Don’t expect big oil to fix the energy crunch

POWER CUTS in China. Coal shortages in India. Spikes in electricity prices across Europe. A scramble for petrol in Britain. Blackouts and fuel blazes in Lebanon. Symptoms of dysfunction in global energy markets are everywhere.

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In recent days the mayhem has pushed oil prices in America above $80 a barrel, their highest level since late 2014. Natural-gas prices in Europe have tripled this year. Demand for coal, supposedly on the slag heap of history, has surged. The chief executive of one commodities-trading firm says he comes into the office at 5am in order to get the

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