Green

“A green area without sufficient trees loses much of its ability to act”

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Extreme heat waves are an increasingly intense and long-lasting structural challenge and, faced with some cities turned into asphalt traps With a distinct lack of trees, the “urban climate shelter” concept has gained traction as emergency infrastructure. However, not just any green space acts as a heat shield, since recent research led by the University of Granada evidence that the design, morphology and, above all, the type of trees are critical factors, since a green area without dense coverage loses almost all of its effectiveness in reducing temperature. Size is not everything. The first results of the ACTERCA project, led by researcher David Hidalgo from the UGR, show the thermal behavior of green areas in the eight Andalusian capitals. To carry it out, they used a combination of satellites, climate modeling, artificial intelligence and thermal cameras, and the research concludes that the cooling capacity depends critically on large trees with dense canopies. These specific trees are the ones that really manage to reduce the environmental temperature between 3 and 5 ºC compared to areas dominated by impermeable pavements or the classic albero. That is why the key is not to create “green-looking” climate shelters, but to specifically design them to offer good shade and evapotranspiration with the most suitable trees. It is explained as follows by the UGR: These processes reduce the ambient temperature and significantly improve the thermal comfort of those who use these spaces. On the contrary, green areas with little tree cover lose much of their capacity to buffer heat, which shows that increasing the green area, by itself, does not guarantee effective protection against heat waves. It’s personalized. The study also highlights that urban design does not admit universal recipes, since in cities like Seville and Malaga, the main problem lies in the albedo and in Córdoba, the threat is building density and soil waterproofing. But if we go to Granada, the geometry of the historic neighborhoods, with narrow streets, offers greater thermal resilience than that of the new urban developments. Beyond temperature. Although lowering the thermometer is the most visible objective, science warns that the concept of “urban climate refuge” is still in its infancy and its definition lacks consensus. According to a systematic reviewcurrent urban planning is focusing almost exclusively on thermal comfort, leaving the potential of these spaces to promote urban biodiversity or long-term climate mitigation unexplored. In fact, it is pointed out that climate shelters must be conceived as multi-scalar solutions, since an isolated square is not enough, but an interconnected network is necessary. Along these lines, science proposes specific methodologies (tested in Seville and Malaga) to design shelter networks that classify spaces according to their use: places of temporary relief, areas for daily activity or areas of critical assistance during disasters. The real challenge. The biggest obstacle facing climate refuges is not thermodynamic, but social. And I know that an excellently air-conditioned park is of no use if those who suffer the most from the heat cannot access it or do not feel integrated. For example, an analysis at the IERMB on the Barcelona shelter network showed that there are deep intersectional vulnerabilitiessince factors such as economic income, gender and cultural origin determine who actually uses these spaces. This geographical and income inequality is also denounced by Greenpeace Spain, whose reporte warns of a serious lack of protection against heat waves in the most vulnerable sectors of the population, addressing access to thermal comfort as a fundamental right. We are behind. We know what works and how to implement it, but management is still one step behind. A review at European level which analyzed 97 initiatives in 88 cities revealed a notable institutional disconnection, since national climate adaptation strategies are rarely vertically integrated with local practices. Plans written on paper take too long to become trees planted on the asphalt. And the message we have on the table is that, to combat the extreme heat of the coming decades, cities do not simply need more square meters painted green on a map, but rather densely treed, intelligently distributed and, above all, socially fair urban ecosystems. Images | Andy Lee In Xataka | Climate change has a lethal side effect that we are only just discovering: it locks us in the house and prevents us from moving

This is how Shenzhen taxi drivers define the new law that gives the green light to more robotaxis in the city

