REVIEW PAPER
The fossil fuel market in Germany and Poland in the aftermath of the Russian–Ukrainian war
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Jagiellonian University in Kraków
Submission date: 2025-03-11
Final revision date: 2025-07-30
Acceptance date: 2025-09-07
Publication date: 2026-03-31
Gospodarka Surowcami Mineralnymi – Mineral Resources Management 2026;42(1):119-140
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ABSTRACT
Fossil fuels such as coal, crude oil, and natural gas are still key to ensuring energy security. Due to limited resources, most European countries must import strategic raw materials, making their security dependent on the geopolitical situation. The war in Ukraine has serious consequences for the fossil fuel market in Central and Eastern Europe. The Russian Federation, being a world leader in hydrocarbon production, was a key supplier to most countries located in this region. As the armed conflict in Ukraine developed, it became obvious that ensuring energy security would be a priority for the European countries. Diversifying the sources of strategic fossil fuels was undoubtedly one of the most challenging ventures during this time. As a result of EU sanctions against Russian raw materials, the Central and Eastern European countries were forced to review and amend their energy policies, as well as look for new suppliers of hydrocarbons. Unfortunately, for many countries, achieving these targets turned out to be a great challenge due to their significant dependence on Russia and the lack of alternative transmission infrastructure. The Russia-Ukraine conflict has led to significant changes in the fossil fuel market, primarily in Germany and Poland. This article presents a comparative analysis of the German and Polish fossil fuel markets in the aftermath of the Russian-Ukrainian war. The analysis covers the period of 2021-2024. The aim was to determine how the sanctions imposed on Russia affected the fossil fuel markets of Germany and Poland. The analysis covers the coal, oil, and natural gas sectors.
FUNDING
The publication has been supported by a grant from the Faculty of International and Political Studies under the Strategic Programme Excellence Initiative at Jagiellonian University.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The Author has no conflicts of interest to declare.
METADATA IN OTHER LANGUAGES:
Polish
Rynek paliw kopalnych w Niemczech i Polsce w następstwie konfliktu rosyjsko-ukraińskiego
paliwa kopalne, Niemcy, Polska, wojna w Ukrainie
Paliwa kopalne tj. węgiel, ropa naftowa oraz gaz ziemny, wciąż są kluczowe dla zapewnienia bezpieczeństwa energetycznego. Większość państw europejskich ze względu na ograniczone własne zasoby jest zmuszona importować strategiczne surowce, przez co ich bezpieczeństwo jest uzależnione od sytuacji geopolitycznej. Wojna w Ukrainie niesie ze sobą poważne konsekwencje dla rynku paliw kopalnych w Europie Środkowo-Wschodniej. Federacja Rosyjska, będąc światowym liderem w produkcji węglowodorów, była kluczowym dostawcą dla większości państw zlokalizowanych w tym regionie. Wraz z rozwojem konfliktu zbrojnego w Ukrainie stało się oczywiste, że priorytetowe znaczenie dla państw europejskich będzie miało zapewnienie bezpieczeństwa energetycznego. Z pewnością jednym z najtrudniejszych przedsięwzięć w tym okresie stała się dywersyfikacja źródeł strategicznych paliw kopalnych. W następstwie unijnych sankcji wobec rosyjskich surowców państwa Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej zostały zmuszone do weryfikacji i nowelizacji polityki energetycznej oraz poszukiwania nowych dostawców węglowodorów. Niestety, dla wielu państw osiągnięcie tych celów okazało się wielkim wyzwaniem ze względu na znaczne uzależnienie od Rosji oraz brak alternatywnej infrastruktury przesyłowej. Konflikt rosyjsko-ukraiński stał się przyczyną istotnych zmian na rynku paliw kopalnych przede wszystkim w Niemczech i Polsce. W artykule dokonano analizy porównawczej rynku paliw kopalnych Niemiec i Polski w następstwie wojny rosyjsko-ukraińskiej. Analizą zostały objęte lata 2021–2024. Poszukiwano odpowiedzi na pytania, w jaki sposób sankcje nałożone na Rosję wpłynęły na rynek paliw kopalnych Niemiec i Polski. Uwzględniono sektor węgla kamiennego, ropy naftowej i gazu ziemnego.
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