The exchange price of gas at the opening of trading on the ICE Futures platform rose by almost 18%. The cost of September futures at the TTF hub in the Netherlands rose to €42.9 per 1 MWh, or $485 per thousand cubic meters. m, according to the ICE exchange.
By 10:20 Moscow time, the cost of European gas had adjusted to €40.23 per 1 MWh, or $459.92 per thousand cubic meters. m at the current exchange rate.
Exchange prices for natural gas in Europe jumped as workers working on the Woodside Energy Group export project in Australia prepare to strike, informed Bloomberg. The strike could begin as early as September 2, if an agreement on a wage increase is not reached on Wednesday, August 23, the agency writes.
In addition, on Friday, August 18, workers at Chevron’s LNG plants in Australia began vote regarding the strike. Strikes at the Woodside and Chevron facilities could threaten up to 10% of global LNG supplies, Goldman Sachs Group estimates.
Australia is one of the largest LNG exporters in the world, along with Qatar and the United States. Fear of strikes has fueled volatility in European gas prices as plant shutdowns increase competition between Asian and European gas buyers. China and Japan are the biggest buyers of Australian LNG, followed by South Korea and Taiwan, according to Reuters.
ING analysts note that the rally in gas stock prices may be short-lived, given the large reserves of gas in underground gas storage facilities in Europe, experts said. They are already about 91% full, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe.
Significant changes in the European market are only possible if most of Australia’s LNG production capacity is shut down for an extended period of time, at least a month or two, ING said.
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2023-08-21 07:40:00
