Europe sees gas prices fall to June levels, stocks almost 92% full
Gas prices in Europe fall to June levels (Photo:tsoua2020 / Facebook)
Prices of gas at European exchanges on Oct. 17 fell below $1,400 per 1,000 cubic me-ters for the first time since the end of June, according to the Intercontinental Ex-change.
On the morning of Oct. 17, November futures dropped to $1,320 per 1,000 cubic meters. At the close of trading on Oct. 14, prices exceeded $1,430 per 1,000 cubic meters.
The decline in gas prices came after European gas storage facilities reached a level of 91.85% of capacity, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency stated, citing data from Gas Infra-structure Europe.
However, more gas is being taken off amid the replenishment of the stocks, and the ratio of gas withdrawals to gas injections reached 44% in the week from Oct. 10 to 16. Net take-offs were demonstrated by the Netherlands (half of the total withdrawals in the EU), Latvia, Poland, and Romania. Large amounts of gas were taken off in Germany, but the rate of filled storage there is still higher.
At the moment, the target of filled storage at 80% has been exceeded by Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Croatia, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, and Spain, while Hungary and Latvia are lagging behind.
The transit of Russian gas through the Ukrainian gas transmission system remains unchanged – at the level of 42 million cubic meters per 24 hours. The only operating entry point via GIS Sudzha is being used.
According to Russia’s Kommersant, Gazprom's share in the EU gas consumption has shrunk from 40% to 7.5%, or from about 350 million to 70 million cubic meters per 24 hours, since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The operating capacity of European LNG terminals in October is around 63%. In September and August, the figure was 59%. LNG imports in October may hit 11.5 billion cubic meters, which is one of the highest levels in history.
As reported, Gazprom threatened to completely stop gas supplies to the EU in the event that a gas price cap is applied.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
