Gas prices in Europe drop to three-month low

10 Oct, 2022 11:02
November futures on the Dutch TTF hub slumped on warmer-than-expected weather and increased LNG shipments

European gas prices dropped to a three-month low on Monday, data from the London Intercontinental Exchange shows.

November futures on the TTF hub in the Netherlands fell as much as 7.8% to €144 per megawatt-hour ($140) in early trading, the lowest intraday since July 1. Prices later regained some of the losses, trading at €150 per megawatt-hour around 10:00 GMT. However, they were still down nearly 10% over the past five trading days.

The previous week saw the sharpest fall in gas prices since early September. Analysts say the warmer-than-usual weather, which is expected to last at least two more weeks, has brought some relief to the market.

Also, despite the decrease in gas supplies from Russia, European countries continue to fill their storage facilities – the level of reserves in underground storages is already close to 91%, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe. Storage sites are largely filled by liquefied natural gas (LNG), flows of which, according to data compiled by Bloomberg, are currently at their highest seasonal levels since at least 2016.

After the incident involving the Nord Stream pipelines last month, Russian gas is currently delivered to Europe by the sole remaining transit line through Ukraine. According to Ukraine’s Gas Transit System Operator, flows through the Sudzha gas distribution station are stable, amounting to 42.4 million cubic meters on October 10.

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