Mitigating Climate Change and the Development of Green Energy versus a Return to Fossil Fuels Due to the Energy Crisis in 2022

Abstract

The energy crisis that emerged as a result of the reduction in gas supplies from Russia is very topical and very important. This crisis affects not only Europe but also other world economies. As a result of Russia’s attack on Ukraine and the sanctions imposed on Russia, there was a drastic drop in Russian gas supplies, which triggered an increase in fuel prices and an energy crisis. In order to reduce the risk of insufficient gas supplies, European countries have decided to reuse coal and fossil fuels. This is the opposite direction to decarbonization and a zero-carbon economy. The undertaken research is unique, because the issue of slowing down the direction of decarbonization and returning to fossil fuels has not yet been extensively studied. Therefore, the analysis and research results are new in this area. The European project of green energy production from renewable energy sources that has been implemented so far, which aims to accelerate the implementation of a zero-emission economy, may be slowed down. Moreover, the return to fossil fuels will have a negative impact on climate change. The sharp increase in energy prices and the unexpected growth in the profits of energy companies meant that the European Commission introduced a limit on the revenues of enterprises in the energy sector. Surplus income is to be transferred to other entities to offset the drastic increase in energy prices. The conducted analysis showed how the European Union will try to ensure energy security and what the current actions related to climate protection and moving toward an environmentally friendly economy will be.

Keywords

• energy crisis
• Russia–Ukraine war
• coal
• fossil fuels
• renewable energy
• climate change