Prices of EUROPE GAS stable amid unchanged short-term outlook
After some initial gains in the short term, Dutch and British gas wholesale contracts were mostly stable. However, increased competition for LNG could pose a threat.
LSEG data show that the benchmark Dutch front-month at TTF hub fell 0.25 euros to 33.80 Euros per Megawatt Hour (MWh) or $11.45/mmBtu at 0909 GMT. The price reached as high as 34.99 euro/MWh during the morning.
The Dutch contract for September was down by 0.28 euros at 34.45 Euros/MWh, and the contract for the day ahead fell by 0.25 Euros to 33.47 Euros/MWh.
The British front-month gas contract fell by 0.41 pence to 82.60p/therm. However, the day-ahead price rose 0.35 pence to 83.00p/therm.
In a morning note, LSEG analyst Yuriy Onyshkiv stated that "today's outlook is sideways with fundamentals largely unchanged."
LSEG data shows that the Norwegian gas export nomina-tions are at 338 millions cubic metres per day.
Onyshkiv said that temperatures in Europe will rise above average from early August, but this is unlikely to have a significant impact on forecasts for demand.
Mind Energy analyst Karsten Sanders Nielsen stated that the above-average temperatures could increase demand for LNG in eastern Asia and increase competition in order to attract LNG ships.
He added that "there is no panic because there is still a high level of confidence" in Europe's ability to fill its storages.
Gas Infrastructure Europe has released the latest figures showing that Europe's gas storage sites are currently 67.6% filled.
Engie EnergyScan analysts said that the news of Shell-led LNG Canada experiencing technical difficulties in ramping production up could cause some concern on the market.
No impact has been reported on the Russian LNG export or nuclear power generation in Japan following a powerful quake off Russia's Far Eastern Kamchatka Peninsula. The earthquake also triggered Tsunami Warnings, including those in Japan.
The benchmark carbon contract in Europe was down by 0.32 euros at 72.76 euro per metric ton. Nora Buli, reporting from Oslo; Nina Chestney, editing)
(source: Reuters)
