Russia invaded Ukraine of 24 February. NATO countries including US imposed trade sanction on Russia and they are discouraged to buy gas and fossil fuel from Russia. Russia is the third largest gas and fossil fuel producer in the world. As a result, gas and fossil fuel prices shot up causing inflation in Europe and every country in the world. US inflation is highest in 40 years and UK inflation is highest in 30 years. The prices of almost everything are surging up to hurt consumers.

In Malaysia fossil fuel price remains unchanged because it is subsidized by our government. Petronas is the 16th largest oil producer in the world.

Why can’t they make more fossil fuel?

When I was a civil engineering student, I studied geology, petrology and mineralogy.

All energy comes from the SUN and energy cannot be destroyed. It can only be changed from one form to another form. The sun shines on the tree leaves and together with carbon di oxide, the leaves make starch. People and animals eat the leaves to produce energy to be able to move about. The sun has been producing trees and wood for millions of years, even before the arrival of human. All these trees were buried in the ground. After millions of years, the trees changed to coal. Coal, oil, and natural gas are fossil fuels.

The following pictures are worth a thousand words.

Coal is solid Fossil Fuel

Coal is one of the most abundant and affordable fossil fuels worldwide. However, its wide availability, versatility, and affordability also come with some trade-offs regarding its negative environmental impacts.

Coal is primarily used for power generation by combustion. The heat given off by burning coal produces high-pressure steam that drives a turbine and produce electricity.

What Is Coal? Coal is a black sedimentary rock made up mainly of carbon and hydrocarbons. It’s burned for fuel and used as a nonrenewable energy source. It releases energy through its combustion. Coal takes about a million years to form. The energy from coal is stored by plants living hundreds of millions of years ago, which are covered by layers of rock and dirt. The heat and pressure turn these buried plants into coal.

​