I read an article in the Economist regarding European energy entitled, "Do you want Putin's paw on the pipe?" The article discusses Europe's vulnerability given its growing energy needs and utility monopolies which keep prices high. According to the article, monopolies do not like conditions conducive to making energy into a commodity. Rather, they "like energy islands, which allow them to extract premium prices from consumers." This is because these monopolies do not invest in interconnector technology to route energy from plentiful locales to places where energy is scarce and expensive. Germany even has difficulty obtaining gas from Holland, which is right next-door. Germany's situation has become even more precarious because of the close ties it has forged with Russia, which has simply cut off gas off when it has felt like it. As the article notes, "Moscow is reliable only when it wants to be." The European Commission hopes that EU money can be used to improve infrastructure for "interconnecting pipelines and power lines" so that electricity can flow between many European nations such as Germany and Poland. The European Commission also advocates a diversity of supply, such as pipelines connecting to the Middle East and bypassing Russia. The article advocates a free market in Europe for energy rather than these utility monopolies.

While I agree with the gist of the article that monopolies seem like a bad idea in the energy world, I wish that the article addressed alternative energy. I wondered after reading the article how the European Commission views the use of alternative energy across Europe. Countries such as Spain are bigger than the U.S. in the production of wind energy. If other nations in Europe have followed suit, in terms of using wind and solar power, perhaps their need to rely on Russia or other nations exporting gas to them, could be reduced. Another question I have as to have these monopolies treat investments in alternative energy. Are they exploring them or trying to take control of these markets? If not, perhaps this leaves another window open for other companies to enter the energy market.