Gas stocks in underground storage facilities (UGF) in Europe have fallen below 42%, and withdrawals in February hit a 4-year high for month, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE). Gas volumes in underground gas storage facilities are only the seventh highest ever recorded for February. Since the start of the heating season, the EU has withdrawn more than 62 billion cubic meters from underground gas storage facilities. This significantly exceeds the volume pumped into them during the autumn-winter period.
Gas withdrawals from underground gas storage facilities in EU countries on February 19, according to GIE data, amounted to 766 million cubic meters. Against the backdrop of high gas consumption rates in the current month (the fourth highest in history for February), the total fuel volume in UGS is only the seventh highest for February for the entire monitoring period - 46.6 billion cubic meters of gas.
The last season of gas withdrawal from European underground storage facilities ended on March 31, 2024, when 58.44% of the reserves remained in them (a record for the entire monitoring period). Currently, underground gas storage facilities in Europe are 41.93% full (10.79 percentage points lower than the average for this date for the last 5 years), which in relative terms is already lower than the figure not only at the end of the last autumn-winter period, but also at the end of the heating seasons 2010-2011, 2011-2012, 2013-2014, 2019-20 20 and 2022-2023.
The heating season in Europe started on October 29, 2024 (10 days earlier than in the last autumn-winter season) and since then EU countries have withdrawn over 62 billion cubic meters of gas from storage facilities. In addition, the total gas withdrawal from UGS facilities on the 114th day since reaching their maximum filling level is 28% higher than the average value for this day in the previous five years. The most problematic years for the EU were 2018 and 2022, when storage reserves by the end of the heating season in spring fell to critical levels below 18% and 26%, respectively (it was even necessary to resort to the withdrawal of the so-called buffer gas, which is used to maintain the necessary pressure in the storage facilities).
The first half of this week in Europe is shaping up to be cool, but significant warming is expected over the weekend, which will intensify at the beginning of next week. The share of wind energy in electricity production in the EU is 21% on average in January, compared to only around 12% in February. The average purchase price of gas in December 2024 in Europe was 489 USD per 1000 cubic meters, in January 2025 - about 518 USD, and in February - 565 USD.
Supplies of liquefied natural gas from terminals to the European gas transportation system in February were at a record level. Currently, the capacity for regasification of liquefied gas and its subsequent injection into European pipelines is loaded at 51% of its maximum.