Europe's power crisis has 'very little to do with Putin,' portfolio manager says

The powerfulness situation gripping Europe has small to bash with Vladimir Putin and it could beryllium argued that the Russian leader's actions person helped amended the situation, according to Per Lekander, managing spouse astatine Clean Energy Transition LLP.

During a wide ranging interrogation with CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" past week, Lekander — antecedently a money manager astatine Lansdowne Partners — spoke astir however the concern facing vigor markets had evolved successful caller months.

"This summer, aft Russia had chopped gas … I thought the wintertime would beryllium enormously dire," helium said.

"I truly thought it ... could beryllium a ample portion of German manufacture shutting down ... wide cuts … and it has panned retired — truthful acold — much, overmuch better."

Referencing additions successful star powerfulness capableness and liquefied earthy state terminals, Lekander went connected to hammer location the value of reducing demand.

"I would accidental powerfulness request is down 10%, state request is down astir 20, a spot higher connected the industry, a spot little connected ... personal, a spot much successful the north, a spot little successful the south, but … that's astir it," helium said.

"So I would say, connected the state side, the worst is implicit from a information of proviso situation."

It was past enactment to him that portion a batch of experts felt the worst was implicit for now, worse was to travel adjacent year.

"That's wrong," Lekander replied. "And ... assuming that these state savings stay — due to the fact that we tin spot it now, we person really, truly acold weather, we are inactive drafting little than emblematic seasonality."

"The cardinal happening is that we clasp connected to the request saving," helium said. "If we bash that, and arsenic agelong arsenic we person entree to LNG, which I would accidental looks precise credible ... we volition spot precocious prices for different one, 2 years, but I wouldn't accidental connected the state broadside it's a information of proviso issue."

The concern with powerfulness was "a spot different," however, helium said. "The crushed wherefore we person a powerfulness situation successful Europe has precise small to bash with Putin," helium said. "I would astir accidental that Putin really made the concern better," helium added.

Expanding connected his point, Lekander explained that, successful his view, the existent concern was down to a fig of factors.

"This is the effect of agelong word nether investments successful conventional, agelong word reddish portion successful renewables and past these governmental closures of nuclear, coal, lignite, etcetera," helium said.

"You could spot it already successful 2018 and it's started to materialize," helium added. "What I'm saying, that [it] is amended now, is due to the fact that … immoderate of those closures got reversed ... [in] Germany, for instance. Second, you person this 10% simplification successful demand."

Lekander's comments travel astatine a clip of immense disruption wrong planetary vigor markets pursuing Russia's penetration of Ukraine successful February.

The Kremlin was the biggest supplier of some earthy state and petroleum oils to the EU successful 2021, according to Eurostat, but state exports from Russia to the European Union person slid this year.

Major European economies person besides been trying to trim their ain depletion and enactment up supplies from alternate sources for the colder months up — and beyond.

Simultaneously, large concern players specified arsenic Germany person decided to recommission a fig of coal-fired powerfulness plants to compensate for a deficiency of Russian gas.

When it comes to usage, astatine the extremity of September the European Council announced vigor ministers from the EU had travel to an statement connected "emergency measures to trim vigor prices."

"The Council agreed to a voluntary wide simplification people of 10% of gross energy depletion and a mandatory simplification people of 5% of the energy depletion successful highest hours," it added.

Security of proviso is simply a blistery taxable close now, and connected Wednesday it was announced that the U.K. and U.S. were forming a caller vigor partnership focused connected boosting vigor information and reducing prices.

The U.K.-U.S. Energy Security and Affordability Partnership, arsenic it's known, volition beryllium directed by a U.K.-U.S. Joint Action Group headed up by officials from some the White House and U.K. government.

Among different things, the radical volition undertake efforts to marque definite the marketplace ramps up supplies of liquefied earthy state from the U.S. to the U.K.