Ukraine cuts off three key gas pipelines
The European gas market is tonight in turmoil after the Ukraine cut off three key gas pipelines to Europe as the dispute with Russia continued to escalate. The Ukraine is at loggerheads with Russia because of the cost associated with transporting gas to Europe via what is one of the most important gas transportation pipelines in the world. So what does this mean to the European market?
There are potentially serious consequences to Europe and we have already seen a sharp spike in the price of gas in energy markets as investors look to fill up ahead of more concern. Energy markets were already on red alert after the problems in the Middle East caused a sharp spike in the price of oil. All in all it looks as though energy costs in the UK and throughout Europe are set to rise over the next few weeks just after it appeared they had settled and were starting to move lower.
This latest move in energy markets could put serious pressure on the UK government to offer assistance to various at risk areas of society such as the elderly and low-income families. However, as we are all aware the UK government is very short of cash having already put aside over £500 million of borrowings to fund ongoing projects.
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