Kommersant announced a historical record of LNG imports to Europe

Kommersant: Europe attracted a record amount of LNG, Gazprom lost a part of the market

High gas prices have temporarily made Europe a more attractive market for LNG sellers. But strategically, LNG is not yet able to replace pipeline gas

The volume of Gazprom’s gas supplies to the EU countries fell sharply in January 2022 and averages 233 million cubic meters per day, the newspaper calculated “Kommersant” based on data from the European association GIE. At the same time, a record volume of liquefied natural gas (LNG) was attracted to European countries in January.

According to the publication, the decline in supplies was due to the fact that European consumers do not order Russian gas, and this has led to a reduction in the share of Russian gas in the European market.

“On January 28, the average daily volume of gas entering the EU gas transmission network from LNG terminals amounted to 334 million cubic meters, which exceeds the previous record set in November 2019 (329 million cubic meters),” the newspaper writes. In total, the EU can receive 10.36 billion cubic meters of regasified LNG in January against 9.9 billion in November 2019 and 7.3 billion in December 2021.

One of the reasons is the sharp rise in gas prices in Europe. In January, the actual deliveries are made according to previously concluded contracts, which means that now gas is supplied to Europe at the high prices of December 2021 – about $1,400 per 1,000 cubic meters, the newspaper notes.