{"id":264283,"date":"2023-06-28T11:33:25","date_gmt":"2023-06-28T09:33:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=264283"},"modified":"2023-06-28T11:33:28","modified_gmt":"2023-06-28T09:33:28","slug":"europes-crisis-blame-green-energy-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=264283","title":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s Crisis:\u00a0 Blame Green Energy Policy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"516\" data-attachment-id=\"264291\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=264291\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?fit=1681%2C1200&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1681,1200\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?fit=723%2C516&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=723%2C516&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-264291\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=1024%2C731&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=300%2C214&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=768%2C548&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=1536%2C1096&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?resize=1200%2C857&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?w=1681&amp;ssl=1 1681w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?w=1446&amp;ssl=1 1446w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.masterresource.org\/\">Master Resource<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>By Steve Goreham<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe lesson from Europe is that reliance on wind, solar, and imported natural gas is expensive and risky energy policy. If you experience a low-wind year, a cold winter, an embargo, or a war, you can\u2019t turn up the wind and solar.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The year 2022 was an energy disaster for Europe. Citizens and businesses suffered from astronomical prices for natural gas and electricity, sky-high home energy bills, shuttered industrial plants, and bankrupt companies. Observers have blamed COVID-19 supply chain disruptions and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but Europe\u2019s green energy policies was the elephant in the room.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the last two decades, closures of traditional power plants and renewable energy policies made European countries highly dependent upon a combination of intermittent wind and solar sources and natural gas. More than 100 nuclear plants had&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/513639\/number-of-permanent-nuclear-reactor-shutdowns-worldwide\/\">closed<\/a>&nbsp;or were scheduled to close, including 30 in Germany and 34 in the United Kingdom. At the same time, 23 nations&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/beyondfossilfuels.org\/europes-coal-exit\/\">announced<\/a>&nbsp;that they would phase out coal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">By 2021, wind, solar, and natural gas provided 48 percent of Germany\u2019s electricity, and provided most of the electricity&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bp.com\/en\/global\/corporate\/energy-economics\/statistical-review-of-world-energy\/downloads.html\">consumed<\/a>&nbsp;in Italy (63%), the UK (64%), and the Netherlands (78%). Homes in the Netherlands get 83 percent of their&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.edfenergy.com\/heating\/advice\/uk-boiler-ban\">heating<\/a>&nbsp;energy from natural gas and gas provides 78 percent of heating in UK homes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Imports provided a rising share of the continent\u2019s energy. In 2000, Europe had produced 56 percent of its natural gas and 44 percent of its petroleum. But the region chose to invest in wind and solar, instead of using hydraulic fracturing to boost oil and gas production. By 2021, Europe was&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bp.com\/en\/global\/corporate\/energy-economics\/statistical-review-of-world-energy.html\">producing<\/a>&nbsp;only 37 percent of its own natural gas and 25 percent of its petroleum. In addition, rising imports from Russia created a serious dependency. Russia provided Europe with 27 percent of its natural gas, 17 percent of its crude oil, and 38 percent of its coal in 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In 2017, the European Commission released a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.researchgate.net\/publication\/317932485_European_Unconventional_Oil_and_Gas_Assessment_EUOGA_Review_of_results_knowledge_gaps_and_recommendations_for_future_work\">study<\/a>\u00a0that identified 49 shale formations in Europe that contained either natural gas or oil, with major shale potential in Bulgaria, France, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Ukraine, and the UK. One major shale field, the Fennoscandian Shield, stretches across Northern Europe, from England to the Baltic States. But Europe chose to fracture none of these fields and to rely on intermittent wind and solar and natural gas imports.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"488\" data-attachment-id=\"264285\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=264285\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?fit=1200%2C810&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1200,810\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"0image-10\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?fit=723%2C488&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?resize=723%2C488&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-264285\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?resize=1024%2C691&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?resize=300%2C203&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?resize=768%2C518&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/0image-10.png?w=1200&amp;ssl=1 1200w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then in 2021, the wind didn\u2019t blow much in Europe. Electricity\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/edmhdotme.wpcomstaging.com\/2021-european-wind-drought-analysed\/\">output<\/a>\u00a0from wind was down by 20\ua7f730 percent from historical norms. To compensate for the loss of wind output, utilities burned gas to generate electricity. By the end of the year, stocks of natural gas were unusually low and gas prices were rising.