Gas futures in Europe fell to almost $1,580 per thousand cubic meters

MOSCOW, 7 Oct – PRIME. Exchange prices for gas in Europe closed Friday trading with a decrease of 12%, to almost $1,580 per thousand cubic meters, according to the London-based ICE exchange.

Trades in futures contracts on the TTF index opened with a sharp decline, at around 1681.3 dollars per thousand cubic meters (-6.5%). During the day, prices fell by about 10%, holding near $1,600. However, as the close approached, the rate of decline accelerated, falling below $1,550 for the first time since July 21. The trading low was $1,546.5 per thousand cubic meters (-14%), the maximum was $1,680.9 (-6.5%), and the closing price was $1,583.3 (-12%). The dynamics is based on the settlement price of the previous trading day – $1,798.7 per thousand cubic meters.

The average settlement price of the nearest futures in September fell to $2,093 (-14.6%). In May, the figure was $1,030, in June it was almost $1,180 (+14.6% on a monthly basis), and in July it was about $1,805 (+53%). In August, the price slightly exceeded $2,450 (+35.7%), which was a record in the history of gas hubs in Europe since 1996.

International sanctions have affected the decline in Russian gas exports to Europe. Due to non-payment of gas under the new scheme in rubles, Gazprom stopped deliveries to Bulgargaz to Bulgaria, PGNiG to Poland, Gasum to Finland, Gas Terra to the Netherlands, as well as Shell Energy Europe to Germany and Orsted to Denmark. Deliveries along the main route, the Nord Stream, as well as Yamal-Europe, have ceased, while the Ukrainian gas transmission system has significantly decreased.

But back in early March, gas prices in Europe, due to fears of a ban on the import of Russian energy resources, updated their historical highs for four days in a row. The price record of $3,892 per thousand cubic meters was reached on March 7. The last explosive growth, at the end of August, was associated with the announcement of Gazprom about the suspension of the Nord Stream gas pipeline for three days for scheduled maintenance. Quotes jumped above 3500 dollars per thousand cubic meters and updated historical records of the settlement price several times.