Hot on the heels of crises driven by shortages of carbon dioxide and HGV drivers, it is perhaps the ultimate irony that – in the month before COP 26 in Glasgow – the UK and to a lesser extent much of the rest of the world has been rocked by a series of crises in the fossil fuel driven energy market.  Whilst much of Asia is being impacted by a shortage of coal, Europe is feeling the full effects of a shortage of natural gas.  This is perhaps particularly acute in the UK for a number of reasons including reduced storage capacity, issues with one of the key grid interconnectors to France, and a spike in global demand as the world economy seeks to pick up from where it left off pre-pandemic.  The result?  Eye watering wholesale gas prices that have risen more than double since January 2021, with a 70% increase since August. Prices rocketed a further 37% in one day on 6 October.
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