Page 171 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - MARTIOS 2023

The latest developments on the energy front RECORD PROFITS FOR OIL (excluding extraordinary expenses) was
MAJORS $36.2 billion.
According to a Reuters report, oil giant
Similarly, Chevron saw its profits reach
ENERGY reached exceptionally high levels, sur- in 2022 and the increase in production.
ExxonMobil’s profitability in 2022 $36.5 billion due to the rise in oil prices
passing its competitors and taking the
In any case, the record annual profits in
leading position in the West’s energy
2022, due to increased demand, have
sparked criticism against the industry -
market. More specifically, ExxonMo-
many are now calling for an increase in
bil posted a $56 billion net profit for
per hour, which is not only a com-
pany record but a historic high for the WIND AND SOLAR POWER
Edited by: & 2022, taking home about $6.3 million the taxation of energy companies.
Giannis Theodoropoulos Western oil industry. This increase in GENERATED MORE ELECTRICITY
profitability prompted ExxonMobil to THAN GAS DID IN THE EU
LAST YEAR
increase its investments by $22.7 bil-
NATURAL lion (or 37%) annually. European countries were forced to
accelerate their renewable energy
Shell also posted record profitability
last year. The British giant broke its capacity after Russia’s invasion of
Ukraine sparked a global energy crisis.
2008 profit record of $28.4 billion,
The EU’s REPowerEU plan aims to
reaching $39.9 billion.
At the same time, TotalEnergies, the increase the overall share of renewables
RESOURCES French oil and gas group, recently in final energy consumption to 45% by
announced a net profit of $20.5 bil-
the end of the decade.
lion for 2022, up 28% from 2021, the
However, a new report by the Ember
energy think tank shows that the EU’s
highest profit the company has ever
posted. Excluding the accounting green energy transition is already
losses associated with its exit from making a significant difference. Solar
Russia, amounting to nearly $15 bil- and wind power generated more than
lion, TotalEnergies’ adjusted net profit a fifth (22%) of its electricity in 2022,
pulling ahead of fossil gas (20%) for the
first time, according to the European
Electricity Review 2023.
Europe also managed to avoid resorting
to emissions-intensive coal power for
electricity generation as a consequence
of the energy crisis. Coal generated just
16% of the EU’s electricity last year, an
increase of just 1.5 percentage points.
The record surge in solar and wind
power generation helped compensate
for the nuclear and hydropower deficit.
Solar power rose the fastest, growing by
a record 24% last year, almost doubling
its previous record, with wind growing
by 8.6%.
Forty-one gigawatts of solar power
capacity was added in 2022, almost
50% more than the year before. Ember
says that 20 EU countries achieved new
solar records in 2022, with Germany,
Spain, Poland, the Netherlands and
France adding the most solar capacity.
The Netherlands and Greece generated
more power from solar than coal for the
first time. Greece is also predicted to
reach its 2030 solar capacity target by
the end of this year.

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