European wholesale gas prices are at their lowest since the start of the war in Ukraine

Almost five times cheaper than in August: The wholesale price of natural gas in Europe fell to the lowest level since the start of the war in Ukraine on Monday, continuing its decline on the back of a relatively warm winter, which is stockpiling inventories. The benchmark contract for the continent, TTF on the Dutch market, fell another 4.67% to 72.75 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) for delivery at 09:35 (08:35 GMT) Monday morning in February. February 21.

The price of gas for next month’s delivery has lost almost 50% in a month… and has fallen significantly from the summer peak: in August 2022, it reached a peak of 342 euros per megawatt hour. Gas prices began to rise in the fall of 2021, and cuts in Russian gas supplies to Europe began, then the most severe since the invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Since then, gas pipelines between Russia and Europe have almost everything. Closed. Volume traded on Monday was weak as major commodity markets in London closed. This downward trend is possible thanks to”Substantial gas reserves have been built up and moderate demand, particularly due to favorable weather conditionsSebastian Paris Horwitz explains. “This is good news for European countries and the economies of the region.“, he underlines.

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As many European power plants burn gas to generate electricity, gas prices affect electricity. In France, the price of wholesale electricity for delivery in 2023 fell to 240 euros on Friday, the lowest since April, after surpassing 1,000 euros/MWh at the end of August. But these variations in wholesale prices are not directly reflected in prices charged to consumers as electricity suppliers adjust their tariffs, especially during this period when prices rise from one day to the next.

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