The energy geopolitical risk premium has returned. Russia is surrounding important Ukrainian cities and launching “destructive power grid attacks.” Ukraine has terminated Russian gas supplies to Europe, causing European electricity prices to soar. [emphasis, links added]
In a further sign of pressure, European trading company Guvnor mothballed its 75,000 barrel-per-day Rotterdam refinery due to high operating costs; raising oil prices.
We also find the concept of energy transition to be flawed and dangerous, underscoring the world's growing need for fossil fuels.
However, according to Norwegian Energy Minister Terje Aasland, “the situation is absolutely terrible” for the European grid.
Criticisms of electricity exports between countries have been ignored – in this case – by Norway to the UK, Germany, Denmark and other countries that are more concerned about climate change than reliable electricity, affordable electricity prices and economic growth.
Disastrous net-zero emissions policies are forcing the health and stability of European and Western power grids to come under pressure, leading to deindustrialization.
The British economy shrank in the fourth quarter of 2024, and German energy policy was too unwise.
The economic hardship caused by illogical, imposed climate change policies and an “artificial consensus” is absurd – especially as “king coal” thrives in China, India and other countries, driving up global emissions.
The Biden administration's monetary lies are a factor in the U.S. economy's “chaos,” while affordable energy becomes a key hope in averting a recession — underscoring the vital role energy plays in our lives.
Things are challenging for the incoming president, but never underestimate Germany's ability to make things worse with its “green fantasy.”
Germany is shelving plans to build new gas-fired power plants because wind energy production is collapsing.
The latest wind drought, known as the “Dunkelflaute”, a common phenomenon, provides more evidence of the folly of Germany's $746 billion energy transition plan, which is designed to force the country to abandon carbon emissions. Hydrogen compounds and efforts to shift to alternative energy sources.
During each wind lull, the power gap is filled by gas-fired generation.
It seems that Europe is falling apart “from trace elements of anthropogenic carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere.” At the same time, these energy policies driven by global warming and climate change initiatives have failed to change the following realities:
“By 2023, wood will provide almost twice as much energy as it did in 1900 or 1800.”
But Trump will need every available fossil fuel and uranium molecule to enable data center growth.
According to the North American Electric Reliability Corporation, “Over the next 10 years, U.S. peak electricity demand is expected to increase by 132 gigawatts (GW) in the summer and 149 GW in the winter, an increase of 15% and 18%, respectively.”
The increase dwarfs the new reactor capacity at the Vogtle, Georgia, plant and exceeds the entire U.S. nuclear reactor fleet of about 95 gigawatts.
Goldman Sachs similarly “found that U.S. power demand will surge, driven by artificial intelligence, electrification and industrial reshoring, with data center power consumption expected to reach 8% by 2030, compared with just 3% in 2022.”
Notably, since 2022, “five-year load growth forecasts have surged more than fivefold, from 23 GW to 128 GW,” according to Grid Strategies.
Reading break at the Town Hall
