Better than you might think!

Every four years, the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas, ENTSOG) is required to test potential responses in the event of an emergency or other catastrophe. During such a test in 2021, 20 different types of problems were "simulated". The conclusion? "The European gas transmission infrastructure is flexible enough to ensure gas supplies for EU member states". Wonderful words. However, the conductors of the test did not take into account the current situation in Europe. What is happening or will happen if Vladimir Putin invades Ukraine again? Or, for instance, if Western nations hit back with strong sanctions? It is expected that they will! Will Comrade Putin respond by shutting down all pipelines through which Russian gas flows towards the West?

A sensible person would think that a complete shutdown of gas pipelines is unimaginable. Thane Gustafson, author of the book "Klimat" (Climate), which examines the Russian energy system, has explained that even in the bleakest years of the Cold War, the USSR did not halt gas exports.