Energy: will Ukraine now switch to renewable energy?
The Ukraine war has highlighted how vulnerable a centralised energy supply based on fossil energy sources is. A study in 2017 already showed how Ukraine could switch to 90 percent renewables by 2050, but went unnoticed at the time. Now the war could force a shift away from large-scale projects and towards decentralised and renewable energy sources. Commentators say this is exactly the right strategy.
Renewables are the key to independence
For Ukrayinska Pravda, the energy policy lessons of this war are clear:
“The centralised energy systems of the past have proven extremely vulnerable to targeted attacks, terror and blackmail. ... And we now see that the old methods of supplying energy to the European economy which are dependent on fossil fuel imports are no longer viable. ... If democratic Europe is to survive and prosper, massive investments must be made in energy efficiency programmes and the development of decentralised structures based on renewable energy sources. ... Already it is crystal clear that Ukraine must align its economic recovery with decarbonisation targets and the European Green Deal.”
All Europe must readjust
Arseniy Yatsenyuk, prime minister of Ukraine from 2014 to 2016, warns the EU against making concessions to Russia in response to the energy crisis:
“This winter will be difficult for all Europeans, whether they face power cuts and bombs or heating problems and exorbitant energy bills. Putin hopes to use the winter as a weapon to force Europe to surrender, but conceding to the Kremlin would be disastrous for both Ukraine and the EU. Now Europe must take up the challenge of comprehensively reforming its energy system. This is the only way to overcome the continent's onerous dependence on Russian energy and ensure that Putin's energy war ends with his total defeat.”