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Energy securityis the association betweennational security and the availability ofnatural resources forenergy consumption (as opposed tohousehold energy insecurity). Access to cheaperenergy has become essential to the functioning of modern economies. However, the uneven distribution ofenergy supplies among countries has led to significantvulnerabilities. International energy relations have contributed to theglobalization of the world leading to energy security and energy vulnerability at the same time.[1]
Renewable resources and significant opportunities forenergy efficiency andtransitions exist over wide geographical areas, in contrast to other energy sources, which are concentrated in a limited number of countries. Rapid deployment ofwind power andsolar power and energy efficiency, and technological diversification of energy sources, would result in significant energy security.[2][3]
The modern world relies on a vast energy supply to fuel anything from transportation to communication, to security and health delivery systems.Peak oil expertMichael Ruppert has claimed that for everykilocalorie of food produced in the industrial world, 10 kilocalories of oil and gas energy are invested in the forms of fertilizer, pesticide, packaging, transportation, and running farm equipment.[4]Energy plays an important role in the national security of any given country as a fuel to power the economic engine.[5]Some sectors rely on energy more heavily than others; for example, the Department of Defense relies onpetroleum for approximately 77% of its energy needs.[6] Not every sector is as critical as the others; some have greater importance to energy security.
Threats to a nation'senergy security include:[7]
Political and economic instability caused by war or other factors, such asstrike action, can also prevent the proper functioning of the energy industry in a supplier country. For example, thenationalization of oil in Venezuela has triggered strikes and protests in which Venezuela's oil production rates have yet to recover.[9]Exporters may have political or economic incentive to limit their foreign sales or cause disruptions in the supply chain. Since Venezuela's nationalization of oil, anti-AmericanHugo Chávez threatened to cut off supplies to the United States more than once.[10]The 1973 oil embargo against the United States is an historical example in which oil supplies were cut off to the United States due to U.S. support of Israel during theYom Kippur War. This has been done to apply pressure during economic negotiations—such as during the2007 Russia–Belarus energy dispute. Terrorist attacks targeting oil facilities, pipelines, tankers, refineries, and oil fields are so common they are referred to as "industry risks".[11] Infrastructure for producing the resource is extremely vulnerable to sabotage.[9] One of the worst risks to oil transportation is the exposure of the five ocean chokepoints, like the Iranian-controlledStrait of Hormuz.Anthony Cordesman, a scholar at theCenter for Strategic and International Studies inWashington, D.C., warns, "It may take only one asymmetric or conventional attack on aGhawar Saudi oil field or tankers in theStrait of Hormuz to throw the market into a spiral."[12]
New threats to energy security have emerged in the form of the increased world competition for energy resources due to the increased pace ofindustrialization in countries such asIndia andChina, as well as due to the increasingconsequences of climate change.[13]Although still a minority concern, the possibility of price rises resulting from thepeaking of world oil production is also starting to attract the attention of at least theFrench government.[14]Increased competition over energy resources may also lead to the formation of security compacts to enable an equitable distribution of oil and gas between major powers. However, this may happen at the expense of less developed economies. TheGroup of Five, precursors to theG8, first met in 1975 to coordinate economic and energy policies in the wake of the1973 Arab oil embargo, a rise ininflation and aglobal economic slowdown.[15]
The impact of the1973 oil crisis and the emergence of theOPECcartel was a particular milestone that prompted some countries to increase their energy security. Japan, almost totally dependent on imported oil, steadily introduced the use ofnatural gas,nuclear power, high-speedmass transit systems, and implementedenergy conservation measures.[16] TheUnited Kingdom began exploitingNorth Sea oil and gas reserves, and became a net exporter of energy into the 2000s.[17]
Increasing energy security is also one of the reasons behind a block on the development of natural gas imports in Sweden. Greater investment in native renewable energy technologies and energy conservation is envisaged instead.India is carrying out a major hunt for domestic oil to decrease its dependency onOPEC, whileIceland is well advanced in its plans to becomeenergy independent by 2050 through deploying100% renewable energy.[18]
Petroleum, otherwise known as "crude oil", has become the resource most used by countries all around the world, including Russia, China and the United States of America. With all the oil wells located around the world, energy security has become a main issue to ensure the safety of the petroleum that is being harvested. In the middle east, oil fields have become main targets for sabotage due to how heavily countries rely on oil. Many countries holdstrategic petroleum reserves as a buffer against theeconomic and political impacts of anenergy crisis. For example, all 31 members of theInternational Energy Agency hold a minimum of 90 days of their oil imports. These countries also committed to passing legislation to develop an emergency response plan in the case of oilsupply shocks and other short-term threats to energy security.[19][20][21][22]
The value of such reserves was demonstrated by the relative lack of disruption caused by the 2007Russia-Belarus energy dispute, whenRussia indirectly cut exports to several countries in theEuropean Union.[23]
Due to the theories inpeak oil and need to curb demand, theUnited States military andDepartment of Defense had made significant cuts, and have been making a number of attempts to come up with more efficient ways to use oil.[24]