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In Shenzhen, China, self-driving taxis can already be seen driving on the streets (in fact, We recently rode one), but at the moment they are part of pilot programs and are a minority compared to the thousands of taxis driven by humans. That’s about to change. what’s happening. Since July 1, the Chinese government has approved the deployment of robotaxis in the city of Shenzhen. As we said, there are currently pilot programs such as those of Pony.ai, the taxi we tested, and also of Baidu in specific areas of the city. With the new legislationthese commercial pilot projects can be expanded to the entire city. Taxi drivers against. Logically, taxi drivers oppose this measure. In Financial Times collect the statements of several of these taxi drivers, who describe the measure as “incredibly cruel” and wonder “what will happen to the families who depend on the millions of taxi drivers in China.” Another of these taxi drivers affirms that “it is a capitalist operation, driven by personal profit, that seeks to monopolize the sector.” A saturated market. Being a taxi driver in Shenzhen is not exactly a lucrative job. Around 400,000 drivers work in the city through different platforms such as Didi, the most popular of all. The problem is that there are too many taxi drivers for too few customers and the average is 13 trips a day. Speaking to the Financial Times, one of these taxi drivers claims to work 12 hours a day to earn a salary of 12,000 yuan, about 1,500 euros. Human service vs machines. In an already stressed sector, many taxi drivers are worried that robotaxis will take away even more customers. On the other hand, others are calmer and believe that a robotaxi cannot match the service that a human driver can provide. Furthermore, there is another issue and that is that not all customers will feel comfortable riding in a driverless taxi. It is a very new technology that generates distrust in many people, but that is now. “in a few years, who knows?” says a driver. Automation. It is one of China’s solutions to the unstoppable aging of its population. The UN projections They anticipate China’s population and workforce will decline dramatically between now and 2100, in some scenarios to less than half of their current levels. Given this situation, added to a improvement in working conditions of the workers, we are seeing how factories are filled with robots. The consequence is obvious: more unemployment and an entire generation of young people disconnected from the culture of effort that elevated the country to its status as the factory of the world. You can’t have everything. Image | Amparo Babiloni, Xataka In Xataka | Faced with the inevitable aging of its population, China has made a familiar decision: raise the retirement age

Spain planted millions of eucalyptus trees to have cheap wood. 90 years later, we have confirmed that they are a green desert

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If you usually move around the Cantabrian coast, you are surely already familiar with that long and stylized tree that is so abundant in its mountains. However, the eucalyptus already covers 30% of the forest area in areas such as northwest Spain. The omnipresence of the eucalyptus is the result of a forestry policy that started in the 40’s whose main objective was to supply the paper industry: it was cheap, it grew quickly, so it had all the potential to be the ideal candidate to repopulate unproductive forests. Decades later, a scientific study of the University of Santiago de Compostela and the CSIC has put numbers to suspicions: For the fauna, these plantations are almost a desert. The environmental cost of the ubiquitous eucalyptus. This research analyzed 240 areas of native Atlantic forest and eucalyptus forest in the Parque Natural das Fragas do Eume and They found an abysmal difference in richness and abundance of birds. In short: the more eucalyptus there is, the fewer birds live in that area and it is no coincidence. Mature eucalypts cannot replace mature trees as functional habitat and their foliage offers very limited support for birds. The most affected are those that eat insects and those that breed in the holes of old trees, such as the great woodpecker or the great tit. The eucalyptus does not generate enough insects to feed on, it has no undergrowth and it is cut down before it forms the cavities that these birds need to nest. On the less bad side, they have also found a fairly simple solution that does not involve eradicating the eucalyptus: simply letting wild vegetation grow in some areas, without clearing it. Why is it important. Because the role of forest birds is important in the balance of the ecosystem: they regulate insect pests, help in seed dispersal and act as an indicator of environmental health. In fact, the EU Birds Directive 2009/147 obliges member states to conserve bird populations in good condition and this study documents that this obligation is being breached in the most eucalyptus of Galicia and the Cantabrian coast. The situation is more complicated than it seems because already in 2017 the scientific committee of the Ministry for the Ecological Transition recommended include eucalyptus in the Catalog of Invasive Exotic Species in 2017, but the proposal was rejected due to the economy behind it: in Galicia this sector generates 2.5 billion euros annually in wood and paper pulp and employs more than 19,000 people, according to the report A Cadea Forestal-Madeira de Galicia 2025 prepared by XERA. It is a complete conflict of interest. Context. The eucalyptus arrived to the Iberian Peninsula in the 19th century for ornamental and medicinal purposes, but its true boom arrive with the repopulation plans of the Franco regime and the commercial demand for cellulose. Parque Natural das Fragas do Eume, the place where the analysis was carried out, is one of the last remaining coastal Atlantic forests on the Iberian Peninsula. There, eucalyptus plantations are currently the second largest type of forest: 1,340 hectares, only behind the native forest. But the species has already colonized its surroundings. In any case, the problem with eucalyptus trees is not local: in Portugal the eucalyptus already covers more than 800,000 hectares and is the most widespread forest species in the country. according to data from the National Forest Inventory of Portugal prepared by the Instituto da Conservação da Natureza e das Florestas. It is also under scrutiny there due to its relationship with large fires. In fact, on a global scale the scientific community has been documenting for years the impact of eucalyptus on Mediterranean and temperate ecosystems outside its native Australia. In detail. Eucalyptus is a silent killer: it releases chemicals that prevent the growth of other plants under its canopy (allelopathy), which eliminates native shrubs and with them, the insects that feed the birds. Furthermore, since it is cut down every ten or fifteen years, it never ages enough to develop the holes needed for nesting by cave birds such as woodpeckers. The problem does not stay on land: dead eucalyptus leaves release oils and toxic compounds when they reach river courses, harming aquatic insects and amphibians that form the base of the river food chain. Yes, but. The damage to the diversity of the eucalyptus is a reality as undeniable as its socioeconomic importance: it is an economic vector and population fixation in these rural areas and eliminating or restricting its cultivation would have a notable impact in communities where alternatives are not abundant. Hence, the study itself does not call for its eradication, but for something simpler and more practical: leaving strips of vegetation uncut within the plantations so that the native flora can recover and the birds can return. It is a low cost solution that has already proven to be effective in other European contexts. On the other hand, there is the limitation that the study has been carried out in a single forest and is focused on birds. Not all species respond the same. In any case, science does not say that eucalyptus is evil, only that covering 30% of your forests with it has a serious biological toll. In Xataka | The Iberian Peninsula is being invaded: more than 1,200 exotic species have come to stay In Xataka | The Ebro is filling with brown prawns, an invasive species that we are going to find more and more on our plates. Cover | Flickr

