(Finance) – The amount of gas withdrawn from underground storage deposits in the European Union has once again exceeded the amount of gas injected. This is what the Russian news agency Tass reports, citing the data published by Gas Infrastructure Europe (EIG). The gas leaving the installations UG extension in EU countries on 7 January it was in fact equal to 122 million cubic meters (the lowest recorded since the start of the GIE surveys in 2011) while the volume of injection was 112 million cubic meters. This is still a very low withdrawal level for the month of January, a situation favored by temperatures above the seasonal average recorded in most European countries.
From the start of the switching on of the heating in Europe – which began on 14 November – the EU countries have taken a total 17.21 billion cubic meters of gas from storage facilities. At the moment in European warehouses are stored approx 90 billion cubic meters of gas, at just over 83% of their capacity, about 16 pp higher than the average recorded in the last 5 years.
However, the Russian agency recalls the warning launched by Gazprom which argued that European gas inventories would not be able to ensure reliable passage through the autumn-winter period and that, due to changes in gas logistics and sources of supply, winter demand for UGS facilities in Europe will be greater than in previous years.
Tass also reported that the Russian company is supplying gas to Europe through Ukraine 35.5 million cubic meters per day via the gas pumping station of Sudzha (data relating to January 9), while the authorization request also has to use the station Sokhanovka allegedly rejected by the Ukrainian authorities.