EU Gas Demand Below Seasonal Norms Despite Cold Snap

European gas consumption remains below seasonal norms despite the surge in demand spurred by the cold snap over the past fortnight, Sweden’s SEB bank said.

• “Consumption is still below the historical average of roughly 20TWh/day for this time of year”, the bank said.
• Daily gas consumption has been supported by colder weather in December, but milder weather in southern Europe has weighed on demand.
• Despite the rising demand during the first 10 days of December by around 21%, from the last 10 days of November, it still only averaged 16.6TWh/day.
• Meanwhile, the cold spell resulted in higher inventory withdrawals, averaging 4.7TWh/day over the first 10 days of December, SEB said.
• European inventories remained 87% full, which was up to 11% higher than the previous five-year average.
• “An actual shortage of gas is becoming increasingly unlikely, considering the amount of reduced demand,” SEB said.