G7 Energy Ministers have asked OPEC members to boost oil supply to deal with the high oil prices on Friday during a two days Summit in Germany. Energy prices have continued to soar since the beginning of the Russia Ukraine war.
“We call on oil and gas producing countries to act responsibly and to respond to tightening international markets, noting that OPEC has a key role to play” added the G7 ministers during the meeting.
Other G7 members argued that it is time for Europe to cut its energy ties with Russia. According to International Energy Agency Europe buys almost 40 per cent of its total gas consumption from Russia.
However, the G7 group has already committed to stop the purchase of Russian oil without specifying a date.
Countries around the world are registering their highest energy bills in recent times. Eventually, these aggravated bills affect the marginalized section of the society which was already reeling under the consequences of Covid 19.
OPEC response:
Lately, Saudi Arabia has been resisting western pressure, insisting that there is no short supply. Oil prices have hit $120 a barrel which is the highest in recent years and it is happening when Saudi Arabia still possesses significant spare production capacity. As the leader of the group, Saudi Arabia has not been backfilling quotas for those members who have not been able to restore their expected production levels. Consequently, they may ignore the G7 call to increase the supply.
Saudis Arabia has been supporting Russia even after the heavy sanctions. Moreover, the trends are showing that the USA has been losing its friends and influence in the middle east.
Impact on Climate change goals:
G7 ministers also discussed the implication of this event on the climate change goals, pledging for the very first time to decarbonize their energy sector by 2035 and phase out coal use for generating power, eventually benefiting the greenhouse gas goals.
It has been a very unexpected and welcome move as Italy, Japan and Canada have been sluggish on their goals of the decarbonization of the power sector in comparison to the UK and Germany.
The US and Germany have a 2035 deadline to achieve zero-carbon electricity and the UK’s target is even earlier.
Germany was even pushing for 2030 goals but this move couldn’t find enough support among other G7 nations like Japan and the US.
As the 2030 goal was ambitious but some countries would take more time to shift because they lack renewable and nuclear sources.
The German Economy Minister said that “by the 2030s, the phase-out of coal should be well advanced in all G7 countries even though we didn’t list which particular stations, from Japan to the US and from Germany to the UK, will be closed down”.
The ambiguity and a clear plan of action were absent which was worrying for the goal. Yet Francesco La Camera, head of the International Renewable Energy Agency very positively conveyed that the phase-out of coal is happening and there is a sense of urgency.
Climate change and global politics:
The fight against climate change and maintaining energy independence are new goals for the states after the Russia Ukraine war. Europe’s dependency on Russia for natural gas has meant form them to fund the Russian invasion of the European land. The energy import is so much substantial that there are no ways to replace the source in a short period.
Recognizing this problem European and other advanced economies are finding It more feasible to transition to clean and renewable energy rather than changing their suppliers of gas and oil for strategic reasons. It has pushed climate change talks in a very positive direction.
Energy security has become an important part of modern states. They face the possibility of a breakdown of their whole economy because of over-dependence on one country or the source.
Climate change goals which were being ignored for years, are to witness an impetus because Russia Ukraine war has brought its implications closer in the future. The consequences of energy dependency are going to be particular and immediate. This would encourage states to act with urgency, bringing climate action deadlines closer.
