The foundations of the new order of things are laid energy crisis using the reflexes of each country in relations with it, as well as with the long-term relationships that bind it. OUR Italy doing much better than her Germany thanks to its long-standing ties with African countries, many of which offered it alternative energy sources. At the same time, Germany seems to be in a difficult position after decades of close cooperation with Russia, which now make it extremely vulnerable.

In the weeks following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Claudio Descalzi, chief executive of the Italian energy company Eni, visited a number of African gas-exporting countries. As part of his tour, he met with officials from Algeria, Angola, Egypt and the Congo, often accompanied by senior Italian government officials. In this way, state-controlled Eni, and through it Italy, have succeeded in further developing existing cooperative relationships with these countries and securing additional natural gas imports that will largely replace Russian gas. As noted by Martin Murphy, an expert in the field oil as well as natural gas For research firm Wood Mackenzie, Russia has been Italy’s most important gas supplier for many years. However, the country had a wider range of suppliers and long-term relationships with Africa.

Partly because of his long history of economic crises, he has been able to manoeuvre, and he will not need to introduce fuel rationing. And her government is triumphant. As Alberto Cio, former Italian minister of industry and former member of the board of directors, points out. Eni, “the fact that Descalzi, CEO of Italy’s Eni, is respected in many African countries is Italy’s clear competitive advantage.” Rome showed a flexibility that most European countries could not imitate. Italy last year consumed 29 billion cubic meters of Russian gas, which accounted for 40% of its imports of this type. Now it is gradually replacing about 10.5 billion sq.m. from other countries. Most of its imports will come from Algeria, which will increase gas exports to Italy by almost 20% to 25.2 billion cubic meters. and henceforth will be the main energy supplier for Rome, as it will account for 35% of its imports. And Russia’s share in Italy’s energy imports has been reduced to a minimum. After all, next spring it will start importing LNG from Egypt, Qatar, Congo, Nigeria and Angola.

Berlin is preparing to introduce fuel rationing, has been forced to nationalize energy companies and is heading into a recession at full speed.

Germany is perhaps in the worst fate of all European countries. Despite a powerful economy and long intertwined with the concept of smart planning, Germany was completely unprepared for an energy crisis. Deprived of decades of cheap natural gas, Moscow prepares to introduce fuel rationing, is forced to nationalize one of its hardest-hit energy companies, and is heading into a recession with no way out. Last year it imported 58 billion m2. Russian gas, which were equivalent to 58% of its consumption, and the fuel supply is currently being cut off. He was unable to replace these imports with other suppliers and was forced to buy gas on the free market at eight times the price.

Germany’s attempts to wean itself off Russian gas have so far focused on leasing five floating terminals to import liquefied natural gas (LNG). Europe’s largest economy does not have such terminals, having relied for decades on pipelines to transport gas from Russia. Italy, by contrast, has three operating terminals and has recently acquired two more.

The two countries are indeed in quite the opposite situation, as the energy crisis affects the Old Continent unevenly and differently. The most affected countries are Germany, Hungary and Austria, while the least dependent on Russian hydrocarbons and therefore the most resilient are France, Sweden and the UK. The energy crisis has made governments aware of the dangers of over-reliance on a single dominant supplier. It is even reminiscent of the oil crisis of the 1970s, which forced the Western world to reconsider its dependence on Middle Eastern oil, increasing the efforts of many countries to develop their own subsoil and pushing them to look for alternative suppliers in Venezuela and Mexico.