They have found a way to green the Sahara and it is not by planting trees: by releasing 500 turtles

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The Sahel is the strip of land that separates the Sahara and the African savannahs, but it is increasingly more desert than anything else. The United Nations UNCCD has already warned that the Sahel is one of the regions of Africa most vulnerable to desertification and what it entails: soils so hardened that they prevent water penetration and plants no longer take root. If planting is not possible and conditions become harsh, desertification leads to forced migration of those who live there. The classic response to try to stop desertification has been to plant trees, but it is an expensive method and does not always work, so someone has proposed a different experiment: it is not introducing vegetation but rather returning an animal whose behavior is capable of changing the structure of the soil. Turtles for frenew the desert. In 2021 a research team he blurted out 500 african spurred tortoises precisely on the southern border of the Sahara. They didn’t do anything special, just let them do their thing. Five years later, satellite images they have confirmed that where before there was only sand, now there are green patches of vegetation. And what do African turtles do? Well dig. This species, whose natural habitat is precisely the Sahelbuilds burrows up to 15 meters in length to instinctively protect themselves from heat and cold. This construction work breaks up the crust of the soil, allowing water to pass through and ultimately creating more favorable conditions for seeds to germinate. Why is it important. Because the African spurred tortoise is a ecosystem engineer: a species that benefits other species with its modification of the environment. Like the UNCCD has already pointed outland restoration is one of the best solutions to desertification and the turtle does it alone, without the need for machinery. For local communities, digging in semi-desert areas to have holes that retain water is an arduous task that the turtle does natively throughout its life. Paradoxically, the African spurred tortoise is native there, but it is increasingly difficult to find because it is threatened. That this turtle disappears from the Sahel is bad news for biodiversity, but also for the soil: without its valuable excavation work, the surface hardens, the water drains away and, ultimately, the seeds do not hold. Context. The soil of the Sahel has been so degraded in recent decades that as early as 1977 was organized in NairobiKenya, the first United Nations Conference on Desertification. Although it is one of the most vulnerable areas, it is one of the great structural problems of Africa: two thirds of the continent is classified as deserts or arid lands and it is estimated that two thirds of African land is already degraded to some degree. But for the African spurred tortoise it has not been a bed of roses either: it has been under the magnifying glass of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora since 2000, with restrictions to protect it and reintroduction in the north and west of Ferlo and Senegal: in 2017 the African Chelonian Institute already made a documented release of 20 individuals. There are also captive colonies in several countries in Africa and outside of it. However, the according to the IUCN Red List The species’ population continues to decline due to habitat loss, exploitation for eggs and meat, the pet trade, and the effects of climate change such as desertification. In detail. The ecological mechanism consists in which the turtle’s digging breaks up the hardened crust of the soil and its tunnels allow rainwater to penetrate deeper layers, instead of evaporating quickly. As a result, porosity improves, surface temperature decreases and nutrient availability is enhanced. As a consequence, the soil gains water retention capacity and humidity is maintained longer. Seeds that could not germinate before find the minimum conditions to develop. In addition, insects and microorganisms colonize these excavated spaces, which activates the ecological chain and ends up attracting birds and small vertebrates. It is not a lush jungle, but it has enough green shoots to stop desertification and recover biodiversity. Yes, but. The reintroduction of turtles does not work miracles: it is just the starting point. For the process to progress on the right track, other requirements are necessary, such as availability of rain and a sustainable and stable management policy. There is little point in introducing them if they are later hunted, something not unreasonable given that the species is already threatened. On the other hand, we know that digging improves the soil, but I could be doing something else: disperse seeds throughout the Sahel, so that part of those new green shoots are also their work without us yet knowing it. In Xataka | The rain has transformed the driest desert on the planet into a sea of ​​flowers. It’s a sight to behold and a problem for experts In Xataka | 4,000 years ago the Sahara was not yet a desert. We have found the new evidence in a cave in Sudan Cover | Wikimedia and Ash Hayes

