The unprecedented heat waves that hit Asia are cracking international energy sanctions aimed at drying up Russia’s war finances. Western countries have been taking intensive measures, including a ban on imports of crude oil from Russia, for the second year, but concerns have grown that the effect of the sanctions will be halved as Asian countries facing an emergency in power supply and demand increase their imports of Russian fossil fuels.
On the 21st (local time), Bloomberg News, citing energy information company Kepler, said that Asian countries are increasing their dependence on Russian energy, saying, “Russian President Vladimir Putin has become a beneficiary of the Asian heatwave.”
Last month, Russian coal exports to Asian countries were 7.46 million tons, up 32% from last April (5.63 million tons). Two-thirds of all coal exports went to China and India. Southeast Asian and South Asian countries such as Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, which have been suffering from a monstrous heat wave of over 40 degrees Celsius since last month메이저사이트, are also buying Russian coal. Last month, Russian heavy oil exports to Asia reached an all-time high of 804,300 barrels per day. Exports of liquefied natural gas ( LNG ) last month also hit the highest level this year.
This is because of the early heat wave. In Southeast Asia and South Asia, the summer heat usually hits in earnest in May, and in East Asia after July. This year, due to the abnormal weather, the start of the heatwave has accelerated, and power consumption has soared in each country.
In Thailand, where the temperature exceeded 45 degrees Celsius this month, electricity consumption on the 6th of this month was 39,000 megawatts (㎿), an increase of 7,000 ㎿ compared to the same day last year. are doing China’s National Energy Agency forecast that peak power (electricity demand at the moment of peak power use during the day) this year will reach 1.36 billion kilowatts (kW), up 5.4 percent from last year. China’s maximum power peak continued to rise to 1.19 billion kW in 2021 and 1.29 billion kW in 2022, which means it will break the record again this year. It is expected that there will be disruptions in power supply and demand in southern China.
Western countries are imposing various sanctions on Russia, but Asian countries facing power shortages have no choice but to hold Russia’s hand and start stockpiling fuel. John Driscoll, chief strategist at JTD Energy Services, an energy information provider in Singapore, said, “It is not easy for countries that cannot afford to solve their own problems to pay attention to international issues (Russian sanctions )
. It is to take the risk of a collision with Russia and buy energy from Russia,” he explained. The fall in the price of Russian energy in the aftermath of the sanctions is another reason why Asian countries are turning their eyes to Russia. Bloomberg News said, “As the heat is expected to continue until the second half of this year due to the influence of ‘Super El Niño,’ we will have no choice but to continue buying Russian energy.”