A new round of bombing has begun in the Middle East.More than four months after the beginning of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, one thing is clear: some countries are not going back to fossil fuel imports in the same way they relied on them in the past.Instead, countries across Asia and Africa are speeding up the adoption of solar, batteries and electric vehicles in a deliberate strategy to decrease their dependence on imported natural gas and oil.The war has underscored the precarity of oil and natural gas supplies and prices.
The effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz cut off more than a fifth of liquified natural gas or LNG supplies, and prices haven't been the same since.European and Asian prices for natural gas, which is mainly used for electricity and heating, are up more than 50% from when the war began.
Oil prices climbed Wednesday after President Trump said the ceasefire was over.Countries are forging a new energy path with renewable and electric vehicle technologies sourced from China.In March, Chinese exports of solar panels were up more than 80% compared to last year, according to energy think tank Ember.
China exported more than 2 million electric passenger vehicles between January and May, with nearly half of those exports occurring in April and May, according to a recent analysis note from SIA Energy, an oil and gas consultancy."If China's car industry were handing out a salesman of the year award for 2026, President Trump would be a leading contender," the SIA Energy note says.Last year, the global use of electric vehicles meant the world avoided consuming around 1.7 million barrels of oil per day, according to the International Energy Agency.That's more than the daily crude oil production of Nigeria.
Burning fossil fuels is the primary driver of global warming, so climate scientists see these energy transition technologies that cut into fossil fuel demand as key climate solutions.The ongoing conflict in the Middle East has been "an accelerat...