Foreign Policy: The energy crisis is global

As Russia plays hardball with Europe’s gas supply, the continent is staring down a worrisome energy future—and it’s not alone. For months, sky-high natural gas and oil prices have been wreaking havoc around the world, and experts warn that there is no end in sight as long as the war in Ukraine barrels on, according to the US-based website Foreign Policy. 

From Ecuador to South Africa, fuel shortages and blackouts have plunged import-dependent countries into economic turmoil, leaving desperate governments scrambling for workaround solutions. In Sri Lanka, which was already buckling under mounting crises, acute shortages and dayslong lines have forced authorities to issue work-from-home orders. Pakistan has resorted to shortening its work week to relieve pressure from lengthy power cuts, while Panama has been rocked by demonstrations over surging prices.

“We are experiencing the first global energy crisis,” said Jason Bordoff, an energy expert at Columbia University, who noted that the crunch has hit almost all of the world’s regions and energy sources. “The ripple effects are being seen globally, and I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of it yet.”

Markets were already tight before Russia invaded Ukraine, the result of a combination of the pandemic, supply chain slowdowns, and climate shocks. That was compounded by curtailed Russian gas exports, which forced Europe to turn elsewhere for its supplies and further drove up prices in the global marketplace. Now, as climate change-fueled extreme heat adds more fuel to the fire, these challenges have only deepened.

“It’s just an interconnected global system,” Bordoff said. “When you put pressure in one place, it is felt somewhere else.”