Switzerland plans to leave natural gas for oil …
In a context of looming energy crisis, Switzerland could turn to oil for electricity generation in the winter in the event of an emergency, Energy Minister Simonetta Sommaruga told local newspaper SonntagsZeitung this weekend .
Sommaruga, who has advocated greater use of renewable energy in Switzerland, admitted that the country may need to use oil for electricity generation this winter as Europe has to contend with scarce supplies of Russian natural gas. , which could be further reduced or stopped altogether.
According to Swiss media, Switzerland has an experimental power plant which has been used to test new gas turbines. The Italian company Ansaldo Energia, owner of the experimental plant, wanted to make the structure available as an emergency reserve as early as this spring.
Switzerland is not the only European country that is considering or has already decided to switch from natural gas to coal or oil for power generation, due to scarce gas supplies in Russian pipelines and efforts to conserve gas. , as the EU aims to fill gas storage sites to 80-90% before the winter heating season.
Major energy-intensive industries in France are looking to convert gas boilers to run on oil, as French and European companies prepare for a further decrease or complete blocking of Russian gas supplies to Europe, he said. Reuters reported last month.
Switching to oil has boosted global demand for oil, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its monthly market report last week. "The increase in the use of oil for energy production and the shift from gas to oil are increasing demand," which risks having an impact on the price.
“With several regions hit by scorching heatwaves, the latest figures confirm an increase in oil consumption for energy production, especially in Europe and the Middle East, but also in Asia. The change in fuel is also taking place in European industry, including refining, "said the IEA, which in its August report raised its forecast of growth in world oil demand by 380,000 barrels per day (bpd) for the 2022.
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The article Switzerland thinks to leave natural gas for oil… comes from ScenariEconomici.it .
This is a machine translation of a post published on Scenari Economici at the URL https://scenarieconomici.it/la-svizzera-pensa-di-lasciare-il-gas-naturale-per-il-petrolio/ on Tue, 16 Aug 2022 06:00:19 +0000.