French newspaper Le Monde reflects about the strategic options of the Bloc concerning gas supply in the light of skyrocketing energy prices and the clatter of boots at the border to Ukraine:
Europe is entering winter, and the question is no longer whether it will have gas to heat itself and run the factories, but at what price. It has flared up in recent weeks and costs six times more than a year ago. The bill for individuals and manufacturers will be heavy in 2022. The functioning of the European market lends itself to this, as does the economic context: demand is strong during this season, activity remains strong despite the threat of the Omicron variant of SARS-CoV -2, storage is at a very low level (63%) and the unexpected shutdown of French nuclear power plants is increasing tensions.
If there were just that ... Gas prices, and by extension electricity prices, are also trending against the backdrop of Russian boots on Ukraine's eastern borders. Russia supplies a third of the European Union (EU) gas. This share, greater than that of Norway and Algeria combined, puts Vladimir Putin in a strong position to derive double benefit, financial and political, from the situation. The Russian president has been playing this market power for months by asking Gazprom not to export more than expected by its contracts with European customers.