“A green awning on the terrace is like having a radiator over the window”

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With the arrival of the hot months, the facades of the buildings display their particular summer armor: the awnings. In Spain the scene is quite characteristic when you are walking down the street and, curiously, the color that triumphs in our country It’s green. And although it seems like the perfect shield against heatstroke, a recent technical warning has shaken what we thought we knew about the protective effect it has. Voices against him. One of the most important It’s Jordi Martí’stechnical architect who posed a rather important analogy that has collected Decosfera: having a dark green awning is “like having a radiator in front of the window.” And its premise is based on an undeniable principle of materials physics, since the absorption of social radiation is very different depending on the color. This is something that happens in the world of fashion and is in the mentality of society, since in summer normally choose to wear light colored clothing by better reflecting heat. But wearing dark clothes in the middle of summer is actually a bad idea, since sweat is guaranteed. It happens on awnings exactly the same, since while light colors (such as pure white) reflect most of the light radiation and heat up less, dark colors are true thermal sinks. This means that a dark green awning can absorb between 80% and 90% of solar radiation, a figure that in the case of black tarps is close to 98%. According to Martí, the fabric heats up drastically and generates a stagnant “heat pocket” under the awning. And this is a problem because under the awning is our house, which begins to accumulate all the energy and results in an increase in heat, when we want to have the opposite effect. It is studied. To support the scientific basis of this position, the work of Hubertus Pöppinghaus, a German architect who is a reference in the study of shadows and radiation, is often used. In this case, through the use of thermal imaging cameras, Pöppinghaus analyzed the behavior of different materials, evidencing the temperature peaks that dark fabrics reach. And among his conclusions he makes it clear what the tarps we use should be: The outer face must be reflective with a light color so that visible solar radiation bounces and does not accumulate heat. The inner side should be dark, since this drastically reduces the reflection of shortwave solar radiation bouncing off the street and sidewalks, decreasing the total heat flow. The industry does not agree. Here the Spanish Association of Shading and Dynamic Solar Control wants to deny this statement relying on the wavelength of the radiation. And the energy that the sun sends to the Earth arrives in the form of direct solar radiation, mainly short wave, penetrating through the window panes and heating the interior of the houses. But when an awning, whatever its color, intercepts that exterior radiation, it stops the blow and, indeed, heats up. By doing so, the energy that the canvas re-emits to the environment is no longer short-wave, but long-wave infrared radiation, and here is the fundamental detail that dismantles the “radiator effect”: standard window glass is opaque to long-wave radiation. In other words. For the industry, it is physically inaccurate to state that the dark awning transfers heat from the outside to the inside through the glass, since the thermal radiation emitted by the hot canvas hits the glass and does not penetrate the home. According to AESSO, what is truly lethal for energy efficiency is letting the sun hit the glass directly and, therefore, any system that provides shade is positive. Images | Elisabeth Fossum In Xataka | Popular wisdom is not always right: the great heat myths that we should avoid in summer

