Europe has not yet won the energy war with Russia, says IEA chief

Despite a sharp fall in natural gas prices, Europe has not yet won the energy war with Russia. Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), said this in an interview with the Financial Times (FT). He warned that Russia could cut off its remaining gas supplies to Europe, and that global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) is likely to rise as China’s economy recovers. This could make it harder to refill European gas storage facilities ahead of next winter.

„Russia played the energy card and did not win,“ Birol said.

„But it would be too bold to say that Europe has already won the energy battle,“ Birol added. He noted that next winter could be more difficult for Europe than this one if the weather is colder.

However, Markus Krebber, head of Germany’s largest energy company RWE, predicted in a recent interview with Reuters that gas prices in Europe would not return to last year’s record highs. „The gas market is already much less tight, thanks in particular to the mild winter and the recovery in nuclear power generation in France,“ he said.