Wholesale gas prices fall to lowest for 17 months

Prices for gas to be supplied in March fell over 4% to €51.60 per megawatt-hour and compared with €79 at the start of the year.

European wholesale gas prices fell to the lowest level since September 2021 as confidence grows for energy stability through the rest of the winter.

Prices for gas to be supplied in March fell over 4% to €51.60 per megawatt-hour and compared with €79 at the start of the year.

Prices have slid since last summer, however.         

The slump illustrates a remarkable turn of events for Europe, which just six months ago saw gas prices above €300 as countries braced for winter rationing and blackouts. 

That hasn’t occurred, due to mild weather and steady imports of liquefied natural gas, or LNG, to make up for lost pipeline flows from Russia. Gas storage levels are now much higher than usual for the time of year.

Sweden downgraded its risk of power cuts to “low” in a sign that the worst of the continent's supply crisis has passed — at least for now. 

Cheaper fuel to produce power, along with warmer weather, is set to ease the strain on power stations and grids in the region. 

Separately, the Freeport LNG plant in Texas has resumed shipments from tanks, a milestone toward a full restart, which is yet to follow. 

In Norway, an unplanned outage at the Troll field ended, boosting supply from Europe’s key gas provider.