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Compared topetroleum, reliance on importednatural gas creates significant short-term vulnerabilities. The gas conflicts between Ukraine and Russia of 2006 and 2009 serve as vivid examples of this.[25] Many European countries saw an immediate drop in supply when Russian gas supplies were halted during theRussia-Ukraine gas dispute in 2006.[26][27]
Natural gas has been a viable source of energy in the world. Consisting of mostlymethane, natural gas is produced using two methods: biogenic and thermogenic. Biogenic gas comes frommethanogenic organisms located in marshes and landfills, whereas thermogenic gas comes from theanaerobicdecay oforganic matter deep under the Earth's surface. Russia is one of the three current leading country in production of natural gas alongsideUS andSaudi Arabia.[28]
In theEuropean Union, security of gas supply is protected by Regulation 2017/1938 of 25 October 2017, which concerns "measures to safeguard the security of gas supply" and took the place of the previousregulation 994/2010 on the same subject.[29] EU policy operates on a number of regional groupings, a network of common gas security risk assessments, and a "solidarity mechanism", which would be activated in the event of a significant gas supply crisis.[30]
A bilateral solidarity agreement was signed between Germany and Denmark on 14 December 2020.[30]
The proposedUK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement "provides for a new set of arrangements for extensive technical cooperation ... particularly with regard to security of supply".[31]
Uranium fornuclear power ismined andenriched in countries including Canada (23% of the world's total in 2007), Australia (21%), Kazakhstan (16%) and more than 10 other countries. Uranium is mined and fuel is manufactured significantly in advance of need.[32]
Nuclear power is seen as a means to reducecarbon emissions.[33] Although generally considered a viable energy resource, nuclear power remains controversial due to the risks associated with it.[34] Another factor in the debate with nuclear power is the concern from people or companies regarding the location of a nuclear energy plant or the disposal radioactive waste nearby.
In 2022, nuclear power provided 10% of the world's total electricity share.[35] The most notable use of nuclear power within the United States is in U.S. Navy aircraft carriers and submarines, which have been exclusively nuclear-powered for several decades. These classes of ship provide the core of the Navy's power, and as such are the single most noteworthy application of nuclear power in the United States.
The deployment of renewable fuels:
For countries where growing dependence on imported gas is a significant energy security issue, renewable technologies can provide alternative sources of electric power as well as possibly displacing electricity demand through direct heat production (e.g. geothermal and burning fuels for heatand electricity). Renewable biofuels for transport represent a key source of diversification frompetroleum products.[37]As the finite resources that have been so crucial to survival in the world decline day by day, countries will begin to realize that the need for renewable fuel sources will be more vital than ever before. Moreover, renewable energy resources are more evenly distributed than fossil fuels and, as a result, can improve energy security and reduce geopolitical tensions among states.[38]
Geothermal (renewable and clean energy) can indirectly reduce the need for other sources of fuel. By using the heat from the outer core of the Earth to heat water, steam created from the heated water can not only power electricity-generating turbines, but also eliminate the need for consuming electricity to create hot water for showers, washing machines, dishwashers, sterilizers, and more; geothermal is one of the cleanest and most efficient options, needing fuel to dig deep holes, hot water pumps, and tubing to distribute the hot water. Geothermal not only helps energy security, but also food security via year-round heated greenhouses.[39]Hydroelectric, already incorporated into many dams around the world, produces a lot of energy, usually on demand, and is very easy to produce energy as the dams control the gravity-fed water allowed through gates which spin up turbines located inside of the dam.Biofuels have been researched relatively thoroughly, using several different sources such as sugary corn (very inefficient) and cellulose-rich switchgrass (more efficient) to produce ethanol, and fat-rich algae to produce asynthetic crude oil (or algae-derived ethanol, which is very, very inefficient), these options are substantially cleaner than the consumption of petroleum. "Most life cycle analysis results for perennial and ligno-cellulosic crops conclude that biofuels can supplement anthropogenic energy demands and mitigategreen house gas emissions to the atmosphere".[40]Using net-carbon-positive oil to fuel transportation is a major source of green house gases, any one ofthese developments could replace the energy we derive from oil. Traditional fossil fuel exporters (e.g. Russia) who built their country's wealth from memorialized plant remains (fossil fuels) and have not yet diversified their energy portfolio to include renewable energy have greater national energyinsecurity.[41]
In 2021, global renewable energy capacity made record-breaking growth,increasing by 295 gigawatts (295 billion Watts, equivalent to 295,000,000,000 Watts, or a third of a trillion Watts) despite supply chain issues and high raw material prices. The European Union was especially impactful—its annual additions increased nearly 30% to 36 gigawatts in 2021.[42]
TheInternational Energy Agency's 2022Renewable Energy Market Update predicts that the global capacity of renewables would increase an additional 320 gigawatts. For context, that would almost entirely cover the electricity demand of Germany. However, the report cautioned that current public policies are a threat to future renewable energy growth: "the amount of renewable power capacity added worldwide is expected to plateau in 2023, as continued progress for solar is offset by a 40% decline in hydropower expansion and little change in wind additions."[42]
Solar power is generally less vulnerable to enemy action than large fossil fuel and hydro plants and can be more quickly repaired.[43][44]
There are ten calories of hydrocarbon energy in every calorie of food consumed in the industrialized world.
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