a mining camp and an enigmatic trail of green rocks

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The high mountains have always been seen as an almost natural limit for survival due to the extreme conditions that have to be experienced, and that is why archaeologists assumed that this location was too hostile an environment for our ancestors. However, a new and surprising discovery At more than 2,200 meters of altitude, he has just blown up that idea by pointing out that not only did they go up there, but they spent many years working to search for minerals. What has been seen? A recent study Published in the journal Frontiers in Environmental Archeology, it points to the first evidence we have that there was a prehistoric human presence in the Pyrenees. Here the setting is none other than Cova 338, a rock shelter located at 2,235 meters of altitude where it has been seen that our ancestors had their work activity. Some green stones. What archaeologists have found in Cova 338 is not a simple shelter to shelter from a storm. Here it has been seen that the site houses multiple combustion structuressuch as homes or areas where fires were made to cook or simply keep warm, which indicate that the place was inhabited in a continuous and planned manner. And we know that they were from prehistory because of the carbon-14,14 that leaves no room for doubt. But the discovery that has drawn the most attention to experts are some fragments of green rock, which are said to be malachite, which is a mineral rich in copper. Because? The fact of having malachite here has made researchers think that we are facing a camp oriented towards mining prospecting and early metallurgical work. In this way, our prehistoric ancestors were combing the Pyrenean peaks in search of the necessary resources to make the first metal tools and jewelry. A child in the heights. The Cave 338 It also hides a human and deeply moving component, since among the remains of extinct fires and fragments of malachite, the research team has found human remains belonging to a child. Right now, the exact reasons why it is there or why it ended up dying are a great mystery, so it adds a layer of social complexity to the site. This shows us that expeditions to the high mountains were not exclusively composed of isolated groups of adult hunters or miners, but rather involved family dynamics or broader demographic groups. European archaeology. To date, the traditional archaeological narrative considered areas above 2,000 meters as “marginal spaces” during prehistory. Literally, true technological and social innovation was thought to occur in the lower valleys and plains where weather conditions were much more favorable. But this new study forces us to rewrite the Alpine and Pyrenean history books, since Cova 338 demonstrates that prehistoric humans had great knowledge of high mountain geology and the logistical capacity to establish stable camps, light fires at extreme temperatures and process minerals in harsh conditions. Images | UAB In Xataka | “In 200 years, archaeologists will search through our trash and find a terrible image of ourselves”: the dirty reality of what we throw away

Today the green turtles are finally out of danger

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Halfway between South America and Africa, in the immensity of the Atlantic Ocean, a small volcanic point emerges that is the ascension island. For centuries, this piece of land was the scene of a systematic massacre, but today it represents one of the greatest success stories of marine conservation in the 21st century, culminating last October with a historic announcement that the green turtle has officially gone from being “endangered” to being classified as “least concern.” His story. To understand the magnitude of the Ascension phenomenon, you must first understand the journey since each season, thousands of green turtles They travel 2,300 kilometers from the coasts of Brazil to this remote island to spawnthat is, release their eggs. But… How do they manage to find this small island in an ocean as enormous as the Atlantic? A GPS. The famous biologist Archie Carr proposed in his day that these creatures use a kind of “olfactory GPS”, with which they were capable of find chemical fingerprints dissolved in the ocean currents that emanate from the island. Although the exact mechanics remain the subject of study, since genetic analyzes based on mitochondrial DNA leave no doubt that there are perfectly differentiated Atlantic populations and that of Ascension has a unique signature. In fact, studies indicate that turtles born in Ascensión travel throughout the American continent, representing between 43% and 47% of those captured on the coasts of Uruguay and entering the Patagonian Sea. A dark past. Since its discovery in 1501, Portuguese and British sailors saw Ascension not as a sanctuary, but as an all-you-can-eat buffet, as has been masterfully documented. in works as Ascension: The Story of a South Atlantic Island by Duff Hart-Davis. For centuries, common practices were “flipping” where sailors literally turned turtles over on the beach, immobilizing them to keep them alive with their fresh meat for months. Here there are historical testimonies such as that of chaplain John Ovington in 1691 who recounts the industrialized slaughter of these reptiles, which were sent alive to England to satisfy the demand for “turtle soup.” Something that brought the species to the brink of extinction. A turning point. It arrived in 1977, and coincides with the moment it began control and monitoring of this species on nesting beaches, reversing centuries of human impact. And the results indicate that while in 1977 3,752 nests were counted annually, today the island hosts more than 25,000 nests each year. Images | wirestock on Freepik In Xataka | We have been thinking for 40 years that Spain escaped Chernobyl because it was far away. AEMET has discovered that it was pure luck

