Europe's energy crisis is expected to last for years

The British "Financial Times" website reported on November 24 that according to the latest warnings from energy industry executives and analysts, if the regions cannot reduce demand and secure new natural gas supplies, Europe's energy crisis will continue for several years.

Mild weather this autumn and a rush to fill gas storage facilities across Europe has bolstered the regions' energy security this winter, but concerns have arisen about whether there will be enough supplies for next summer and the following winter, the report said.

The warnings are a disturbing reality for European policymakers. While hundreds of billions of euros have been spent to ensure gas storage is filled this winter and supports households and businesses, the pressure on public funding and the pain for households and businesses is likely to continue next year.

The report pointed out that as the West imposed sanctions on Russia, the supply of natural gas from Russia was almost completely cut off, and the new concern came. In recent days, Moscow has threatened to limit gas flow on the one remaining pipeline linking Russia to Europe, underscoring the importance of locking in supplies from other producers and taking action to reduce industrial and domestic fuel consumption.

Europe held around 90% of its natural gas storage at the end of September this year, a time when heating demand typically rises, roughly on par with the previous five-year average of 86%. At the same time, compared with the three-year average, demand from households and industries has decreased by 13% this year.

Those in the source industry believe high gas storage could lead to complacency and a slowdown in demand cuts. They also warned that Russian pipeline gas supplies to Europe will drop to negligible levels next year, leaving a bigger gap to fill.