Gas in Europe hits its highest price since late 2022: 88.12 euros per MWh

Benchmark gas contracts on the Amsterdam exchange (TTF) rose on Tuesday to 88.12 euros per MWh (+0.7%), and during the day the gain reached as much as 2% — the highest level since late 2022. The reasons are tension in the Middle East, concerns over low stocks in Europe and unstable supplies for the winter period; on Saturday UKMTO reported that an LNG tanker had come under fire off the coast of Yemen, 140 nautical miles south-east of Al Mukalla.

Poland’s storage facilities are 98.9% full (36.43 TWh), against a five-year average of 98.4% for this time of year. Across Europe as a whole, stocks stand at 74.5% against an average of 89.1%, a total of 843.65 TWh according to Gas Infrastructure Europe, the lowest level for this time of year; in Germany the figure is 61.0% against an average of 87.8%.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Patricio Alvarez sees room for a further rise to 102 euros per MWh, that is 15–20% above the current level: exports from Qatar have recovered only partly, weather models for Europe are unstable, and the conflict in the Middle East is not dying down.