It has rained so much that Morocco has not looked so green for a decade

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That the first two months of 2026 it has rained a lot It is something that we can say because we have lived it in our flesh, but its impact is such that the Earth, or rather, the portions of it where rainfall has occurred almost continuously, has also suffered a before and after. You may notice that there is more vegetation or that the river is higher, but from space it looks better: this scar in the south of the peninsula It is magnificent proof of this. The European Space Agency’s Copernicus Sentinel-3 continues to patrol the planet to record sea and land surface temperatures, sea level height and ocean color to study climate, oceans and terrestrial ecosystems. And in its sweep it has left a shocking image: the new and green Morocco. Precipitation in recent months in Morocco reached 360 millimeters at the beginning of February 2026, 54% above the average of the last 30 years and 215% more than in 2025, as reported by Swissinfothe international service of Swiss public radio and television. Torrential rains have given Morocco a respite With this rainy season, the Minister of Equipment and Water, Nizar Baraka, announced the end of a cycle of continuous seven-year drought that had wreaked havoc on agriculture and livestock. The situation was so critical that Morocco breathed a sigh of relief: the politician explained that with these rains the country was assured of up to three years of drinking water. Of course, like Spain, Morocco also suffered from floods like the one that occurred in the Loukkos basin (they reached maximum flows of almost 3200 cubic meters per second). From drought to orchard in the north of Morocco. Via: Copernicus Sentinel 3 As a picture says a thousand words, above these lines is the northeast of Morocco photographed by the Copernicus Sentinel-3 in mid-February 2025 in the middle of the drought and a year later. In 2025, the scarce vegetation was visible from space and now, after two months of intense rains, the terrain has been transformed into an expanse of green vegetation visible from space. The image on the left corresponds to February 20, 2025 and a generalized drought can be seen in practically the entire area. On the right, just a year later, you can see extensive vegetation. However, on February 20 of this year, available water resources reached 11.8 billion cubic meters, according to the data managed by the ESAwhich represents an increase of approximately 155% compared to the same period in 2025. These rains have also made it possible to fill the reservoirs, which has reached 70.7% of the total capacity of the dams. According to the Moroccan media Le Matinare figures that the North African country had not seen since 2018. Faced with this hydraulic pressure, the authorities have carried out various controlled preventive releases of water to protect the structures. But beyond ensuring its infrastructure, these rains have a direct impact on Morocco’s water economy: from consumption to the agricultural sector through hydroelectric plants. In Xataka | The brutal floods facing Portugal and western Spain, seen from space In Xataka | A 2.5 billion-year-old geological wonder: Zimbabwe’s Great Dam seen by NASA from space

In 2022, the gas crisis skyrocketed the price of electricity in Spain. In 2026 we have a “green shield” but also a serious problem