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"513\" data-attachment-id=\"264287\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=264287\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?fit=1500%2C1065&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1500,1065\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"00image-13\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?fit=723%2C513&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?resize=723%2C513&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-264287\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?resize=1024%2C727&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?resize=300%2C213&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?resize=768%2C545&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?resize=1200%2C852&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?w=1500&amp;ssl=1 1500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-13.png?w=1446&amp;ssl=1 1446w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Natural gas prices in Europe averaged about 13\ua7f718 Euros per Megawatt-hour (\u20ac\/MWh) during 2019 and 2020. With economic recovery and the decrease in wind electricity output during 2021, prices&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/commodity\/eu-natural-gas\">soared<\/a>&nbsp;to 80 \u20ac\/MWh by December 2021. This was a price increase of about five times that occurred two months prior to Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine. Electricity prices also skyrocketed, up by a factor of six by the end of 2021, again prior to the invasion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022, prices exploded. The price of natural gas in Europe immediately jumped to over 100 \u20ac\/MWh, and the price of crude oil rose to over $100 per barrel. Russian energy exports to Europe began to fall. In April, the European Union agreed to ban coal imports from Russia. Russian flows of gas to Europe dropped by 80 percent by July 2022. Natural gas prices soared to over 200 \u20ac\/MWh by August. Monthly average electricity\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.statista.com\/statistics\/1267500\/eu-monthly-wholesale-electricity-price-country\/\">prices<\/a>\u00a0had doubled again, up by 10 times from the first half of 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"723\" height=\"412\" data-attachment-id=\"264289\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?attachment_id=264289\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?fit=1500%2C854&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1500,854\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"00image-11\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?fit=723%2C412&amp;ssl=1\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?resize=723%2C412&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-264289\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?resize=1024%2C583&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?resize=300%2C171&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?resize=768%2C437&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?resize=1200%2C683&amp;ssl=1 1200w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?w=1500&amp;ssl=1 1500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00image-11.png?w=1446&amp;ssl=1 1446w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 723px) 100vw, 723px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The unprecedented hike in energy&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/markets\/europe\/forget-showering-its-eat-or-heat-shocked-europeans-hit-by-energy-crisis-2022-08-26\/#:~:text=European%20Markets-,Analysis%3A%20Forget%20showering%2C%20it%27s%20eat%20or%20heat%20for%20shocked,Europeans%20hit%20by%20energy%20crisis&amp;text=LONDON%2C%20Aug%2029%20(Reuters),but%20the%20bills%20keep%20climbing.\">prices<\/a>&nbsp;caused a step-function decline in Europe\u2019s standard of living. Even after the price controls used by the UK government, UK homeowners spent as much as 10 percent of their income on home and vehicle energy, which was more than during the oil crises of the 1970s. UK residents cooked less often, took fewer showers, and turned down the heating in their homes. Household gas bills in Germany more than doubled from 2021 to 2022, and oil heating bills were up by three-quarters. Germans showered and shaved at work when possible. Energy bills for Italian families were the highest in 25 years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The crisis bankrupted several energy supply companies. By February 2022, 31 UK suppliers of natural gas, serving two million customers, had&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/uk\/advisor\/energy\/failed-uk-energy-suppliers-update\/#:~:text=Since%20the%20beginning%20of%202021,them%20to%20a%20new%20supplier.\">gone<\/a>&nbsp;out of business. Price controls had forced these firms to sell gas at prices below their wholesale purchase price. Uniper SE, Germany\u2019s largest natural gas provider, was forced to buy gas at exorbitant prices after Russian giant Gazprom halted shipments due to the war in Ukraine. In September 2022, the German government&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2022\/09\/21\/energy\/uniper-germany-energy-crisis\/index.html\">acquired<\/a>&nbsp;the company for over \u20ac20 billion, but the cost, including daily losses, is expected to approach \u20ac100 billion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">High energy prices heavily impacted energy-intensive industries. Natural gas is essential to produce ammonia, which is used to make urea and ammonium nitrate fertilizer. Europe\u2019s fertilizer producers without long-term gas contracts lost money on every ton of fertilizer produced. More than half of Europe\u2019s ammonia&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bloomberg.com\/news\/articles\/2022-08-26\/europe-s-fertilizer-crisis-deepens-with-70-of-capacity-hit#xj4y7vzkg\">production<\/a>&nbsp;and 33 percent of its nitrogen fertilizer production, shut down in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Metals