Russia/Ukraine Attacks Make Gas Markets Nervous Again

European LNG prices rose 1% to EUR 28.06 to be 12.8% higher this month as attacks on Russian and Ukrainian energy infrastructure have made markets nervous. It closed off its intraday peak of EUR 29.09. European demand remains weak and temperatures are expected to be above average over the next fortnight.

• While the Ukraine has attacked Russian refineries with Rosneft’s Kuibyshev refinery in Samara, southern Russia, now at half capacity, Russia has directed strikes at Ukraine’s infrastructure too. The Ukraine has said that Russia targeted underground gas storage facilities but they were undamaged. It provides storage for Europe, thus the escalation of attacks on energy is a risk to European supplies as the region refills for next winter.
• US natural gas prices continued to move in the opposite direction to Europe’s. They fell 0.7% to $1.80 at the start of the week to be down over 10% this month. While the end of March is forecast to be cooler, the start of April is expected to see above-average temperatures in the southern US.
• North Asian prices rose 3.7% on Monday to be up over 14% this month as low prices continue to attract Asian buyers with many switching from other fuels to LNG.