A bakery owner in Belgium is in a panic. His Boulangerie Patisserie, which serves about 400 customers daily, is already struggling with rising energy prices. Moreover, winter looks to be considerably worse, and he wouldn’t be able to continue when the electricity cost has increased four times in the last few years.
How Europe is Preparing for the Upcoming Crisis?
Russian natural energy supplies that supplied 40% of Europe’s needs last year are now reduced to a trickle. OPEC is reducing oil production. This season’s droughts are damaging hydropower, renewable electricity is not yet fully implemented, and temperatures are already dropping. Europe is preparing for the most severe energy shortage the continent has ever experienced as winter draws closer. As the winter weather arrives, government representatives and energy organizations are issuing warnings about potential power shortages.
Scenario
The official electrical authority in France issued a warning about potential blackouts. It often exports energy to its neighbors in Western Europe as a result of its expenditures on nuclear power. According to a Jacques Delors Energy Center research fellow, management issues have caused half of the nation’s 56-reactor nuclear arsenal to collapse. He noted that since the French depend on power for warmth, the decreased electricity generation is very concerning. Furthermore, as evidenced this past weekend by lengthy lines at outlets with one-third of their pumps empty, France’s gasoline resources have been drastically curtailed due to wage strikes by oil employees.
The crisis made it abundantly apparent that switching to renewable energy was necessary. However, it was also evident that this change would not occur rapidly enough to fulfill Europe’s electricity demands this winter.
