Foreign Policy: The Energy Crisis Throws The World Back In The 1970s
Photo: Cheney Orr / Reuters
The energy crisis faced by the countries of the world in 2021 is largely due to the inept policies and mistakes of the authorities, writes Foreign Policy. The current situation, according to the publication, seemed to have thrown the world back in the 1970s.
As a result, problems arose both in the West, which followed the path of liberalizing the energy market, and in China. For example, Europe faced a record rise in energy prices, gas stations in the UK were empty, gasoline prices rose sharply in the United States, and China had to go to a power outage. Beijing spent five years convincing the world that it was serious about a green energy transition, but discovered the benefits of cheap coal as soon as it ran into a shortage. Power disruptions have caused chaos in factories not only in China but around the world, further exacerbating supply chain problems during the pandemic. Some businesses had to restrict or stop work.
TTF1 Quotes! by TradingView
In general, a number of events contributed to the emergence of the crisis. So, the economic recovery after the pandemic turned out to be unexpectedly sharp, which led to a serious imbalance in supply and demand – with a predictable result. The weather also made a difference: low temperatures forced an increase in gas consumption, the calm did not allow the production of enough energy at the wind farms, and floods prevented coal mining.
In Europe, gas prices reached a historic record in December, surpassing $ 2,150 per thousand cubic meters. The price later began to decline and by December 31, fell to about $ 800. China faced energy shortages amid coal shortages, in part linked to Beijing's plans to decarbonize the economy.
