MISH headline: US Natural Gas Price Near 14-Year Peak, EU Hits New Record
Sub-headline: Electricity costs continue higher in in the US and EU as a result of surging natural gas prices.
https://mishtalk.com/economics/us-natural-gas-price-near-14-…
Trading Economics Natural Gas Comments (about USA Nat Gas)
US Natural Gas futures were trading around the $9.10/MMBtu mark, not far from a 14-year peak of $9.75/MMBtu hit in late July, buoyed by strong overseas and domestic demand. The temperatures in the US this summer remain high, with several heatwaves boosting demand for air conditioners. On top of that, Freeport LNG has recently agreed with regulators to partially restart operations in October at its shuttered export plant in Texas and said it began to pull in tiny amounts of natural gas from pipelines. The resumption of flows will withdraw more natural gas from storage and boost exports. Adding to the bullish outlook, demand from Europe remains strong as the critical Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia to Germany is currently running at 20% capacity. Meanwhile, the latest EIA data showed a smaller-than-expected injection into inventories for the week ending August 12.
Trading Economics Comments (about EU Nat Gas)
A historic drought triggered by an arid summer that set heat records across Europe threatens to halt energy shipments along the Rhine River while limiting hydroelectric and nuclear power production. Exacerbating concerns about supplies, Russia’s Gazprom has dramatically reduced flows through the Nord Stream pipeline to roughly 20% of its capacity, citing issues with turbines. What could be Europe’s biggest energy crisis in a generation has already prompted German regulators to advise that the bloc’s largest economy must cut its natural gas use by 20% to protect themselves against a natural gas shortage this winter.
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