Europe urged to save natural gas to avoid shortage next year
Associated PressFRANKFURT, Germany — Europe could face a severe natural gas shortage next year and needs to act now to reduce use, the International Energy Agency said in a report Thursday, warning against complacency in an energy crisis triggered by Russia’s war in Ukraine after countries were able to build up storage of the fuel to heat homes and generate electricity this winter. “With the recent mild weather and lower gas prices, there is a danger of complacency creeping into the conversation around Europe’s gas supplies, but we are by no means out of the woods yet,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said. “This is why governments need to be taking immediate action to speed up improvements in energy efficiency and accelerate the deployment of renewables and heat pumps — and other steps to structurally reduce gas demand.” The cutoff of most Russian pipeline gas because of the war in Ukraine has sparked a winter energy crisis in Europe. Because high fossil fuel prices have depressed demand, monthly carbon dioxide emissions in the European Union have declined since July, compared to the previous year, according to a report released Thursday.