Gas arrived in Europe: China allowed EU to push with the download

After the end of the heating season at the end of March, the EU took a faster pace of pumping fuel into storage facilities by next winter. This is facilitated by record LNG supplies. Part of it is the resale of Chinese companies, which thus neutralize the effect of counter duties on contracted liquefied gas from the United States. However, countries The EU needs to pump significantly more gas into UGS facilities this year due to the storage facilities that have been emptied over the winter. The European authorities are trying to compensate for the threat of fuel shortage by reducing the requirements for the level of injection for the heating season.

Since the beginning of April of the country The EU has pumped 4 billion cubic meters into storage facilities. Compared to last year, the pace has increased by almost 20%, according to GIE. April 23 at the UGS The EU had 40.6 billion cubic meters of gas.

April is the first month of pumping and its progress depends on many factors, including the weather and the difference in the cost of deliveries in summer and next winter. However, it has grown, which is also due to more depleted storage facilities over the season. The difference from the figures at the end of last season amounted to 26.8 billion cubic meters, and now it has decreased to 26.1 billion cubic meters.

Higher injection is facilitated by record LNG supplies. In April, they increased by almost 5% to 421 million cubic meters per day. This is due to the launch of new projects in the United States and the fact that Chinese companies resell contracted American gas to the EU in order to avoid counter duties at home.

Nevertheless, the pace is not enough and the risk of a shortage of gas in storage remains. In this situation, the EU has obligations on the minimum volume of gas in storage facilities by the beginning of the season. And Brussels decided to weaken them. European parliamentarians approved lowering the threshold from 90% by November 1 to 83% from October to December.

Thus the countries The EU can reduce the need for additional volumes to 9.1 billion cubic meters. In total, another 49.7 billion cubic meters should be pumped into the storage facilities of the European Union by winter.

Also countries The EU needs to compensate for the shutdown of Russian gas transit of 15 billion cubic meters per year and depleted Ukrainian storage facilities (4.5−6 billion cubic meters). In this situation, all new projects in the world are in Africa, the USA and Canada — will be able to additionally give a little more than 25 billion cubic meters this year.

It is obvious that the reduction of obligations to fill EU storage facilities does not solve the issue of providing gas itself, but may affect its price, reducing the hype. So far, traders have few incentives to actively replenish UGS, since the difference between summer and winter supplies is only $ 7 per thousand cubic meters.

Reducing liabilities also relieves pressure on current prices. They dropped to $ 398 per thousand cubic meters, although they are still more than twice as high as before the crisis.

Germany found itself in the most difficult situation. It is she who will have to buy more than a third of the additional volumes. However, so far France is the leader of the download. 38% of the increase in stocks in April falls on this country.

As EADaily reported, to restore the European industry, it needs gas cheaper than $ 300. This can ensure an increase in Gazprom's supplies. However, this is completely unprofitable for American manufacturers, experts say.

"The current strategy of American LNG producers is largely built around the problems of Russian gas, and therefore easing sanctions against Russian projects would be a shot in the foot for the United States," Finam analyst Sergey Kaufman told EADaily.