Prices of EUROPE Gas are slightly higher as US cold continues a curb on LNG
The wholesale gas prices in the Netherlands and Britain rose slightly Tuesday morning, as freezing temperatures in the United States continue to limit liquefied natural gas exports.
By 0931 GMT the benchmark Dutch front-month contract was 0.60 euros higher, or $14.02/mmBtu at the TTF Hub.
On Monday, the price of oil reached its highest level since April of last year.
The British day-ahead contract rose 3.70 pence, to 105 pence a therm. Meanwhile, the front-month contract increased by 0.22 pence, to 103.60 cents therm.
The U.S. Gas Market could continue to be of concern, as the supply disruptions affect LNG exports.
U.S. natural gas futures rose by 119% in five days, reaching a new three-year record on Monday. This was after an Arctic blast at the weekend increased heating demand while cutting production by two years by freezing oil and gas pipes and wells.
LNG feedgas fell to a low of 12.1 Bcfd, a year ago on Sunday. This was due to reductions made at all plants including Freeport LNG Texas and Elba Island Georgia.
"In recent days, ?U.S. LNG plants have reduced their gas intake by around 48 percent, which will result in a reduction of LNG exports.
TTF prices are still trading at a premium over Asian LNG, ensuring that LNG cargoes can be shipped to Europe where storage is now below 45%.
Shiptracking data revealed that at least two LNG tanks, originally destined for the east, were diverted to Europe and Turkey last week.
It's becoming more likely that the storage will finish 25/26 heating seasons below 25% full. This would be lower than the levels in 2022, ING stated.
Analysts at EBW Analytics said that the market will be looking to see if there is a sudden increase in extreme temperatures and how quickly U.S. producers recover.
In the future, there will be a large amount of LNG coming from Qatar and America.
Meanwhile, the supply in North-West Europe is stable. LSEG data shows that forecasts are colder up until February 6 and milder between February 8-18.
The wind generation in North-West Europe is expected to be above normal until February 4, before dropping below normal, and remaining at that level until February 10.
The benchmark contract on the European carbon markets was up by 1.02 euros at 88.15 euro per metric ton. Nina Chestney reports.
(source: Reuters)
