British and Dutch wholesale prompt gas prices fell on Thursday, with milder weather reducing demand for heating, while Dutch curve contracts rose slightly, with some analysts highlighting concerns over future gas deliveries.
The British gas contract for immediate delivery fell by 9.00 pence to 89.00 pence/therm by 0938 GMT, while the contract for next-day delivery was down 7.50 pence at 85.50 pence/therm.
“We see potential for the UK gas day-ahead contract adjusting further down today,” Refinitiv analyst Marina Tsygankova said in a morning report.
The bearish drivers include lower demand for heating amid warmer temperatures, a robust cargo arrival schedule to the UK for liquefied natural gas (LNG) and higher flows from Norway via the Langeled pipeline, she added.
The gas system was 1.5 million cubic metres (mcm) over-supplied on Thursday, according to National Grid data.
Peak wind generation is forecast to remain at around 18 gigawatt (GW) today and on Friday, Elexon data showed, out of total metered capacity of around 20 GW.
High wind output typically reduces demand for gas from power plants.
Europe continues to fill storage facilities, with some countries reporting their sites are now full.
However, there remain concerns over supplies going forward, while temperatures are set to drop to normal levels by the end of next week, analysts said.
The U.S. Freeport LNG facility, a key supplier of gas to Europe before being forced to close due to a fire in June, may not restart as planned later this month, Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ said in a note.
On Wednesday, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen also warned that Europe faced a 30 billion cubic metres shortfall to re-filling storages next year.
The Dutch January contract rose by 1.35 euros to 120.20 euros/MWh, and the first quarter contract gained 4.50 euros at 124.00 euros/MWh.
In the European carbon market, the benchmark contract was down 1.36 euros at 71.40 euros a tonne.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Nora Buli in OSLO; editing by Nina Chestney)