Fossil Fuel's Present in Europe is Healthy
Perhaps fossil fuel doesn’t have a bright future in Europe, but its present is rather healthy. Despite the Russia- Ukraine conflict and subsequent crunch of the fuel supply, the gasoline demand in the UK recorded the strongest this year since 2015 (January-to-June period), according to Bloomberg calculations based on government data. If the UK went back eight years, the demand hit a 20-year high in France during the summer. It’s risen to the highest in over a decade in Spain. The case is no different in Eastern European nations like Poland. The gasoline use in Europe is the strongest ever.
It is no wonder that Asian energy companies are flooding London in response to the surge in demand in Europe for fossil fuels, especially the liquefied natural gas. As the supply from Russia is slashed, the Asian energy companies continue to establish and draw up blueprints for LNG trading desks to take advantage of Europe’s new position as the world’s biggest importer of the super-chilled fuel. Almost all of Asia’s giant energy companies have plans in motion, including Japan’s Tokyo Gas, Osaka Gas, and Kansai Electric and South Korea’s SK E&S. Indeed, reports indicate that China’s ENN, Cnooc, PetroChina, and Sinochem are also considering moves to the UK. The potential of bigger returns selling to European customers, typically utility groups, than in Asia is tempting companies to the UK capital. Trading profits in Europe were extremely lucrative last summer as the region scrambled to secure the fuel to fill up its storage ahead of winter. It’s fair to expect that more energy companies will follow the trend.