In 13 years high gas in the US

The price of natural gas in the US reaches a high of 13 years on Monday, as the huge demand “tests” the possibilities of producers to expand their activity in order to cover it.

Gas SMEs, according to Bloomberg, rose 3.5%, reaching $ 7,558 per million heat units at 10 am Greek time, surpassing January levels and having doubled since the beginning of the year.

The global fuel market shock is sweeping through all the relevant markets, as supply “struggles” to meet the post-pandemic surge of demand, a phenomenon exacerbated by the war in Ukraine. Although gas prices in the US are lower than in Europe and Asia, due to an increase in shale gas fields in the country, the “gap” is shrinking steadily.

Stored stocks are now below normal for the current period of the year, while production is stable. At the same time, the US is exporting the smallest amount of LNG available to Europe to make up for losses from Russian energy supplies to the Old Continent.

Temperatures for the week of April 25 to May 1 in the northern United States are expected to be lower than expected, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

This could increase the demand for heating and energy production, diverting some of the gas that should be directed to storage during this period. A US carbon shortage has also increased gas demand, limiting the ability of power plants to use alternative fuels.

Gas reserves strengthened in the week ended April 8 by 15 billion cubic feet, less than 50% of their average growth over the same period over the past five years. Stocks are thus at 18% below normal for the season.