Why Europe depends on Russia for natural gas

Europeans have been suffering under painfully high energy prices in the lead-up to Russia launching an attack on Ukraine on Thursday morning.

Energy prices surged Thursday morning after Russia invaded Ukraine, with international benchmark Brent crude oil surpassing $100 a barrel for the first time since 2014. Natural gas prices were up as much as 6.5% after the invasion and were up almost 2% as of Thursday mid-day.

And on Tuesday, Germany halted the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea gas pipeline project, which was intended to increase the flow of Russian gas directly to Germany.

The European Union is especially dependent on Russian energy, which is becoming increasingly unsustainable.

On Wednesday, The Washington Post reported the European Union is making plans for energy independence from Russia, citing sources who spoke on condition of anonymity. The plan is expected to be announced by the European Commission next week.

So how did the region become so dependent on Putin’s Russia for its energy supplies?

In the 1960’s and 1970’s, Europe was supplying roughly the same amount of natural gas that it was using, according to Tim Schittekatte, a research scientist at the MIT Energy Initiative and an expert on the European grid and the issues it is facing.

Production of natural gas in Europe decreased because the North Sea gas fields, which are particularly important sources of natural gas production from the UK and the Netherlands, were depleted. And later the Netherlands announced they were completely shutting down their Groningen gas fields because of earthquakes.

Over the same period, the EU has been reducing its dependence on coal to reach its climate goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and cutting emissions by at least 55% by 2030. Currently, about 20% of EU’s electricity comes from coal production.

Since 2012, the EU has decreased its coal power generation by about a third, according to the Directorate-General for Energy for the EU.

In addition, Germany summarily rejected investments in nuclear energy with its Atomic Energy Act in 2011, a decision made in response to the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011. Only 13% of Europe’s energy now comes from nuclear power.

About 25% of the EU’s energy consumption comes from natural gas, according to the Directorate-General for Energy for the EU. Oil and petroleum (32%), renewable energy and biofuels (18%), and solid fossil fuels (11%) make up the rest.

That dependence on natural gas means a dependence on Russia. Today, the EU is the largest importer of natural gas in the world, according to the Directorate-General for Energy for the EU, with most of its gas coming from Russia (41%), Norway (24%) and Algeria (11%).

“In terms of foreign suppliers,…