Gas takes a breather: US ships crowd Europe-bound shipping lanes

The energy crisis that Europe is suffering seems to give a truce. Natural gas freighters from the United States bound for Europe increased by a third over the weekend.

According to data compiled by Bloomberg, a total of 20 tankers left the United States for the Old Continent, compared to the 15 ships that did the day before Christmas Eve. In addition, another 14 freighters await the order to set sail for Europe.

These data have helped soften European natural gas prices, which last week soared above 180 euros per megawatt hour after a drop in gas flows from Russia.

Now, the expectations of sending this fuel from the United States make the gas chain already five consecutive days of falls, which translates into its longest bearish streak in over a year. Specifically, the Dutch reference gas has fallen by 8.3%, below 100 euros per megawatt / hour.

“As we enter the final stretch of the year, the complex European energy sector shows no signs of calming down”, highlighted the consultancy Timera Energy in a report, while adding that “industrial demand has been facing this situation and many producers of metals and fertilizers have been forced to reduce their production “.

However, the market is not only attentive to the arrival of more supply from the other side of the Atlantic, but is also focused on whether Russia is going to be willing to send more gas to Europe next January. This same Tuesday, the monthly auction of gas transit capacity through the gas pipelines will give the necessary clues to know the plans that Gazprom will have in January. The arrival of Russian gas to Germany through Mallnow is halted this Tuesday, according to data from the operator Gascade.

Another relevant piece of information that will help curb energy demand for the next week is the weather forecast, which will be warmer than normal. However, the market remains tense, as very low temperatures are expected for the second week of January. Likewise, the impact of omicron on the economy also generates uncertainty. Infections with the new variant of coronavirus have skyrocketed around the world and, over the weekend, China has recorded the highest number of cases since January.

And although an immediate end to the energy crisis that has shaken Europe is not yet in sight, the fall in gas prices is also pushing down electricity rates: in Germany, electricity for January has already fallen by 36%, to 220 euros per megawatt-hour, while that of France for the next month fell by 28%.