Energy and fuel have become ever more topical in recent years. The need to phase out fossil fuels is now a mainstream view but it is not without financial cost as we transition. Global demand has surged since the Covid shutdowns of 2020 which has forced prices up. We’ve then had the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine and the need to stop financing Putin’s war mongering machine, which has acutely highlighted Europe’s dependence on Russian oil and gas. This has made prices surge from what was already a very high base.
The UK has much more energy security than most European countries, but we still use some Russian oil and gas and we are not immune at all from the rising prices in the global market. Currently making up about 8% of our demand, I welcome that our government is committed to phasing out Russian oil completely by the end of this year. Russian gas made up less than 4% of our total last year and this too is being looked at. It will however be much harder for the EU countries, who currently import about 40% of their gas from Russia.
While it is clear that alternative oil and gas sources need to be found, this can only be part of the picture. What the urgency to ditch Russian imports has shown is Europe’s reliance on fossil fuels from a highly unsavoury source. It is worth noting that gas generates about 36% of our electricity supply.
The need to transition away from fossil fuels has become even more urgent. In 2010, fossil fuels accounted for around three-quarters of the UK electricity generation, more than ten times as much that came from renewables. Since then, electricity generation from renewable sources has more than quadrupled and demand has fallen, leaving fossil fuels with a shrinking share of the total.
Reducing personal and national demand is also helpful in sanctioning Russia. Our government are investing over £3 billion to help improve energy efficiency in almost 500,000 of our lowest-income households and last week cut VAT on energy saving materials like solar panels.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
30th March 2022
