Europe takes all Yamal LNG: Gazprom's supplies have also reached their maximum

Due to frosts and the shutdown of nuclear power plants in France, Europe is emptying storage facilities and has reached a new record for LNG imports. A new historical maximum can be shown by the supply of Yamal liquefied gas. In January, Europe can pick up all the batches of the first Russian Arctic project. Gazprom is also reaching the maximum of the Turkish Stream. Gas prices on European stock exchanges exceeded $ 420. The cost of electricity has also gone up.

On January 16, the cost of gas on the Dutch TTF exchange exceeded $ 420 per thousand cubic meters. This is the highest figure since August last year. In just a week, prices have increased by 27%.

The reason for this was the Arctic air masses, the "Beast from the East" that covered Europe, and the shutdown due to the hurricane of the French nuclear power plant Flamanville on the English Channel. Two reactors stopped generating at the nuclear power plant, and the country's nuclear generation capacity decreased from 53.6 GW to 49.8 GW, according to ENTSO-E.

As a result, gas consumption in Europe, including for electricity generation, has increased dramatically. In two weeks of January, 11 billion cubic meters were taken from storage facilities alone, lowering the reserves to 56.4 billion cubic meters. Such a regime during the rest of the heating season would lead to the fact that there would be no gas left in European UGS facilities at all.

European companies are trying to reduce the selection from storage facilities by increasing imports. And the shipment of LNG has already set a new record. According to GIE, on January 14, 478 million cubic meters of gas were loaded into the EU gas transportation system from LNG terminals at once, while the average monthly level is still at 401 million cubic meters.

Obviously, Yamal LNG is making a significant contribution to Europe's energy security in January, which can set a record for deliveries to Europe. According to AIS vessels, 13 shipments of liquefied natural gas have already been delivered to France, Belgium and Spain in half a month. And by the end of January, they may have time to submit 10 more batches. Thus, supplies may be at the level of 2.2−2.3 billion cubic meters and this will be a new record for Yamal LNG in the European direction.

All fourteen ice-class gas carriers of the Arctic project are working for Europe in January. And, judging by the fact that there are no transloads near Murmansk on traditional tankers for deliveries to Asia, to the countries The EU can receive all the January cargoes of the project. Some of them are obviously resold to Europeans by Chinese participants of Yamal LNG.

Most of the Russian LNG is sold to French, Spanish and German companies under long—term contracts, and the rest is on the spot. According to AIS courts, France has already received the largest number of shipments in January — 6.

Gas exports from Russia remain at a high level. Norway — about 340 million cubic meters per day. And Gazprom is returning from January 12 to maximum deliveries via the European route of the Turkish Stream, the only remaining route for exporting Russian gas to Europe. For more than three days, the gas supply has been at the level of almost 56 million cubic meters per day. Previously, similar highs were recorded only in February and November last year.

High gas consumption in Europe, especially for generation, plays not only on the price of blue fuel. The wholesale cost of electricity is growing. So, according to the Nord Pool exchange, if during the New Year's Eve week the price in France was 81 euros per MWh, and in Germany - 73 euros, then this week the quotes have already risen to 99 and 107 euros, respectively.

As EADaily reported, a year ago gas quotes were at an even higher level — $ 540. Now Europe is being helped by high gas supplies from abroad. However, the situation worsens for the region because meteorologists predict the return of Arctic air masses to Europe in the third decade of January.

Europe already faced lower reserves in mid-January, in 2021, but then the EU countries had Gazprom, which could quickly and significantly increase supplies. Now, due to sanctions and counter-sanctions, the Russian company supplies gas only via the European line of the Turkish Stream, and volumes have decreased by more than five times.