Dutch and British wholesale gas price rose slightly on Tuesday morning as freezing weather in the United States continued to curb liquefied natural gas exports.
The benchmark Dutch front-month contract at the TTF hub was 0.60 higher at €40.30 per megawatt hour, or $14.02, by 09:31 GMT, LSEG data showed.
The price reached its highest since April last year on Monday.
British day-ahead gas was up 3.70p at 105p per therm while the front-month contract inched up by 0.22p to 103.60p per therm. US gas market developments could continue to be a concern as supply disruptions affect LNG exports.
US natural gas futures soared by a record 119 per cent over five days to a three-year high on Monday after an Arctic blast over the weekend boosted heating demand and cut production to a two-year low by freezing oil and gas wells and pipes.
LNG feedgas dropped to a one-year low of 12.1 bcfd on Sunday due to reductions at all plants, including Freeport LNG in Texas and Elba Island in Georgia.
"In recent days, US LNG plants have significantly reduced their gas intake, estimated to be down around 48 per cent, which will translate into reduced LNG exports from these plants," said analysts at ING.
TTF prices continue to trade at a healthy premium to Asian LNG to ensure LNG cargoes move into Europe, where storage has now fallen below 45 per cent full. Last week, at least two LNG tankers that were initially eastbound were diverted towards Europe and Turkey, shiptracking data showed.
"It's looking increasingly likely that storage will end the 25/26 heating season at below 25 per cent full. This would also be below the levels seen in 2022," ING said.
The market will be watching for how quickly US production recovers in the United States and whether more extreme cold could come next month, analysts at EBW Analytics added.
Further out this year, a lot of new LNG supply is expected, mainly from Qatar and the United States.
Meanwhile, supply in north-west Europe is stable. Forecasts have been revised colder until February 6 and milder from February 8-18, LSEG data showed.
Wind generation in north-west Europe is forecast above normal until at least February 4 before falling below normal and remaining there until at least February 10.
(Reporting by Nina Chestney)
