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Putin blames EU green policies for energy price spike
(EurActiv, 14 Oct 2021) Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday (13 October) that the reason for the current energy price spike is the shortage of electricity due to increased use of renewable energy.
Speaking at the opening of “Russia energy week” in Moscow, Putin said Russia was ready to provide more gas to Europe if requested, thus rejecting the suggestion that Moscow was squeezing supplies for political motives.
Focusing on the impact of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Putin said that last year’s statistics show that global primary energy consumption declined by 4.7%, which he said was the heaviest shock for the sector over the past 70 years.
Consequently, he said prices had been adjusted to the falling demand, giving an example of last year, when the price of natural gas in Europe dropped by 60% to $113 per thousand cubic metres against $159 in 2019 and $282 in 2018.
Putin called the situation in the oil sector “unique”.
“None of you or us could even believe it. Nobody could even imagine that last spring oil would record negative prices for the first time in history. It became more expensive to store oil than to purchase it. This situation is simply unique,” he said.
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EurActiv, 14 Oct 2021: Putin blames EU green policies for energy price spike
