EU Gas Storage Levels at Historic Low, But No Shortage Expected

Despite historically low gas storage levels in Europe, officials and analysts say that EU countries are unlikely to face gas shortages. The Dutch TTF index, which is Europe's benchmark gas price, hit a multi-year high of €65 per megawatt-hour on Thursday.

Germany's underground gas storage facilities, the biggest in Europe, are only 50% full, marking 'a historic low' according to Sebastian Heinermann, who heads industry association Ines. Across Europe, gas storage levels stand at around 62%, which is 15 percentage points below the 10-year average and their lowest level for late August in two decades.

However, officials and analysts caution that fears of shortages are overblown. 'A gas shortage is not expected,' reads a briefing note sent to journalists by the German Economy ministry. Kerstin Andreae, who heads utility association BDEW, said the situation was 'not comparable to previous years, particularly the crisis year of 2022.'

Ben McWilliams of think tank Bruegel said he doesn't see reasons for excessive panic, adding that shortages would require a 'worst-case winter with prolonged cold temperatures, further unplanned global LNG market outages, and weak electricity supply' from wind, hydro, and nuclear.