The situation with gas supplies to Europe in 2025 will be even worse than in 2024, said Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller during the International Gas Forum in St. Petersburg.
“Let me remind you how we opened the plenary session last year. You asked how things are in Europe. As far as I remember, I think I told you “bad“. If you asked me the same question “how things are in Europe“ today, I would tell you “even worse“, he said.
In early October, Gazprom“ reported that Europe's winterization problem is worsening. In the event of severe or prolonged cold spells, gas supplies to consumers in the region could be threatened due to insufficient capacity in gas storage facilities (GSF).
Gas stocks in European storage facilities at the end of September were 82.66% (6.98 percentage points lower than the 5-year average), compared to 94.4% a year earlier. At the end of the previous month, they held 91.1 billion cubic meters of gas. Net gas injection (the difference between injection volumes and withdrawals) into underground storage facilities in Europe since the start of the summer season has exceeded 54 billion cubic meters, out of the 61 billion cubic meters needed to fill them 90% by next winter.
Gas demand has grown rapidly in the last 10 years
Global gas demand has grown rapidly in the last 10 years against the backdrop of the “war“ against traditional hydrocarbons.
“The whole point is that in the last 10 years, despite the fact that there has been a real – dare I say – war on traditional hydrocarbons, gas, not renewables, has grown the fastest in the world's energy balance,“ he said.
Today, global gas consumption is 4.3 trillion cubic meters, added the CEO of „Gazprom“. Global support for renewable energy has slowed in recent years.
By 2050, 80% of the world's gas will be produced from new fields
By 2050, 80% of the world's gas will be produced from new fields, and these fields are located in Russia.
„In 2050, in 25 years, total global gas consumption will be 5.7 trillion cubic meters. And then listen carefully. And they say that of these 5.7 trillion cubic meters, 80% of the gas will be produced from new fields. The question is where are these new gas fields? The answer is in Russia“, Miller noted.
There is no alternative to artificial intelligence
Today there is no alternative to artificial intelligence, and it requires more and more energy. “Digitalization and artificial intelligence are inevitable. We have already taken this path and are moving along it. Strictly speaking, there is no alternative to artificial intelligence. And the purpose of our plenary session, of course, is not to discuss, for example, how artificial intelligence will develop, whether it is necessary or not, to what extent, etc. We're just noting that it requires more and more energy," he said.
"The more powerful the data centers, the more powerful the artificial intelligence, the more energy is needed", Miller added.
He also noted that countries that don't have enough energy to power their data centers will be left "in the background". "Experts say, excuse me, but in a short time the entire economic structure, the economic map of the world, will change significantly. And the main factor will be the simultaneous presence of powerful data centers in developed countries, which consume huge amounts of energy. And even if you have the technology to produce and operate these data centers, but don't have this huge amount of electricity, you will remain on the edge of history. That's all," Miller stressed.
Competitors do not come close to Russia in terms of gas reserves. “You asked what is Russia's role? It is important! And why is it important? If we talk about gas, we have no competitors anywhere near us“, he said. Miller noted that Gazprom currently produces the most gas and has the largest gas reserves.