I thought it's a joke but it's not : Europe’s Risky Plan to Avert a Winter Energy Crisis: Stash Gas in Ukraine.

Tucked between farm fields and forests, the Bilche-Volytsko-Uherske storage facility can stockpile more than four times as much natural gas as the largest site in Germany and connects easily to the bloc’s grids, thanks to Ukraine’s decades-long role as a transit route for Russian energy.

European officials are now contemplating whether to support links to Bilche-Volytsko-Uherske and other facilities scattered across Ukraine — home to the continent’s biggest network of underground caverns that can hold gas for when demand and prices spike in the winter. With EU sites already edging close to capacity — currently more than 70% full — storing the fuel in Ukraine could prevent a glut in the coming months.

To make storing gas in Ukraine viable, prices will need to fall low enough to justify the costs. The #EU will also likely need to step in to provide a backstop against potential losses related to the conflict.

The evolving initiative is part of efforts to avoid the panic that led to record prices and state intervention last year. To shield companies and consumers, EU governments rolled out €646 billion ($694 billion) in aid, according to think tank Bruegel, and they can ill afford a repeat.
(How many Geran2 drones does it take to wipe this whole thing off?)
#Ukraine #Europe #Energy #WTF #Russia #GasStorage #Idiocracy
🔗 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-12/europe-has-a-plan-to-store-gas-in-ukraine-despite-war-to-avert-winter-crisis