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Just when in Spain we began to breathe a sigh of relief, convinced that we had overcome the inflationary trauma of 2022 “after cutting energy ties” with Russia, history repeats itself. This week a “black Monday” began that has shaken international markets. This time the epicenter is not in eastern Europe, but in the Persian Gulf, after the recent attacks that have been forced to paralyze QatarEnergy facilities. The impact on our country has been devastating. According to data collected in OMIEthe price of electricity in the wholesale market has jumped 60% in just 24 hours, climbing to 90.14 euros per megawatt hour (MWh). To put it in perspective, this represents a 1,300% increase in price compared to what we paid just a month ago. The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, has already warned that We must prepare for a “long war” with serious global economic consequences. And the fear is already palpable in the street with the long lines that yesterday we observed of drivers trying to fill their tank at gas stations low cost before prices continue to rise. If the gas goes up, why does the electricity go up? To understand why a conflict thousands of kilometers away makes our electricity more expensive almost instantly, you have to look at how our system works. As explained The Confidential in a very didactic way: the European electricity market is “marginalist”. This means that the most expensive technology that needs to be used to cover the demand of a specific day is the one that sets the final price of all energy. If the sun or wind is not enough and the gas plants have to be turned on, all electricity is paid for at the price of gas. And the gas, right now, is trapped in a war funnel. As we have already explained these days20% of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) and 25% of the world’s oil transit through the Strait of Hormuz (the epicenter of the current tension). Any threat of a blockade in that area generates a domino effect that triggers reference prices in Europe. The energy expert Joaquín Coronado explained in LinkedIn that this panic is already real: The prices of electricity futures for the rest of 2026 have suddenly risen by 24%. As he himself points out, “only the price of gas has changed,” but that is enough to drag down the entire system. The hit in the pocket. All this macroeconomics lands directly in the bank account of citizens. As pointed out The Countrythere are more than 11 million users in Spain who have regulated rates (the PVPC for electricity and the TUR for gas) who will notice this increase almost immediately, since their contracts reflect the daily fluctuations of the market. The calculations about what this crisis is going to cost us are already on the table: The OCU, in statements to The Newspaperestimates that if these prices are maintained, the average electricity bill with a regulated rate will jump from the 62 euros we paid in February to around 82 euros in March. An increase of 30% in a single month. A platform report Roams figures the monthly impact about 12 euros extra for electricity (17% more) and increases of up to 18% on the gas bill. The worst scenario is drawn the comparator Selectra: If the conflict drags on and we return to the panic levels of 2022, the electricity bill could skyrocket by 200%. But energy is just the first domino. Financial Times collect warnings from the chief economist of the European Central Bank (ECB), who already assumes a short-term rebound in general inflation. As oil rises, transportation rises: from fuel at the pump (gas stations already assume extra costs of 12 cents per liter) to maritime freight of goods and plane tickets, which on some routes to Asia have quadrupled in price. So, are we the same as in 2022? The good news is that we are not exactly at the same starting point as when the Ukrainian war broke out. As analyzed elDiario.esSpain today has three “mattresses” that cushion the first impact: the arrival of spring (which reduces the use of heating), some reservoirs 83% full (which allow generate a lot of hydroelectric energy cheap) and an electric mix where more than 50% of energy is already renewable. Furthermore, the PVPC formula was recently renovated so that it does not depend only on the daily market, softening the extreme peaks a little. The bad news is that we have exchanged one problem for another. To stop depending on Russia, we throw ourselves into the arms of the United States. As the economist José Carlos Díez warns in the chain Vibe Zero44% of the gas we consume today comes from the US. This places us in a position of extreme vulnerability to the new geopolitical “black swan”: the anger of Donald Trump. The refusal of the Spanish Government to give up the military bases of Rota and Morón for the offensive against Iran has caused Trump to threaten to cut off all trade with Spain. If the United States turns off the tap on LNG ships, José Carlos Díez warnsSpain does not have the physical capacity or infrastructure to replace a supplier that gives us almost half of our gas from one day to the next. The social shield and our pending duties. Faced with the threat of the crisis becoming entrenched, the Government is already moving. According to Expansion, If the conflict lasts more than four weeks, Pedro Sánchez’s Executive has on the table reactivating the “social shield” of previous crises: reductions in VAT on electricity, fuel discounts and direct aid. However, fiscal patches do not hide the underlying problems. In Xataka We have put our finger on two great absurdities of our system. On the one hand, we are an “energy island” since we have seven regasification plants capable of receiving ships from all over the world and helping Europe, but we do … Read more

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