Russia’s decision to disable the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to the EU has seen the price of gas spike by 35 per cent.
Things are only looking worse and worse for the general European public, with the price of gas spiking by 35 per cent after Russia announced that it would not be turning its Nord Stream 1 pipeline back on after disabling it late last week to allegedly conduct maintenance.
Analysts have said the move further increases the probability that various nations across the bloc will be forced to implement draconian measures rationing their dwindling supplies of gas, while Iran has seemingly seen the Russian decision as an opportunity to start supplying Europe with its own reserves of the hydrocarbon.
According to a report by Die Welt, gas futures spiked by as much as 35 per cent on Monday morning in response to the Nord Stream 1 closure, with analysts from American investment bank J.P. Morgan suggesting that the sudden hole in European gas supplies will force lawmakers to take drastic measures.
“Given the gas supply tightness, one cannot exclude mandatory gas curtailment for non-essential industries or even ‘rolling gasouts’ this winter depending on the weather,” Bloomberg reports one analyst from the bank as saying.
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs predicted that prices on the continent could now end up breaching all-time highs previously set in August this year, something that is far from good news for governments and members of the general public hoping that they would catch a break in the near future as the cost of living crisis bites.
As the energy outlook for this winter in Europe grows bleaker, some parties have begun hunting for business opportunities that could net them both financial gain and political influence on the embattled continent.
One of these would-be economic adventurers appears to be Iran, with the authoritarian state reportedly declaring on Monday that it now wants to start supplying European states with gas, a venture that would likely prove extremely lucrative for the Middle-Eastern state.
“As is well known, we have the necessary gas reserves and the potential and could therefore also cover Europe’s needs in this regard,” Die Welt reports Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani as saying.
However, the local Iranian state-run news agency Fars reports the official as saying that such an arrangement could only come about if sanctions against Iran are lifted.
“In the shadow of the crisis in Ukraine and the problems that Europe is facing in terms of energy supply, if the negotiations are successful and the unilateral and illegal sanctions against Iran are lifted, the Islamic Republic of Iran can supply a larger part of Europe’s needs, especially in terms of resources,” the spokesman reportedly said.
“We hope that an agreement will be formed and in this context, Iran will be able to play a more effective role in providing the energy needed by the countries of the world and Europe,” he went on to say.
Kanaani has previously been reported as excusing the attempted murder of award-winning author Salman Rushdie, whom a previous Iranian supreme leader demanded the assassination of back in 1989.
“By insulting the sacred matters of Islam and crossing the red lines of more than 1.5 billion Muslims and all followers of the divine religions, Salman Rushdie has exposed himself to the anger and rage of the people,” the foreign spokesman said while claiming that no one deserved “blame” for the murder attempt other than “[Rushdie] and his supporters”.
Follow Peter Caddle on Twitter: @Peter_Caddle
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