EU Gas Prices Extend Decline

European natural gas prices dropped to around €57 per MWh on Friday, extending losses from the previous session amid signs of improving shipping conditions through the Strait of Hormuz despite regional tensions and fresh LNG arrivals in Europe. Qatar sent its first LNG tanker through the waterway in more than three weeks, raising hopes that exports from one of the world’s largest LNG suppliers could gradually resume. Steady LNG deliveries to Northwest Europe, along with reliable pipeline flows from Norway, also helped ease supply concerns. Despite the recent pullback, EU gas prices remain more than 33% higher in July, as renewed US-Iran hostilities disrupted Persian Gulf supplies while heatwaves boosted electricity demand, limiting Europe’s ability to replenish inventories ahead of winter. EU storage facilities are about 55% full, below the seasonal five-year average and behind the pace needed to comfortably meet pre-winter storage targets before the heating season begins in November.





