Claude Mandil, Executive Director, International Energy Agency, has warned gas exporting countries that forming an OPEC like cartel would harm their business. I think that his logic is interesting:
Mandil said that gas, unlike oil, competes with other energy sources such as coal, nuclear and renewables in power generation and heating, giving consumers alternatives.
“If there is too much noise about a gas cartel, I suspect consuming countries would make a lot of efforts to become less reliant on gas,” he said.
I certainly hope that consuming countries make a lot of effort to become less dependent on any specific fuel supplier. Nuclear power plants offer a healthier balance of power between the fuel suppliers and the fuel consumers since it is hard to precipitate a crisis for a fuel supply that lasts for 18 months to many decades.
