Given its excessive reliance on Russian gas and the shortage of viable alternatives, Germany may want to reassess its energy future. If the country decides to prohibit fracking until 2021, as Hendricks has proposed, it will become increasingly vulnerable to any shortfalls in Russian gas supplies.
Yes, very well known and understood - bad indeed.
When the idea of Russian gas supplies and pipe lines came up in Germany back in the late 70s, the danger of a dependence on Soviet energy was a big political issue, but eventually it was pushed under the carpet by the argument, that 'it would never amount to more than 15%."...
Now it is pushing 40%, a disaster!
Add to that the currently totally stupid German 'renewable energy' politics having been successfully pushed ahead by the Greens and eventually accepted by their political opponents just to keep them at bay: Way too expensive, not by any mean sustainable! The cracking general prohibit now being pushed by the same lobbies doesn't in any way improve on this situation. Politically Germany is right now trapped in a true 'Sack Gasse' (cul de sac) politically in this area.
Also of interest: A big gas terminal planned in Wilhelmshaven since 30-40 years or so has constantly been put on the back burner (!), postponed again and again and where it was supposed to have been up working 10-15 years ago or so, at the best it'd still be another 10 years from now before in operation. Which means, that even though natural gas now abundantly available at 1/3 of the current Putin price from US sources, the imminent gas tanker transportation capacity to fill the EU void in lieu of Putin gas, will not have any bunkering facilities at all in Germany and little of same anywhere in the EU.
That is except for Italy: Ghadaffi exported a lot of gas to Italy, and that was all done by tankers, so actually Italy right now has an ample amount of free gas terminal capacity to receive cheap gas from the US!!! We just need to get the tanker capability from the US to Italy up to speed!
Maybe then Putin will let some of his East Ukrainian 'freedom fighters' fumble some of his rockets to take them out?
/Taro |
