Guess who is back: after a steep fall during the winter, European LNG import flows are now climbing to above last year levels amidst tight JKM-TTF spreads.
European LNG imports took a steep dip during this heating season, falling by about 40% yoy between October-Feb, with LNG cargoes increasingly diverted to the Asia Pacific region amidst more favourable netbacks.
With the JKM-TTF spread tightening, and actually turning into negative for April deliveries, European LNG influx has been sharply recovering through March, over 50% on the month, and climbed back to above last year levels by now.
The recovery has been largely driven by northwest Europe’s liquid hubs, and in particular by the UK. in terms of supply, Qatar has been effectively optimising its exports towards Europe: about 30% of Qatari LNG is now flowing to Europe vs less than 10% in January.
What is your view? How will LNG markets evolve this summer? With JKM-TTF spreads remaining tight, and with ample injection space in European storage, will European LNG imports continue to recover this summer?
Source: Greg MOLNAR
Connect with Greg on LinkedIn
