Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
What does it mean for a society to have “energy security”? Although there are more than forty different definitions of the concept, they all share the fundamental idea that energy supply should always meet energy demand.
Even under normal circumstances South Korea’s energy security is not very high in comparison to other countries. An assessment of risks for 25 countries undertaken by the US Chamber of Commerce (Institute for 21st Century Energy) in 2015 had South Korea at the 3rd lowest level.
Two weeks ago we discussed the impact that the polar vortex was having on our natural gas supplies and noted that our stocks of natural gas were already 500 billion cubic feet below where they should be for this time of year.
Waltzing with the Russian bear has never been a feat Europe was able to handle. With the fall of the Yanukovych regime already accomplished, the EU is now on a collision course with Moscow, which has threatened to cut off gas supplies to Ukraine in an effort to strong-arm the new administration in Kiev. My piece argues that Brussels is unprepared for such an outcome and that a three-pronged strategy, accomplishable in the medium term, is needed in order to achieve the long vaunted goal of energy independence from Moscow’s whims.
