Market Roundup

Americas

A record year for US gas-for-power demand

Low gas prices and ample supplies of the fuel in the United States have increased its popularity in the country’s power sector, and mean the fuel is now more able to compete with coal.

Europe & Russia

European gas – stocked up for 2016

Warmer weather has limited drawdowns on stocks in Europe and Ukraine over recent weeks and net withdrawals in most major European markets for the first half of December have been lower than in recent years.

Americas

Californian drought has a varying effect on gas prices

California has entered its fifth year of drought, which has caused more gas and renewables to be used in the state’s power-generation mix to fill the gap left by hydropower.

22 April 2015

Europe & Russia

Cooler temperatures fail to push up European hub prices

Cool weather across much of Europe at the end of last week failed to trigger a surge in hub prices. Instead, prices fell over the past week.

22 April 2015

Americas

Henry Hub decline encourages switch from coal to gas

The Henry Hub front-month futures price has continued to decline in April, making gas more competitive compared with coal – a trend that will continue for the next few months.

15 April 2015

Europe & Russia

Mild weather pushes European hub prices down

The UK and parts of Europe have experienced higher-than-usual temperatures in recent days, which have weighed on hub prices.

15 April 2015

Americas

Speculators remain net short in Henry Hub futures

The Henry Hub front-month futures price has averaged $2.67/MMBtu so far this month – a decline of 42.1% year on year and the lowest average for April since 2012.

8 April 2015

Europe & Russia

Net storage injections start to make an appearance

France and Italy have both seen their gas storage levels rise over the past week – a first for both countries this year.

8 April 2015

Americas

Shoulder months offer limited upside to Henry Hub

The United States and Canada officially entered the 2015 gas injection season on Wednesday, although both countries had already started making net injections in March.

1 April 2015

Europe & Russia

European hub prices edge up in first half of week

The NBP day-ahead rose by 1 p/th from the start of the week to reach 47.5 p/th ($7.10/MMBtu) on Tuesday. Prices at hubs in Europe saw a similar increase.

25 March 2015

Americas

Gas injection season starts early in Canada

Canada made a net storage injection of 57 million cubic metres (MMcm) of gas in the week ending 13 March – the first net injection so far this year.

25 March 2015

Europe & Russia

NBP day-ahead prices steady over the past week

The NBP day-ahead price has been holding at around 47 p/th, having been supported by colder temperatures in recent days.

18 March 2015

Americas

Early-spring chill offers limited support to Henry Hub

The Henry Hub front-month futures price increased by 5.1% - closing at $2.86/MMBtu on 17 March – compared with the previous day’s close. However, with North America already in spring, it is unlikely the price will move above $3/MMBtu anytime soon.

18 March 2015

Americas

Canadian gas prices show limited upside

Mild weather, healthy supplies from the United States and weak storage withdrawals have capped gains in Canadian gas prices recently.

11 March 2015

Europe & Russia

Fundamentals putting pressure on European hub prices

European hub prices have generally been falling since the beginning of March. At the end of last week, the NBP day-ahead price dropped to around 45 p/th ($6.78/MMBtu) – its lowest level since late January.

11 March 2015

Americas

$3/MMBtu proves elusive for the Henry Hub

The Henry Hub front-month futures price averaged $2.75/MMBtu in February – down by 46.7% year on year.

4 March 2015

Europe & Russia

European storage levels down 15% year on year

Storage withdrawal rates continue to be strong across Europe. EU28 storage sites are now just 35% full, with around 32 billion cubic metres of gas in stock – down by 15% on an annual basis.

4 March 2015

Europe & Russia

Heavy storage withdrawals continue

Roughly 4.5 billion cubic metres of gas has been withdrawn from storage facilities across Europe over the past week, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe data.

25 February 2015

Americas

Henry Hub supported by late winter cold

Henry Hub futures and spot prices are being helped by cold weather affecting several areas of the United States, including parts of the southern states.

25 February 2015