Europe faces the risk of blackouts, rationing and a severe recession. Europe faces the risk of blackouts, rationing and a severe recession if Russia further slashes gas deliveries, and the next reality check is at hand. A three-day halt of the Nord Stream pipeline — a key source of natural gas for the European Union — started on Wednesday, and concerns are widespread that Moscow will find another excuse to clamp down on supplies, putting the region at the mercy of the weather. Hours ahead of the planned outage, Gazprom PJSC set an unsettling tone by notifying French utility Engie SA that it would halt deliveries from Thursday because of a disagreement over payments. The move widens cutbacks to the continent as Moscow retaliates for sanctions related to its invasion of Ukraine. “As we had expected, Russia is using gas as a weapon of war,” Energy Transition Minister Agnes […]