Guest essay by Eric Worrall

The European Green Energy Transition fantasy is in tatters, as Putin’s demand that Europeans pay for Russian gas in Rubles spreads panic throughout the EU.

With war in Ukraine and threats from Putin, Europeans anxiously wait for energy rationing

PUBLISHED FRI, APR 1 20221:13 AM EDT
Chloe Taylor @CHLOETAYLOR141

Energy analysts and government officials have warned that Europe could soon face rationing of diesel and natural gas.

…

European countries are facing the possibility of energy supplies being rationed, as a dispute between Moscow and the West over payments for Russian exports rages on.

European countries are heavily dependent on Russian oil and gas deliveries, but Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in late February saw the EU and the U.K. impose a barrage of sanctions that included cutting down on Russian energy imports.

…

Germany warned on Wednesday that it may soon be facing a natural gas emergency that could necessitate the rationing of gas supplies. German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said the “early warning” measure did not yet mean the country had to resort to rationing gas but called on consumers and companies to reduce their energy consumption.

Meanwhile, Austria’s government announced Wednesday that it had activated the first step of a three-stage emergency plan that would see it monitor the country’s gas market more closely. Officials cited Russia’s demand for payments in rubles as the reason for the triggering of the contingency plan, noting that if it reached the third stage in the plan, emergency control measures such as rationing may come into force.

…

Putin said last week that the Kremlin will seek payment in rubles for gas sales from “unfriendly” countries — a demand that has been rejected by the G-7 nations. On Thursday, the Russian leader said he had signed a decree saying foreign buyers must pay in rubles for Russian gas from April 1.

…

Diesel rationing

Meanwhile, Jim Watson, a professor of energy policy and the director of the UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, said it was “certainly possible” that the U.K. could see a government-imposed rationing of fuel for cars.

…

Rory Stewart, former British International Development Minister and a senior fellow at Yale’s Jackson Institute, said in a tweet earlier this month that it is possible to cut the income Russia receives from oil exports by focusing on reducing demand.

“It would take a government and civilian effort equivalent to the Covid response,” he said.

His proposed policies, which he said should remain in place throughout the crisis in Ukraine, included reducing the U.K.’s speed limits to 50 miles per hour, making all public transport free, and calling on companies like Uber to open technology that would allow free civilian ridesharing.

“This would reduce demand and price of Russian oil, [and] have a catastrophic impact on Putin,” Stewart said.

…

Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2022/04/01/ukraine-war-could-european-countries-implement-oil-and-gas-rationing.html

It is impossible to impose meaningful sanctions on a country which has something you need, and cannot live without.

But it only takes 3-5 days to bring a fracking well into Production. Obviously it probably takes longer to perform detailed surveys and drill test wells, and assemble skilled people and equipment, but some of these surveys have already been performed, at least to a preliminary stage.

Britain had productive fracked shale gas wells in Lancashire, very close to where the pensioner pictured at the top of the page lives, until they decided to close them all. The British government decided at the start of February to forcibly close the productive fracking wells and seal them with concrete, against the wishes of the site owner.

The point is there is unequivocal evidence Europe could produce substantial amounts of their own gas, by embracing fracking. Europe could at least attempt to bring this gas into production, in time for next winter.

But Europe’s leaders, including British leaders, are still refusing to take obvious defensive measures against the very real shortages their people could face this winter. Going by their actions, they would rather their people freeze to death than admit Trump was right about fracking. They would rather impose rationing, hardship and suffering on ordinary European people, than admit the failure of their absurd green energy fantasies.

Remember those productive shale gas wells in Lancashire which the British government forcibly closed a few weeks ago, when your politicians demand you accept energy rationing.