IV Cascais Meetings: Natural gas reserves in Portugal are 100%… but we can stop being well from one day to the next
ENERGY, ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY AND ACCESS TO RESOURCES – IMPACT ON GEOPOLITICS
The second panel of the IV Encontros de Cascais, which took place between Friday and Saturday at Cidadela de Cascais, began with a reference to the candor of Europeans in believing in the less plausible, such as thinking about having peace without investing in self-defense. This candid certainty was an incentive to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. At the same time, Central and Eastern European countries wanted to believe that their energy choices were not geopolitical choices, which turned out to be a fiction. All procurement contracts represent geopolitical consequences.
In the same way, if Europeans are believing in Ukraine and are going to be worried about Europe’s borders, they will be wrong again.
May be a winner, since the beginning of the war, since the beginning of the war, Europe has already paid 89 percent more for Putin the beginning of Russia’s energy than Putin. in the same period last year, even though percent of the year were 15 lower.
The problem of the fallibility of the strategy is very strong (to which the strategy does not want to do much).
On the one hand, the United States, on the one hand, understands in the details of the United States. And so, as European oil and gas transport companies continue to guarantee the flow of this energy from Russia to the rest of the world and provide the corresponding cargo insurance.
On the other hand, the United States is incapable of perceiving as emerging economies and because they cannot guarantee that they find it in compliance with that, which they take away. Thus, OPEC’s decisions continue to be closer to Russia’s interests than those of the West.
The same is true of large economies, such as India. economy that is now the fifth largest of Russian military equipment and can not cut this link to the other to lose assistance, otherwise the world depends on this equipment.
In this difficult scenario, a decision that can help the European Union is to produce more energy, compatible with the new projects. But as this decision takes time to produce results, it is necessary to correct the urgency of guaranteeing enough gas for the following month. This sense of urgency is at the origin of the change of opinion of the activist Sueta Thunberg herself, re-se, who has just said that Germany is publicly recognized as ensuring the operation of its central plants rather than returning to coal plants.
In: guaranteeing the transition, it is necessary to guarantee an effective energy mix: more renewables; bigger bet on green; whose technology is not yet mature more smaller and cleaner hazardous reactors; and also the guarantee of access to LNG, liquefied natural gas, guaranteed to guarantee the short term, guarantee of stability of the electrical systems and the functioning of the companies.
In a more sectoral avoidance approach, one or more details the importance of blackouts in the energy transition process. The risk exists, first of all because hydroelectricity production has fallen to the next 1/3 of what would already be a bad year.
This panel speaker avoided entering the discussion of coal plants, without but ahead of time, saying that the non-operation of coal plants, very expensive because of carbon taxes, solved the problem of the intermittence of renewables; the cycle for purchasing raw materials and operating the ovens was very long. Combined-cycle natural gas plants better solve this problem and the system’s safety is ensured by way.
As for Portugal, the news is this: Natural gas reserves in Portugal are at 100 percent and guarantee 27 days, as in other European countries.
But we are fine now, we can stop being from one day to the next. It is necessary to continue to supply natural gas under long-term contracts and to diversify sources. It is also necessary to strengthen Spain’s gas connections with Europe. Just last year, an incident occurred near the Spanish border and Portuguese authorities had to ask large electricity consumers to take a break from consumption, to avoid a general blackout.
Here, support was heard for the agreement to build a new gas pipeline between Portugal and Spain, another between Barcelona and Marseille by sea, and more cross-border high-voltage power lines.
The Portuguese gas pipeline between Celorico da Beira and the border, with a length of 136 km, must be between 200 and 300 million euros and be paid in full or in large part by the European Union. We cannot remain isolated, otherwise we cannot count on Europe’s help or help when necessary, namely with the export of renewable energy.
Portugal also has the option of continuing to invest in renewable energies, which are increasingly more efficient and more cost-effective. To facilitate new investments, the Government has to quickly reduce the bureaucracy in approving projects.
In the question and answer phase of this panel, several participants raised the question of the interrelationship between water and energy. To have access, it is necessary to spend energy and to produce energy, it is necessary to have water for water. The management of the two resources has to be done in a much more integrated way than until now. Faced with climate change and the increase in rainfall in Portugal, several voices defend the construction of an example of desalination in Portugal, a bet already made and won by Israel, pointed out as.
Another energy raised by the participants is the incentives of incentives or public to the consumption of incentives, in contrast to a motivation of incentives to the economy. An expert has warned the economy of the economy of households and businesses in a country where poverty is high.
The misalignment of the responses of the various European countries to the current energy crisis was also addressed by the participants.
As at the beginning of the pandemic, it was for itself, as if not a Union country. For example, Italy a major proxy sought out Spain in its congeal relationship, which is a major supplier of natural gas.
The European Union should look at Africa together and establish agreements with third parties that benefit all countries, instead of seeing unbridled bilateral competition. Even the German chancellor is multiplying in trips to several countries agreements to sign producers, while the joint purchases proposed by the European Commission have not yet come to fruition…
To guarantee the energy transition process, it is still necessary to have access to rare earths or metals. China already has a leading position, with Europe remaining in a clear picture.
Lastly, a lot of money was spent on gas exploration studies, particularly in the Algarve, where money was spent. But in our country, as in Europe in general, as concerns and relevant environmental rules on fossil energy exploration projects. The United States, on the other hand, shows much less environmental concerns and China is even flouting the same goals of the Paris accords with the combustion of coal to produce electricity (while betting heavily on new nuclear plants).