Clark, thanks for that.
Perhaps when Mr. Putin said the future was going to be Methane, he was prescient?
He may have imagined a future where nuclear power was unpopular, for instance after the Chernobyl disaster, which helped to collapse the Soviet Union. This view was more recently enhanced by the Melt Throughs of Fukushima.
By which time the Soviet Union had collapsed and Russia was at least in part, basing its new economy in becoming a Hydrocarbon super power, with their gas pipe lines, with Liquid Natural Gas super tankers and the opening up of the Russian Arctic sea routes. Putin was also considering that shipping would convert to burning Methane, instead of oil.
Cars would increasing be battery, but where would the enormous base load come from, not Oil, not Coal and not Nuclear but from virtually inexhaustible Methane.
U.S.A. has done much in its power to stop Methane flowing outwards from both Russia and Iran. It seems indeed that controlling International Methane Trading, is power.
After the two massive failings of Nuclear Power, the French had to do some thinking on their Nuclear Programme and they are reducing, slightly their future reliance on Nuclear. The French E.P.R. has become vastly more expensive, now Nuclear is the most expensive way to produce electricity.
Maybe as the Kvilldal Norway to Blyth England HDVC Interconnector is switched on this year and Nord Stream Two goes live, Europe will have a little breathing window?