Austrian minister issues Europe-wide blackout warning

The Austrian government has raised the prospect of electricity shortages this winter, as the European continent grapples with the simultaneous impact of limited supplies of natural gas, political tensions and the long-term transition to renewable energy sources. Austria’s defence minister Klaudia Tanner has warned there is a high possibility of a Europe-wide blackout that will affect computers, mobile phones and home electricity supplies. Tanner reportedly stated that the issue is not if there will be a blackout, “the question is when it will be”. Furthermore, said the minister, the danger “is underestimated by all”. The Austrian government has launched a public awareness campaign for both residents and business to prepare for the eventuality. This campaign, which carries the slogan “What to do when everything stops”, will run for the entirety of November via thousands of posters well as social media. Aside from the advice aimed at households, such as buying enough food for days and stocking up on candles or battery-operated torches, the threat also has serious implications for businesses. No official reason was given by the defence minister or the government for the likely cause of a potential blackout but concern has been raised in other quarters, not least the energy sector, about the risk of rolling power outages. The chief executive of commodity trader Trafigura, Jeremy Weir, spoke about a shortage of natural gas in the region at a recent conference. “We haven’t got enough gas at the moment quite frankly. We’re not storing for the winter period,” he said, in comments reported by the Financial Times. “So hence there is a real concern that . . . if we have a cold winter, we could have rolling blackouts in Europe.” Much of the concern centres on the role of Russia. There have been promises of an increase in supply from President Vladimir Putin, however this promise is apparently conditional on Germany’s approval of the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which would supply natural gas from Russia to Germany. In October, the Russian President said state-owned gas company Gazprom could increase supply by 17.5bn cubic metres via the proposed pipeline if regulators approved it “tomorrow”. However, Germany’s energy regulator has instead suspended its certification of the scheme, a move that led to a 10% surge in European gas futures. The problem for Germany’s regulator, the Bundesnetzagentur, is that the Nord Stream operator is based in Switzerland, not Germany. “It would only be possible to certify an operator of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline if that operator was organised in a legal form under German law," stated the agency. A further complication is the political tension between Belarus and the EU, with Belarussian autocrat Alexander Lukashenko threatening to block Russia-to-Europe gas flows if EU sanctions are escalated. Meanwhile, the Swiss government issued a similar warning in October about power outages this winter, following the failure to agree an electricity deal with the EU that would see the flow of electricity across borders. Bilateral talks on such a deal were abandoned in May and the EU has since stated that Switzerland will get no additional access to EU electricity supply in the absence of an agreement. While the short-term concerns over energy availability are focused on natural gas supply and political tensions, a longer-term issue for all EU countries is the transition to renewable energy. Switzerland’s Energy Strategy 2050 states that the country plans to increase production of energy from renewable sources and hydrogeneration. It has also proposed adding two terrawats of climate-neutral electricity production by 2040, which would be financed by a winter surcharge. However, the government’s climate action plans have been rejected by voters – a new law to help the country meet its carbon-emissions target under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change was rejected back in June. Meanwhile, Switzerland remains heavily reliant on non-renewable energy sources. Fossil fuels still account for more than 60% of overall energy consumption, while more than 30% comes from nuclear power. Just 3.7% of electricity comes from solar-powered photovoltaics.

Austrian minister issues Europe-wide blackout warning

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