NO ONE knows how long this horrific and inhuman war waged by Russia against Ukraine will last, and how it will end. But it is already reshaping the global order of energy. And in this age of climate change, it is bound to shape the future as we know it. Energy prices have already surged across the world, and governments that were discussing how to move away from fossil fuels are now urging oil and gas producers to increase supply. Energy poverty, a term well understood in emerging countries, where millions live without access to basic electricity, has now found place in the lexicon of rich nations. What will governments do to “cool” the energy markets, and what will this mean in a world a that has already run out of carbon space and time in terms of climate change?
RUSSIA, A MAJOR OIL AND GAS PRODUCER
Share of top 10 crude oil producers in 2019 (in %)
Share of top 10 natural gas producers in 2019 (in %)
The war has made the energy crisis more acute. Russia is a major producer of oil and gas and the US and its allies have put severe sanctions on the country. “Six of the top 10 shipping companies in the world, controlling over 60 per cent of global capacity, have suspended Russian bookings,” Kaushik Deb, senior research scholar at Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, told Down To Earth (DTE) in the second week of March, soon after the US banned import of Russian fuel. This is a disruption of the 5-6 million barrels that Russia exports by the sea every day; about half of this is crude oil, Deb said. The International Energy Agency (IEA) estimates that 3 million barrels of Russian crude oil and oil products may not find their way to markets per day, beginning April.
Denne historien er fra April 01, 2022-utgaven av Down To Earth.
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Denne historien er fra April 01, 2022-utgaven av Down To Earth.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Trade On Emissions
EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism, a tariff on imports, is designed to protect European industries in the guise of climate action.
'The project will facilitate physical and cultural decimation of indigenous people'
The Great Nicobar Project has all the hallmarks of a disaster-seismic, ecological, human. Why did it get the go-ahead?
TASTE IT RED
Popularity of Karnataka's red jackfruit shows how biodiversity can be conserved by ensuring that communities benefit from it
MANY MYTHS OF CHIPKO
Misconceptions about the Chipko movement have overshadowed its true objectives.
The politics and economics of mpox
Africa's mpox epidemic stems from delayed responses, neglect of its health risks and the stark vaccine apartheid
Emerging risks
Even as the world gets set to eliminate substances threatening the ozone layer, climate change and space advancement pose new challenges.
JOINING THE CARBON CLUB
India's carbon market will soon be a reality, but will it fulfil its aim of reducing emissions? A report by PARTH KUMAR and MANAS AGRAWAL
Turn a new leaf
Scientists join hands to predict climate future of India's tropical forests
Festering troubles
The Democratic Republic of Congo struggles to contain mpox amid vaccine delays, conflict and fragile healthcare.
India sees unusual monsoon patterns
THE 2024 southwest monsoon has, between June 1 and September 1, led to excess rainfall in western and southern states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, while others like Nagaland, Manipur and Punjab recorded a deficit.