European Gas Prices Soar to 3.5-Year High as Storage Refill Rates Slow

European gas prices have hit their highest level in over three years as storage refill rates slow before winter. According to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe, European storage facilities were only 55.35% full at the end of July, which is 15.9 percentage points below the five-year average.

The injection rate has fallen each week since the start of the injection season, with average injection volumes during the week of July 20-24 being more than 25% below peak levels recorded at the same time last year.

Despite efforts to offset the loss of Russian pipeline gas through liquefied natural gas imports, overall gas imports in July are down about 25% from 2025 levels. LNG imports could fall to 6.5 million metric tons in July, their lowest level in two years.