Gas prices in Europe fell for a fourth straight day as US deliveries are expected to calm markets and traders weighed milder weather and risks to demand from the Omicron variant of the coronavirus.
Dutch benchmark gas in the first month fell as much as 19% to 90 euros per megawatt-hour, the lowest price since Dec. 6, as shipments of liquefied natural gas eased the continent’s energy crisis. German energy for January fell a record 36% to €220 per megawatt-hour as lower gas prices make generating electricity cheaper.
Natural gas fell 25% last week after a growing number of ships carrying LNG headed for Western European ports. Milder weather forecasts for much of continental Europe will reduce energy demand, while there has also been uncertainty about the impact of the rapid spread of Omicron.
That’s despite coronavirus infections rising across the globe and over the weekend China reported the highest number of local cases since January.
Still, Europe remains caught in the worst energy crisis in decades. No pipeline space has been reserved for Monday’s next-day auctions to deliver natural gas through Mallnow to Germany, where the Russian Yamal-Europe pipeline ends, according to the Regional Reservation Platform.
The continent relies on depleted storage sites, which have seen prices increase more than fivefold this year.