To meet Europe's natural gas needs, it must be imported, with the vast majority of requirements needing to be sourced from abroad. Furthermore, to ensure secure and guaranteed supplies, like it or not, Europe must submit to the mercy and whims of supplier nations, such as Russia and Algeria. Both of these countries are keen to use their gas resources for highly selfish geopolitical purposes (targeting Ukraine and Morocco, respectively). Russia provides 1/3 of Europe's required natural gas, actively insisting on the activation of Nord Stream 2 (it should be remembered that this pipeline bypasses Ukraine). The situation is made even worse by the fact that Germany and Spain are attempting to negotiate with suppliers in direct talks, separately from the EU. Russia is quite skilfully exploiting this circumstance, demonstrating that it can perfectly influence the price of gas by reducing or withholding supplies.

The conflict between climate priorities and cheap, secure energy is growing. For instance, a country with large coal reserves is always ready to use them to ensure energy flow. A case in point is Germany, where coal-fired power plants generate about 30% of what is needed, thanks to the government's decision to stop using nuclear energy (following the accident at the Fukushima NPP in 2011).

The "fluctuations" in gas and electricity prices make one thing clear: the transition to greener energy will neither be an easy nor a smooth process. There will be a great many problems, the potential scale of which is unpredictable. The most serious issue could be the continuity of energy supplies. To reduce price volatility, renewable energy requires technologies that would fill the potential "void" during times when wind and solar intensity are low. Traditionally, this function has been "performed" by natural gas, which is why we are currently seeing an increase in energy prices. This situation could persist until such time as effective and modern energy storage facilities can begin operating.