Bloomberg has warned Europe of the coldest winter in years

Europe is expected to experience the coldest winter since the refusal of European countries from gas from Russia, which will raise energy prices, as well as such weather conditions will lead to an increase in energy risks. This was reported by Bloomberg on Wednesday, November 27, citing the European Center for Medium-Term Weather Forecasts.

"Temperatures from now through March are expected to remain mostly below levels seen over the past two years <...>. This is likely to push heating demand to its highest level since the start of the [conflict] in Ukraine, according to Maxar Technologies Inc." the paper's authors pointed out.

According to Maxar meteorologist Matthew Dross, low temperatures can be expected even in southern Europe, such as Italy or the Balkans. "Mild" conditions are expected in northern and central European parts.

"Frosty weather and low winds have already led to a faster than usual withdrawal of gas from storage this month. This raises concerns about the end of winter and the restocking season next summer," the material said.

Next suspension: gas in Europe could double in price in winter

Why the fuel market is feverish and whether Europe will be able to do without Russian supplies

Earlier, on November 23, Bloomberg reported that the rapidly depleting gas reserves and the refusal of supplies from Russia create the preconditions for a new energy crisis in Europe, which has not yet recovered from the strongest shocks of two years ago.

Before that, in October, Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said at a plenary session of the St. Petersburg International Gas Forum that Europe's gas market policy could lead to a new gas price shock and supply disruptions. He called the situation on the European gas market bad and agreed with the assessment that the demand for energy resources there is being destroyed purposefully.

Europe has repeatedly pointed out the difficulties in the gas sector. For example, on August 13, the Austrian Energy Ministry warned that "huge risks" await the country if Russia completely stops supplying its gas to the European Union (EU).

Despite the fact that gas from Russia is in demand on the European market, some Western countries decided to reduce their dependence on energy resources against the background of Russia's special operation to protect Donbass, the start of which was announced on February 24, 2022. However, after that, the energy crisis worsened in many EU countries.