MOSCOW, May 30. The average price of natural gas in Europe rose by more than a third this spring compared to the same period last year, reaching approximately $582 per 1,000 cubic meters amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. This is according to data from the London ICE exchange for futures contracts and calculations by TASS.

In addition, natural gas prices in Europe were 39% higher in May than the average prices recorded in May 2025. While futures contracts for natural gas were trading at approximately $562 per 1,000 cubic meters on April 30, trading closed on May 29 at approximately $550, which is 2% less than at the end of the previous month. Natural gas prices at European hubs averaged $481 per 1,000 cubic meters in the first quarter of this year, while in the second quarter they remained at approximately $557. Overall, prices this spring were 36% higher than in the same period last year.

The average price of natural gas in Europe in January 2025 was approximately $517 per 1,000 cubic meters (a year-on-year increase of 53% compared to 2024), $542 in February (+88%), $467 in March (+55%), $409 in April (+28%), $412 in May (+15%), $439 in June (+14%), $410 in July (+12%), $394 in August (-10%), $393 in September (-5.5%), $384 in October (-16%), $368 in November (-25%), $334 in December (-32%), $415 in January 2026 (-20%), $396 in February (-27%), $632 in March (+35%), $544 in April (+33%) and $571 in May (+39%).

Reasons for the increase in natural gas prices

The increase in natural gas prices this spring was primarily due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and the crisis in the global natural gas market caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-fifth of the world's supplies pass. This has led to higher natural gas prices in both Europe and Asia, which are competing for available volumes in the market and driving prices up. As previously reported by the TASS agency, Europe completed the heating season at the beginning of April. It was the second-longest heating season in history since observations began in 2011, lasting 173 days. Only the 2020-2021 heating season, which lasted a record 190 days, was longer. Net natural gas withdrawals during the past heating season exceeded 61 billion cubic meters, which is 6.5 billion cubic meters more than the volumes injected last summer.

According to the requirements of the European Commission, EU countries must ensure that natural gas storage facilities are filled to 90% of their capacity between October 1 and December 1 each year. In addition, a 10% flexible reserve is allowed in case of difficult conditions for filling the storage facilities. Therefore, net natural gas injections into European storage facilities before the autumn and winter season of 2026-2027 must reach at least 68 billion cubic meters in order to achieve the filling target. A year earlier, Europe managed to reach only about 55 billion cubic meters.

Currently, European underground natural gas storage facilities are 39.13% full, compared to 47% a year earlier, and contain 42.8 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Europe has already injected approximately 12 billion cubic meters of natural gas into storage for next winter. At the same time, Gazprom has reported a continuation of record lows in the filling of underground natural gas storage facilities in Europe. The holding company also predicts that natural gas reserves in European storage facilities may not reach even 70% by the next heating season.

TASS/gnews.cz