Heat wave raises gas prices in Europe – statistic data revealed

The heat wave that hit Europe raised the spot price of gas on the European market last Monday alone by 11% to $359.9 per thousand cubic metres.

Data from the TTF hub in the Netherlands has evidenced the heat wave’s impact on energy resource usage. Thus, the spot price in Europe rose by 11.2% on July 24. Day-ahead contracts on the TTF hub in the Netherlands on July 25 were concluded at $359.9 per thousand cubic metres.

European benchmark futures fluctuated near €30 a megawatt-hour on July 25. Prices have seen gains including an 8.5% jump on July 24 amid concerns about escalating Russia-Ukraine war, seasonal works in Norway and heat waves in Europe impacting energy networks, Bloomberg reported.

At the same time, wind power generation in Europe on Monday covered only 14% of the region’s electricity needs. On Tuesday, July 25, this figure reached 17%. The WindEurope Association reports this.

However, Europe continues to pump gas into storage facilities.

According to Gas Infrastructure Europe, the current level of reserves has reached 83.74%. This is 15 percentage points higher than the average for the same dates over the past five years.

If this momentum is maintained throughout the summer, the target level of 90% storage utilisation will be achieved by the end of September.

European LNG terminals operated at an average capacity of 63% in June. As of early July, the average utilisation was 58%.

In the summer of 2023, Southern European countries are suffering from a severe heat wave. In Athens, a famous tourist attraction, the Acropolis, was closed. The reason is the intense heat that can harm visitors.

Studies have shown that Europe is heating up twice as fast as the average for other regions.