Higher demand due to colder weather and lower LNG imports are reportedly behind the bloc’s increased reliance on storages
The EU has increased withdrawals from its gas storage facilities, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing data from Gas Infrastructure Europe. According to the report, the volume of gas in storages dropped by some 19% from the end of September to mid-December, the fastest pace since the energy crisis of 2021.
The previous two years, meanwhile, saw only single-digit drops in gas storage over the same period. EU storage levels are now at 75%, down from the close to 90% at the same time last year. Analysts who spoke to the FT attributed the increased depletion rate to the colder weather, which has led to higher demand, as well as to lower gas imports.
“Europe has had to rely much more on its underground stores so far this winter than in the past two years to make up for lower liquefied natural gas imports and to meet stronger demand,” Natasha Fielding from the pricing agency Argus Media told the FT.
Experts have warned that tapping storages during the winter could make refilling them harder next year, especially given that gas prices for delivery next summer are already higher than for the following winter. Most link the upward price trend with concerns about future gas deliveries from two of the EU’s major LNG suppliers, the US and Qatar. US President-elect Donald Trump earlier warned Brussels that Washington could place tariffs on supplies to the bloc unless the EU buys “large scale” amounts of US oil and gas. Qatar on Monday warned it could stop LNG shipments to the bloc altogether if member states enforce new legislation on carbon emissions that places hefty fines on companies that fail to comply.
The EU has been increasingly reliant on more costly LNG imports after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, when Brussels prioritized eliminating its reliance on cheaper Russian energy. While several EU nations continue to rely on Russian gas, many voluntarily halted their imports. Prior to that, Russia was the bloc’s largest gas supplier, accounting for some 40% of its gas imports. This year, the share of Russian gas in EU imports is roughly 5%.
Russian gas does continue to flow to the bloc via the TurkStream pipeline through Türkiye and a transit line through Ukraine. However, deliveries through the latter could stop after the new year, as Kiev has warned it does not intend to extend a transit deal with Moscow, which expires on December 31. Russia has said it is ready to continue deliveries beyond 2024. Gazprom CEO Aleksey Miller warned earlier that the EU would be committing “energy suicide” by shunning Russian gas. Similar concerns have been voiced by Hungary and Slovakia, the two EU nations most reliant on Russian gas.
