Strong demand continues to support European hub prices

The NBP day-ahead was around 31 p/th ($4.47/MMBtu) on Tuesday, close to the average it has maintained for the past week. The price received support from demand in the UK, which has been above seasonal norms, and reduced flows from the Bacton SEAL terminal. UK demand is again expected to be above seasonal norms on Wednesday. Offtake from the power sector has been growing strongly this year and is pushing up total demand. With NBP prices still low enough to make gas-fired generation competitive, further increases in demand from the power sector are expected.