Former UK envoy to Russia says Vladimir Putin not to be blamed for gas price hike

On Saturday, October 9, a former British ambassador to Moscow brushed off claims that Russian President Vladimir Putin is to blame for the recent price hike in natural gas.

In a letter to The Times, Sir Tony Brenton, who served as Britain's envoy to Russia from 2004 to 2008, stated that Britain's issues were "self-inflicted" because it failed to secure long-term supply arrangements. He was particularly perplexed by political rhetoric against a planned Russian gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea to Germany that promised to alleviate the European energy crisis which is threatening exorbitant price spikes for consumers.

"We appear to be desiring more Russian gas while rejecting Nord Stream 2, a major new pipeline that will transport it," he wrote in the letter. 

On Friday, October 8, The Times quoted an anonymous UK government minister accusing Putin of "choking off" gas supply through other pipelines, including one through Ukraine, in an attempt to intimidate Germany into allowing Nord Stream 2 to start operation.

Meanwhile, a day earlier, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also warned of "serious security consequences" from the new pipeline, which, ironically, is expected to address UK's problem by alleviating a continent-wide supply shortage, The Times reported.

Although Nord Stream 2 will have no direct influence on the UK's energy security, a Downing Street official claimed it might have major consequences for Central and Eastern European countries. He went on to say that several European countries are entirely reliant on Russian gas, raising severe concerns about energy security. 

Factors driving up gas prices

According to Brenton, a post-Covid rise in demand, reduced wind power, the frigid 2020-21 winter, and technical disruptions are the factors driving up gas prices. Following Putin's announcement that Russian gas giant Gazprom would honour all orders, the gas futures bubble crashed on Wednesday, October 6.

Prices plummeted from around £4 per therm ($1,900 per 1,000 cubic metres) to £2.66 ($1,325 per 1,000 cubic metres) that day, and have since fallen to £2.13 per therm, reported The Times. It should be noted here that one therm is the amount of energy released when 100 cubic feet (2.83 cubic metres) of natural gas is burned.

As ambassador in 2006, Brenton claims he saw then-Chancellor of the Exchequer Gordon Brown bugging Putin about "surging gas prices." Putin isn't the only one who is blamed for the West's woes. UK's Road Haulage Association and the parliamentary opposition have blamed Britain's exit from the European Union for a shortfall of 100,000 licenced Heavy Goods Vehicle drivers, prompting recent panic-buying of fuel in the country.

However, Conservative Party's lawmakers have pointed out that despite a Europe-wide haulage labour crisis caused by low salaries and an ageing workforce, the sector has failed to invest in training new drivers for nearly a decade, The Times reported. 

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