europ winters and gas shortage facts

 Europe · Energy and winters

  As winter approaches and the energy crisis deepens, Europeans are stockpiling firewood, cleaning their chimneys, and burning horse manure.

  Demand for wood is increasing in Europe as a result of Russia cutting off gas supplies due to the conflict in Ukraine.

  Peter Engelke, who owns a warehouse near Berlin's Tempelhof airport, is installing a new security gate because he is worried about desperate people stealing his products.  In the coming winter, the trees are at serious risk. It is possible that due to the unavailability of gas, the surrounding trees will be the first target of people suffering from the cold.  The latest indication of the position is the alleged destruction of the Nord Stream gas pipeline.

Due to concerns that such a policy may endanger local supply, European Union leaders who gathered in Prague on Friday were unable to agree on a gas price ceiling. Wood, which is already used by more than 40 million people for warmth, has increased in demand as a result of the fact that natural gas and electricity make up up to 70% of the heating in Europe and that Russian deliveries have been severely constrained.

There are signs that people are purchasing wood pellets in a panic in France, where the price has nearly doubled to 600 euros per tonne. Romania set a price ceiling on firewood for six months, and Hungary even went as far as to outlaw the export of pellets. Wood stove deliveries could now take months.

How bad is Europe's energy situation?

Along with concerns about shortages, the energy crisis is driving up living expenses, and in September, euro-zone inflation hit double digits for the first time ever. More and more disadvantaged local households are being forced to choose between paying for heating and other necessities.

"It's back to the old days when people wouldn't have the whole house heated," said Nic Snell, managing director of the British wholesale firewood company Certainly Wood. Before going to bed, they would sit around the fire and use the heat from the stove or open fire. 

Gabriel Kakelugnar AB, a producer of high-end tiled stoves that typically cost 86,000 Swedish kronor ($7,700), has seen a surge in demand as a result of the trend. Due to their complex design, which uses numerous channels to store and transport heat, stoves can keep a room warm for 24 hours.

"People began to invest more in their homes throughout the pandemic. The owner and managing director of the business, which is located less than an hour away from Sweden's largest nuclear plant, Jesper Svensson, noted that things have now, of course, intensified.

Customers now have to wait until March for delivery, up from as little as four weeks a year ago due to a more than fourfold increase in orders.

Making every effort to stay warm in the upcoming months is the main concern for many Europeans. As winter draws closer, the concern has grown more urgent because the desperate need for heat may have negative effects on human health and the environment.

Roger Sedin, chief of the air quality unit at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, issued a warning about inadequate ventilation and attempting to burn damp firewood, saying, "We are concerned that people will just burn all they can get their hands on." When inexperienced people burn wood, we can observe extremely high pollution levels.

Making every effort to stay warm in the upcoming months is the main concern for many Europeans. As winter draws closer, the concern has grown more urgent because the desperate need for heat may have negative effects on human health and the environment.

Roger Sedin, chief of the air quality unit at the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency, issued a warning about inadequate ventilation and attempting to burn damp firewood, saying, "We are concerned that people will just burn all they can get their hands on." When people burn wood improperly, pollutant levels can reach extremely high levels, according to the author.

He noted that the risk of heart attacks, strokes, and asthma attacks from breathing in particulate matter was high.

You must consider your neighbours, Sedin advised.

Germany's association of chimney sweeps is dealing with a deluge of requests to connect both new and ancient burners, and consumers are enquiring about burning horse manure and other strange fuels, demonstrating the lack of knowledge there as well.

in need of wood

Hording indications are also present. According to Frederic Coirier, CEO of Poujoulat SA in France, which manufactures wood fuels and chimney flues, some customers have purchased two tonnes of wood pellets when less than one tonne is typically sufficient to heat a home for a year. 

According to Trond Fjortoft, founder and CEO of Norwegian wood vendor Kortreist Ved, "people are in severe need of wood, and they are buying more than normal." "Typically, when the weather turns chilly, someone will suggest that we order some wood. This year, it began in June, at the time that Russia reduced its gas exports.

The crisis in Berlin brings up frightening memories of the gloom that followed World War II. Residents cut down almost all of the trees in the central Tiergarten park for warmth because fuel was in short supply.

Though they no longer go to such extremes, Berliners are generally concerned about staying warm. In addition to installing a second security gate to safeguard the logs, coal briquettes, and heating oil, Engelke also had to stop accepting new clients.