Europe will not face a gas shortage this winter, but it will have to pay more to ensure sufficient supplies. TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné said this on November 2, UNN writes, citing Reuters.
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"The idea of a gas shortage is false," Pouyanné said, speaking at a briefing on TotalEnergies' energy demand forecast, adding that Europe is aware of its gas storage needs after markets bet on the end of the war with Iran in the summer.
The comments, the publication notes, come as Europe competes with Asia for liquefied natural gas cargoes while trying to replenish storage facilities ahead of winter, amid continued uncertainty over the war between the United States and Israel and Iran and its impact on exports from Qatar, one of the world's largest LNG suppliers.
This led to a rise in gas prices during the summer, when traders usually consider it more profitable to store volumes than to sell them.
German gas storage facilities, the largest in Europe, are entering the winter season at their lowest level ever recorded — as of November 1, they were only 61.03% full, well below the European Union average of 74.62%, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe.
"We will pay more than others, that's just the way it is," Pouyanné said.
Gas in Europe jumped above €100 amid the risk of renewed war with Iran30.10.26, 12:59