Europe Is Bearing The Brunt Of Dependence On Imported Energy
If Europe had learnt PM Modi's lesson of self-reliance, today it would not have been caught in this trouble
EU member states ignored the risks of over-reliance on imported gas and neglected the need to rapidly replace this with domestic renewables. Consequently, it now faces the difficult, emergency decision of temporarily relying on coal while substantially ramping up its clean energy.
Indian Prime Minister talks about the development of the country with the help of self-reliance, if Europe had read the lesson of that self-reliance, then today it would not have been caught in this trouble.
Germany, Austria, France and the Netherlands have recently announced plans to enable increased coal power generation in the event that Russian gas supplies suddenly stop.
European plans to enable increased coal power generation in the event that Russian gas supplies suddenly stop would add 1.3% to EU emissions annually, even in the worst-case scenario.
Energy think tank Ember analysed plans announced across Europe, including in Germany, Austria, France and the Netherlands, finding they would add a maximum of 60 TWh of coal-fired electricity in 2023, which is enough to power Europe for about one week.
Ember senior analyst Sarah Brown said: “Despite numerous warning signs, EU member states ignored the risks of over-reliance on imported gas and neglected the need to rapidly replace this with domestic renewables. Consequently, it now faces the difficult, emergency decision of temporarily relying on coal while substantially ramping up its clean energy deployment.”
Plans in Europe to place a small number of coal plants on temporary standby would add 1.3% to EU emissions annually, even in the worst-case scenario where they run at the highest levels, according to energy think tank Ember.
The analysis finds that 14 GW of coal-fired plants have been placed on standby, adding 1.5% to the EU’s total installed power generation capacity (920 GW). The majority are in Germany, which approved 8 GW of reserve capacity as part of its Replacement Power Plant Provision Act adopted on 8 July.
Europe finds itself in this urgent situation due to past energy policy mistakes. Despite numerous warning signs, EU member states ignored the risks of over-reliance on imported gas and neglected the need to rapidly replace this with domestic renewables. Consequently, it now faces the difficult, emergency decision of temporarily relying on coal while substantially ramping up its clean energy deployment. Mistakes Asia cannot afford to repeat.
The writer of this article is Dr. Seema Javed, a known Environmentalist, Journalist and Communications Expert