producers were clobbered. One metric ton of aluminum requires about 15 megawatt-hours of power, costing \u20ac7,000 at August 2022 prices, but could only be sold for less than \u20ac2,500. Half of Europe\u2019s aluminum and zinc output was&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/europe-manufacturers-factories-russia-gas-11662938614\">forced<\/a>&nbsp;to close. Hundreds of companies in chemicals, fertilizer, energy, metals, steel, glass, paper, and food processing struggled to operate. Energy policies appear to have set the table for a new era of deindustrialization in Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Publicly, European officials continue to support Net Zero and a transition to renewable energy. But nations are stepping back from green policies. On July 6, 2022, the European Parliament&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2022\/07\/06\/europe-natural-gas-nuclear-are-green-energy-in-some-circumstances-.html\">voted<\/a>&nbsp;to classify nuclear and natural gas projects as \u201cenvironmentally sustainable.\u201d Netherlands resumed drilling for gas, and Denmark, Italy, and Norway announced plans to increase gas production. Twenty-five new liquified natural gas (LNG) import&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rigzone.com\/news\/europe_rushing_to_install_new_lng_import_facilities-29-aug-2022-170138-article\/\">terminals<\/a>&nbsp;were in process or planned by the fall of 2022. It was the ramp in LNG shipments from the US and other nations during 2022 that kept the lights on in Europe this last winter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With soaring gas prices, power generation from coal in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessinsider.in\/stock-market\/news\/coal-is-making-a-comeback-in-energy-hungry-europe-sending-prices-soaring-2-analysts-lay-out-whats-going-on-\/articleshow\/94132719.cms\">grew<\/a>&nbsp;more than 20 percent from 2021 to 2022 combined. Germany restarted 27 coal-fired power plants. This increased consumption of coal ran counter to national pledges to phase out coal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Natural gas and electricity prices fell over the last six months but remain high. Gas prices have&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/commodity\/eu-natural-gas\">fallen<\/a>&nbsp;to about 30 \u20ac\/MWh, double 2020 prices, and electricity prices remain about triple 2020 prices. But Europe may be in trouble again if the upcoming winter is a cold one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The lesson from Europe is that reliance on wind, solar, and imported natural gas is expensive and risky energy policy. If you experience a low-wind year, a cold winter, an embargo, or a war, you can\u2019t turn up the wind and solar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014\u2014-<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Steve&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.stevegoreham.com\/\">Goreham<\/a>&nbsp;is a speaker on energy, the environment, and public policy and the author of the new book&nbsp;<em>Green Breakdown: The Coming Renewable Energy Failure<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The year 2022 was an energy disaster for Europe. Citizens and businesses suffered from astronomical prices for natural gas and electricity, sky-high home energy bills, shuttered industrial plants, and bankrupt companies. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":121246920,"featured_media":264291,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[691820296,691819303,691818118,691818376,691818589,691818728],"class_list":["post-264283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-coal-fired-power-plants","tag-european-commission","tag-green-energy","tag-natural-gas","tag-nuclear-plants","tag-wind-and-solar","fallback-thumbnail"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/06\/00Net-Zero-Carbon-sign-1700-x-1200.jpg?fit=1681%2C1200&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paxLW1-16KD","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":264953,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=264953","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":0},"title":"Europe\u2019s crisis: Blame \u201cGreen\u201d energy policy","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"07\/02\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"The lesson from Europe is that reliance on wind, solar, and imported natural gas is expensive and risky energy policy. If you experience a low-wind year, a cold winter, an embargo, or a war, you can\u2019t turn up the wind and solar.","rel":"","context":"In \"energy policy\"","block_context":{"text":"energy policy","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=energy-policy"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0energy-crisis-8-1024.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0energy-crisis-8-1024.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0energy-crisis-8-1024.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/0energy-crisis-8-1024.webp?fit=1024%2C768&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":253423,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=253423","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":1},"title":"European Energy Suffering, Now Hydro and Nuclear","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"04\/17\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Last year, Europe was on the brink of an energy breakdown\u00a0as Russian gas flows dried up and most of Europe doubled down on renewable energy.","rel":"","context":"In \"hydropower\"","block_context":{"text":"hydropower","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=hydropower"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/0eat-or-heat-image-1400x700-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/0eat-or-heat-image-1400x700-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/0eat-or-heat-image-1400x700-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/0eat-or-heat-image-1400x700-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/04\/0eat-or-heat-image-1400x700-1.jpg?