The reason for “energy instability due to the war in Ukraine”
Japan pushes ahead with large proportion of fossil fuels
Britain and France disagree, “You can’t slow down your carbon dioxide”
NYT “The United States is caught between allies”
In a joint statement at the Hiroshima Summit in Japan, which was closed on the 21st, the G7, which self-proclaimed “leaders in responding to climate change,” emphasized the expansion of investment in fossil fuels such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) and coal, and “decarbonization” You can’t miss it There is a point that it is getting away from the goal. According to the New York Times (NYT) and Reuters, Japan and Germany, which have relatively high proportions of fossil fuels in total energy production, led this trend. On the other hand, France and the United Kingdom, which are highly dependent on nuclear power generation, are said to have opposed it, saying, “The energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine cannot be a justification for slowing down decarbonization.”
‘We emphasize that increasing LNG supply can play an important role. Expanding investments in LNG is an appropriate way to respond to the current (energy) crisis and address potential gas supply shortages.’
The joint statement adopted by the G7 on the 20th contains these contents. The reasons for this were cited as the need to address the global energy supply instability and rising prices following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The G7 also said that investment in gas could be appropriate as a temporary response in special circumstances that require rapid reduction of dependence on Russian energy.
The statement also includes this. ‘Coal power generation using hydrogen and ammonia should continue to be developed and used if it meets the goal (of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement) of reducing carbon emissions and limiting the temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. Recognize that carbon capture can be an important mode of carbon mitigation.’
It is pointed out that the joint statement of the G7 is rather regressive than a year ago. Although the importance of LNG was mentioned at the G7 energy and environment ministerial meeting held in May last year, right after the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, to reduce Russian natural gas imports, at the time, it was decided to reduce public fund support for the development of fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal. The agreement that the funds should be invested in renewable energy support was put in the statement. Oil Change International (OCI), an environmental group, criticized, saying, “This year’s G7 agreement to open the door to natural gas and LNG infrastructure contradicts last year’s promise.”
It is known that the countries that led this joint statement this year were Germany, which recently declared a ‘complete nuclear phase-out’, and Japan, the chair country of this summit. In particular, Reuters reported that Germany was the country that finalized the statement. The NYT also reported that “Germany expressed concern that it must secure enough energy to run its economy, and pressured other countries to lower the level of decarbonization-related content in the G7 last year.”
Japan also insisted on including investment in natural gas as part of the transition to ‘clean energy’ at the G7 Climate, Energy and Environment Ministerial Meeting held in Sapporo last month. As of 2021, Japan’s natural gas and coal power generation accounts for a total of 68%. Encouraging coal power generation and carbon capture technology using ammonia in this year’s G7 statement is also a policy that the Japanese government is currently pursuing. However, E3G, a British consulting firm, criticized Japan’s policy, saying, “The commerciality has not been verified and the policy that relies on uncertain technology is very dangerous.”
At this meeting, Britain and France are said to have confronted each other, saying, “The temporary energy crisis caused by the Russian invasion has already passed, and Europe has passed the electricity shortage last winter.” Both countries have a relatively high share of low-carbon energy. The share of nuclear power in France reached 63% as of last year.
The NYT analyzed that the United States was confused between the two sides, saying, “The Joe Biden administration was caught between the’climate change response’, a key agenda that has been put forward so far, and the demands of allies to increase the utilization of fossil fuels.” Max Lawson, director of ‘Inequality Policy’ at Oxfam, an international environmental group, criticized the G7 for using the war between Russia and Ukraine as an excuse to invest in natural gas.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.