Gazprom Warns Gas Prices in Europe Could Reach $2,500

Natural gas prices in Europe have crossed $1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters. Prices could climb further to $2,500 if temperatures drop sharply during the upcoming winter season, Alexei Miller, Chief Executive Officer of the Russian energy giant Gazprom, warned. Russian news agency TASS reported the statement from Moscow on Friday, October 30. Mr. Miller noted that gas storage levels in underground facilities across European nations remain at record lows.

Citing Gazprom’s press service, Mr. Miller stated that natural gas prices in Europe breached $1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters in October, a level Western experts had not anticipated until the peak demand periods of autumn and winter. According to Mr. Miller, reserves in Europe’s underground gas storage facilities are at historically low levels. Storage facilities in Germany, the largest gas consumer in the European Union, are filled to just 61.6 percent of their total capacity.

Under these conditions, if the winter turns unusually cold, gas prices in Europe could peak at $2,500 per 1,000 cubic meters, he warned. On Friday, spot natural gas prices at the European TTF gas trading hub surged past $1,200 per 1,000 cubic meters during trading hours, marking the first time since December 2022 that the price has crossed that threshold. Simultaneously, gas prices surpassed €100 per megawatt-hour, marking a four-year high.

The surge in regional gas prices comes ahead of the winter season, driven by dwindling European storage levels and escalating conflicts in the Middle East. Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin had also noted that gas prices in Europe could reach $1,500 per 1,000 cubic meters.

Source: TASS