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":415050,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=415050","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":2},"title":"Electricity prices going up? Green policy is to blame","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"11\/28\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Electricity prices are rising, and Democrats blame President Trump. For years, articles in the media have said that renewables provide the lowest-cost electricity, claiming that wind and solar generators were cheaper than coal, natural gas, and nuclear. But prices are soaring in green energy states that install wind and solar\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"electricity prices\"","block_context":{"text":"electricity prices","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=electricity-prices"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQOREe0R-K5X3QJLk3pNdD1mVDpVMNHlKotyjn5pBUF5DHSkMqD7MbCxGhsm3QFqbZ6yVWzaPf-5uyXfBxEwAAozF-LodreihU07Lo31TSte9R_X2m05wEz8kHeKysGpX_4TIqSAYTCRwbsLQLX5NbJHcXF5Xw-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQOREe0R-K5X3QJLk3pNdD1mVDpVMNHlKotyjn5pBUF5DHSkMqD7MbCxGhsm3QFqbZ6yVWzaPf-5uyXfBxEwAAozF-LodreihU07Lo31TSte9R_X2m05wEz8kHeKysGpX_4TIqSAYTCRwbsLQLX5NbJHcXF5Xw-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQOREe0R-K5X3QJLk3pNdD1mVDpVMNHlKotyjn5pBUF5DHSkMqD7MbCxGhsm3QFqbZ6yVWzaPf-5uyXfBxEwAAozF-LodreihU07Lo31TSte9R_X2m05wEz8kHeKysGpX_4TIqSAYTCRwbsLQLX5NbJHcXF5Xw-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQOREe0R-K5X3QJLk3pNdD1mVDpVMNHlKotyjn5pBUF5DHSkMqD7MbCxGhsm3QFqbZ6yVWzaPf-5uyXfBxEwAAozF-LodreihU07Lo31TSte9R_X2m05wEz8kHeKysGpX_4TIqSAYTCRwbsLQLX5NbJHcXF5Xw-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQOREe0R-K5X3QJLk3pNdD1mVDpVMNHlKotyjn5pBUF5DHSkMqD7MbCxGhsm3QFqbZ6yVWzaPf-5uyXfBxEwAAozF-LodreihU07Lo31TSte9R_X2m05wEz8kHeKysGpX_4TIqSAYTCRwbsLQLX5NbJHcXF5Xw-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":249299,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=249299","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":3},"title":"Night-Time &#038; Calm Weather: Why Intermittent Wind &#038; Solar Are Driving Power Prices Into Orbit","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"03\/23\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Chaotically intermittent wind and solar are at the heart of surging retail power bills. As wind and solar generation capacity increases, so do power prices. Call it an \u2018immutable law\u2019.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-992.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-992.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-992.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-992.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/image-992.png?fit=1200%2C675&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":245229,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=245229","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":4},"title":"Nuclear &#038; Coal-Fired Power Saves Germany From Self-Inflicted Wind &#038; Solar Disaster","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"02\/23\/2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Vlad Putin can\u2019t be blamed for blanketing Germany\u2019s millions of solar panels in snow and ice, or freezing solid their 30,000 wind turbines. Nor can Vlad be convicted for this (and every previous) winter\u2019s long periods of gloomy, windless weather \u2013 \u2018dunkelflaute\u2019, as Germans call it.","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-699.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-699.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-699.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-699.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/02\/image-699.png?fit=1200%2C600&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":415136,"url":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=415136","url_meta":{"origin":264283,"position":5},"title":"Rising Electricity Prices? Blame Green Energy Policies, Not President Trump","author":"uwe.roland.gross","date":"11\/28\/2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Electricity prices are rising, and Democrats blame President Trump. For years, articles in the media have said that renewables provide the lowest-cost electricity, claiming that wind and solar generators were cheaper than coal, natural gas, and nuclear. But prices are soaring in green energy states that install wind and solar\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"Climate Policies\"","block_context":{"text":"Climate Policies","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?tag=climate-policies"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQMM711WT9l_oEGlescA5GnHmBcW2BdNchjKbEjzYn3qcdVBksOHsLtj8R1_kei7En5Gfnq2ac_XXbdBLU0_QHdNNOOO4a7OVctJrX68GhbwAqmzWxjFH7KeIU802hI-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQMM711WT9l_oEGlescA5GnHmBcW2BdNchjKbEjzYn3qcdVBksOHsLtj8R1_kei7En5Gfnq2ac_XXbdBLU0_QHdNNOOO4a7OVctJrX68GhbwAqmzWxjFH7KeIU802hI-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQMM711WT9l_oEGlescA5GnHmBcW2BdNchjKbEjzYn3qcdVBksOHsLtj8R1_kei7En5Gfnq2ac_XXbdBLU0_QHdNNOOO4a7OVctJrX68GhbwAqmzWxjFH7KeIU802hI-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQMM711WT9l_oEGlescA5GnHmBcW2BdNchjKbEjzYn3qcdVBksOHsLtj8R1_kei7En5Gfnq2ac_XXbdBLU0_QHdNNOOO4a7OVctJrX68GhbwAqmzWxjFH7KeIU802hI-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/climatescience.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/0AQMM711WT9l_oEGlescA5GnHmBcW2BdNchjKbEjzYn3qcdVBksOHsLtj8R1_kei7En5Gfnq2ac_XXbdBLU0_QHdNNOOO4a7OVctJrX68GhbwAqmzWxjFH7KeIU802hI-1.jpeg?fit=1200%2C686&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264283","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/121246920"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=264283"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264283\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":264293,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264283\/revisions\/264293"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/264291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=264283"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=264283"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=264283"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}