OSLO, Feb 17 (Reuters) – Gas prices in Europe will not hit 2022 records again as reduced Russian supply and French nuclear problems raised fears of a shortage, the head of Germany’s largest electricity company, OSLO. RWE.
Gas prices in Europe hit a record high of around 350 euros per megawatt hour in August last year, but have since fallen.
On Friday, they fell below 50 euros/MWh for the first time since August 2021.
“The situation on the gas market is currently not so tense, mainly because the winter has been mild and French nuclear power has returned as expected,” Markus Krebber told Reuters in an interview on the sidelines of a press release. conference this week.
“Will we see gas prices again at 350 euros/MWh in Europe? I don’t think so,” he said.
Gas storage remains 65% full, after European countries spent billions buying extra supplies to make up for the loss of Russian gas through the pipeline.
Programs to increase liquefied natural gas (LNG) infrastructure have also accelerated.
Germany, which was one of the countries most dependent on Russian gas, is expected to have six floating LNG import terminals operational by the end of 2023, having had none before Russia began its invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago.
The number of projects has been criticized by conservationists as excessive, especially as the European Union seeks to transition to a zero-carbon economy.
But Krebber said it was a necessary precaution.
“It’s like insurance: it’s better that way than being in a situation like 12 months ago,” he said. (Reporting by Nora Buli; edited in Spanish by Benjamín Mejías Valencia)