Over the last two weeks, the world has witnessed harrowing images of Russian atrocities in targeting civilians with indiscriminate bombardment of residential areas, medical facilities and infrastructure. Ukrainian resistance has stiffened as a tragic humanitarian crisis has unfolded. Almost three million refugees have fled the country as the Russian military relies on long-range firepower, leaving untold billions of dollars of damage to the country’s beautiful cities and death in the streets and rubble in its wake. A protracted conflict is underway.
The most powerful sanction the world has available to check Vladimir Putin’s aggression is restricting Russian oil and gas exports, which are believed to be the primary means of financing his war-making capabilities. Oil price upside is primarily due to the speculative market driven by the war. However, if Russian oil and gas is not allowed to trade, the price hike could spike much higher.
In this Flash Report, we provide an overview of the current global energy picture and review different potential scenarios for actions by nations around the world to mitigate supply disruptions and rising costs should Russian oil and gas go off the market.
