Over the 10 months of this year, Gazprom increased gas supplies to Europe by 15% compared to 2023. The company’s customers increased their orders this year to 26.5 billion cubic meters. Half of the increase came from Greece, which reduced LNG purchases but more than doubled its fuel imports for Gazprom’s pipeline.
In January-October, Gazprom’s exports to Europe amounted to 26.5 billion cubic meters, 15% more than in 10 months of 2023. In October, according to ENTSOG, the company supplied the maximum volume since August 2023: 2.84 billion cubic meters.
After the start of the SVO, due to sanctions, counter-sanctions and sabotage, Gazprom was left with only two routes for gas supplies to Europe: through Ukraine and Turkey. The main increase came from the European Turkish Stream line. In addition, around 2.8 billion cubic meters were supplied this year out of a total growth of 3.3 billion cubic meters.
Since 2022, pipeline gas supplies from Russia to Europe have been reduced by approximately five times and the current recovery is small. However, it shows that Gazprom’s fuel remains one of the most competitive in the region. The experts pointed out EADaily that additional requests for long-term contracts by customers may be associated with more attractive prices.
Thus, while Gazprom increased its exports, the total supply of LNG to Europe decreased by more than 17 billion cubic meters in ten months, to 89.9 billion cubic meters, according to GIE.
On the one hand, prices in Asia this year were more attractive for LNG suppliers, while in Europe consumption decreased in a context of lower injection due to high balances in storage facilities after the winter. During the season, UGS reserves of EU countries increased by 40.6 billion cubic meters to 104 billion cubic meters. While a year ago they grew 48.1 billion cubic meters.
On the other hand, in conditions of still high prices, around $400 per thousand cubic meters, gas from the Russian gas pipeline was more attractive for those who continue to receive it.
Instructive is the example of Greece, where they recently publicly began commercially operating a second LNG terminal, in Alexandroupolis, and again vowed to abandon Russian gas. In January-October, the country’s companies increased imports of Russian gas by gas pipeline to Greece by 2.7 times. According to ENTSOG, supplies increased from 1 billion cubic meters to 2.7 billion cubic meters. At the same time, LNG imports were almost halved, according to the GIE, from 2.48 billion cubic meters to 1.27 billion cubic meters. Greece’s main terminal, Revitussa, was used at only 19% of its capacity this year.
