Grid Brief International: Peak LNG in the EU?

Could the European Union have emerged from the dark woods of the energy crunch into a broad, placid plain of lowering emissions? According to the EU’s Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulator’s recent report, the continent may be facing peak liquified natural gas demand as it decarbonizes.

Bloomberg’s coverage claimed two things: first, that the data in the ACER report portends that the energy crunch plaguing Europe is over; second, “that the US decision to halt fresh projects for the export of the super-chilled fuel is unlikely to have a significant impact on the bloc’s energy security as its rollout of renewables accelerates.”

You might already be raising your eyebrows on that second point. Let’s say that the EU rolls out an eye-popping amount of wind and solar—that may spare fuel, but natural gas is used for more than just electricity production. And remember, Spain is shuttering is nuclear power plants, which will make it more reliant on LNG and potentially risk blackouts by 2030. Also, don’t forget—because ACER, to their credit, did not—the EU is the largest importer of LNG in the world.

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