Russian gas went to China while the EU pays more
Tom KirkmanIndependent Project Manager
The Russian natural gas that the EU used to get has mostly been diverted to China.
Apparently, the EU thinks that the previously piped natural gas from Russia can be replaced by LNG from the U.S., Qatar, and elsewhere (at significantly increased cost) and also by increasing intermittent electricity from wind and solar.
China benefits, EU loses.
China increases supplies of reliable energy supplies.
EU, not so much.
The sanctions against Russia have backfired spectacularly against the EU.
Since 2014, the European Union has applied eleven rounds of sanctions against Russia.
The U.S. also seized Russian funds of US dollars.
These excessive abuse of sanctions clearly caught the eye of most of the non-Western nations, and resulted in an ongoing expansion of BRICS+ and also an increased alignment of BRICS+ and OPEC.
With the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve deliberately drained by Biden, the U.S. is moving toward a precarious energy security situation this winter, if the Middle East conflict expands, like the War Hawks desperately want it to.
EU already does not have energy security.
This will become apparent if this winter is colder than usual.
China will likely weather the energy price shock which will come if the conflict in the Middle East escalates, and more countries get drawn in and add to the conflict.
Because China has been increasing its long term supplies of hydrocarbons, while the idiotic West continues to villify hydrocarbons.
OPEC (and BRICS+) are not going to increase production just to be nice guys to the West, after seeing the West repeatedly abuse energy sanctions against countries they don’t like.
And OPEC and BRICS+ are unlikely to be happy with an escalation of Israel / Palestine neverending violence, egged on by the West which is calling for increased warmongering.
Israel and Palestine will never, ever, stop fighting, until the world ends.
Western nations pushing for increased hostilities in the intractable Middle East mess will likely see a huge energy price shock, soon.
My own view is there are no “white hats” in this entire Palestine / Israel mess.
I do not stand with Israel or Palestine.
Don’t demand that I choose a side, because *both* sides in this mess suck.
The Western world should stay the heck out of this neverending regional conflict.
The tit for tat provocations and hostilities between Palestine and Israel will never end.
The West better brace for increased energy prices, as a direct result of the West inflaming the Israel / Palestine mess.
Just my opinion; as always, you are free to disagree.
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“● Russia is set to boost gas supply to China through the end of 2023.
● Gazprom’s CEO Alexey Miller said that Russia could soon supply China with volumes of gas comparable with the volumes Moscow sent to Western Europe before the invasion of Ukraine. …”