Europe's energy security options and challenges to natural gas supply diversification

"Europe as a major energy consumer faces a number of challenges when addressing future energy needs. As a result, energy supply security has become a key concern for European nations and the European Union (EU). A key element of the EU's energy supply strategy has been to shift to a greater use of natural gas. If trends continue as projected, Europe's dependence on Russia as a supplier is likely to grow.This report focuses on potential approaches that Europe might employ to diversify its sources of natural gas supply, and Russia's role, as well as identifying some of the issues hindering efforts to develop alternative suppliers of natural gas. The report assesses the potential suppliers of natural gas to Europe and the short- to medium-term hurdles needed to be overcome for those suppliers to be credible, long-term providers of natural gas to Europe. The report looks at North Africa, probably the most realistic supply alternative in the near-term, but notes that the region will have to resolve its current political and economic instability as well as the internal structural changes to the natural gas industry. Central Asia, which may have the greatest amounts of natural gas, would need to construct lengthy pipelines through multiple countries to move its natural gas to Europe."

"Europe's energy security options and challenges to natural gas supply diversification"