Norway's maintenance reduces supply, European natural gas prices edge up slightly.

Due to a sudden drop in gas supply caused by a new round of planned facility maintenance in the main supplier country, Norway, natural gas prices in Europe have increased. On Thursday, benchmark futures prices rose over 2% as the Kollsnes natural gas processing plant in Norway began seasonal maintenance work. This Nordic country supplied about one-third of the European Union's natural gas imports last year. Traders are working to ensure that depleted gas storage facilities in the supply area are replenished, while closely monitoring geopolitical developments such as US tariff policies and current stalled efforts for a Russia-Ukraine ceasefire. However, weak demand in the Chinese market has led to more liquefied natural gas being diverted to Europe, easing some supply pressures this summer. In a report, Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Patricio Alvarez stated, "The amount of liquefied natural gas received by European pipeline networks continues to increase, significantly narrowing the storage gap compared to the same period last year." He expects European natural gas prices to remain around 35 euros per megawatt-hour this year. Alvarez added, "Despite recent production declines in US liquefied natural gas and Norwegian natural gas due to maintenance, Europe's relaxed storage targets, weak domestic demand, and subdued liquefied natural gas imports from China are all easing supply pressures." As of the time of writing, European gas benchmark Dutch near-month futures rose by 1.88% to 36.320 euros per megawatt-hour.