Cold Winter Expected in Europe Amid Energy Crisis

The British newspaper "Financial Times" reported, citing the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, that Europe will face a colder winter this year amid the global energy crisis. Meteorologists expect a decrease in rainfall and wind speeds used for energy generation. The newspaper confirmed that such forecasts pose a potential problem for authorities in several European countries that are struggling with rising energy prices while refusing to use Russian hydrocarbons. The situation has been exacerbated by the higher temperatures during last summer, which reduced the amount of energy generated by power plants relying on wind and hydro power. It is noted that the energy crisis in the European Union worsened in early July due to the disruption of Russian gas supplies to several EU countries, in addition to maintenance issues with Nord Stream turbines because of sanctions imposed on Russia. Meanwhile, the European Commission has urged EU countries to proactively prepare for a complete halt of Russian gas supplies and to implement a plan to reduce gas consumption by all community countries by 15% from August 1, 2022, to March 31, 2023.