gas Directive to so-called import pipelines is an obvious attempt to try to block Nord Stream 2, writes Karel Beckman, editor-in-chief of Energy Post. According to Beckman, it is not likely to succeed: the opposition to Nord Stream 2 is political in nature and cannot be stopped through legal means. (This article is part of a two-part response to the Commission’s proposal of 8 November to amend the … [Read more...]
Lost in regulation: the EU and Nord Stream 2
The European Commission has proposed changing the Gas Market Directive to include import pipelines from third countries. This would make EU regulations, such as unbundling and third-party access rules, applicable to Nord Stream 2. According to Severin Fischer, Senior Researcher at the Center for Security Studies (CSS) at ETH Zurich, the Commission’s approach to Gazprom’s pipeline project risks getting lost in legal inconsistencies. Fischer … [Read more...]
Brussels opponents of Nord Stream 2, why do we hear so little about Ukraine?
One reason why Nord Stream 2 is opposed in EU circles is because it undermines the position of Ukraine as gas transit country. The problem is that Ukraine’s gas sector is notoriously corrupt – and recent news indicates the government is making no progress at all on “reform”. Meanwhile, the European Commission’s attempt to get a “mandate” from the European Council (the Member States) to negotiate with Russia about the pipeline, seems bound to … [Read more...]
A dangerous energy policy: Ukraine, despite war, is making itself dependent on Russian oil
When it comes to Ukrainian dependence on Russian energy, the spotlight is usually on natural gas. Here Ukraine has made unprecedented progress, writes Wojciech KonoĹ„czuk, analyst at the Centre for Eastern Studies (OSW) in Warsaw. But what few observers notice, KonoĹ„czuk adds, is that as a result of corruption and neglect Ukraine has let its domestic oil refining industry decay and has become critically dependent on Russian diesel and LPG … [Read more...]
The trillion dollar question: will renewables displace natural gas?
Bloomberg’s renewable energy affiliate forecasts that wind and solar power will make major inroads into the global market share of natural gas within a decade. This is a crucially important question for major oil companies who are betting their future on gas, writes Managing Director of independent US-based consultancy GSW Strategy Group Geoffrey Styles. But according to Styles, it is likelier that coal, not gas, faces the biggest risk from the … [Read more...]
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