Final Word from Monday, April 22, 2013
Václav Klaus said in an interview last week in Russia that the the radical breakthrough in oil and gas exploration is something that interests him. It could fundamentally change the balance of power in the world and bring about a collapse of the oil and gas markets, he said. It's hard to argue with him here. What is curious, though, is how he continued the interview. This situation, he said, could lead to Europe's dependence on Russian gas supplies in the coming years. What? One reason shale gas is such a breakthrough is precisely because it is reducing the continent's dependence on Russia. Gazprom is widely viewed as one of the biggest victims of this revolution. Instead of acting like the CR's version of Gerhard Schröder in defending Gazprom, Klaus should embrace the shale revolution: The less the CR is reliant on Gazprom, the easier it will be to justify giving the Temelín deal to the Russians.[Czech Republic natural Schroeder energy dependence independence]
Glossary of difficult words
shale gas - natural gas found trapped within shale formations;
breakthrough - a sudden, dramatic and important discovery or development;
Gerhard Schröder - former German chancellor who went to work for Gazprom;
to embrace - to accept and support (a belief, theory or change) willingly and enthusiastically;
reliant - dependent upon.