[zosima]

Gas is a precondition for renewables. Without gas there's no reliable energy source, that can be turned on and off at will. That is renewables without gas can not keep the lights on, when the sun's out and there's no wind. (Oil, Coal and Nuclear takes longer to turn on and off, and so will not be able to respond to the sudden changes in electricity production, brought on by renewables.)

It's very likely that Russia has been supporting green parties across Europe for three major actions:

1. Protesting shale and fracking: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jun/19/russia-s... 2. Scaling up sun and wind power. 3. Shutting down nuclear power plants

I can't find sources for number 2. and 3 now. But do remember having seen support from Russia and Gazprom for parties promoting these actions.

[sebazzz]

Why can't nuclear not be turned on and off at will? I understand you can't just fire up and down a reactor, but you can control the steam flow to the generator, and let that redirect directly to the cooling tower at will?

The real problem appears to be buffer capacity.

[tomatocracy]

Turning on and off quickly is difficult and/or expensive for all of CCGT/OCGT gas, coal and nuclear. Turning up/down is much less so however, and in reality that's often how it works.