Prices for gas imported from Russia fall 39 per cent in one year

According to Elering’s calculations, the average price of Gazprom gas imported to Estonia in December was 19.14 euros per megawatt-hour, having fallen by 39 per cent compared with the price in December 2014.

The massive fall in the price was caused primarily by the lower oil prices accompanying the fall in light and heavy heating oil prices on the world market, on the basis of which further reductions in gas prices can be expected.

The trading price for natural gas on the Get Baltic Lithuanian gas exchange averaged 16.97 euros per megawatt-hour in December, falling by 34 per cent compared with the previous year. Natural gas prices on the Kaasupörssi gas exchange in Finland were comparable, being in the range of 14.22 to 20.25 euros per megawatt-hour.

Gas sellers imported around 16.2 million cubic metres of natural gas from Lithuania in December 2015, making up 29.4 per cent of total gas imports. This is the highest monthly figure of last year. In total, 2015 saw 97.4 million cubic metres of natural gas being imported from Lithuania, making up 20.3 per cent of total imports.

Last month, Baltic Energy Partners, Eesti Energia and Reola Gaas imported gas from Lithuania. The balance of gas were imported from Russia by Eesti Gaas. In total, 55.1 million cubic metres of natural gas were imported to Estonia last month, which is 20 per cent less than the same time last year. The significant fall in consumption was due to the unseasonably warm weather in December.

In December, 97.7 per cent of natural gas imports to Estonia came via Karksi, 1.9 per cent via Värska, and 0.5 per cent via Narva. Volumes of natural gas imported to Estonia fluctuated between 1.2 and 3.0 million cubic metres per day, and no disruptions in the cross-border gas supply were reported.

Natural gas network volumes totalled 54.79 million cubic metres in December, as reported by Elering. Of this, the largest natural gas distribution network, AS Gaasivõrgud, reported total service volumes of 46.2 million cubic metres, or 84 per cent. The estimated volume of gas pipeline stocks fell by 9.5 per cent compared with the previous year to 3.9 million cubic metres. Stocks rose by 2.3 per cent compared with November.

No gas moved through the south-east Estonian transit pipeline between Russia and Latvia. Latvia’s Inčukalns underground storage facility registered at 67 per cent capacity at the end of December.

A full-length summary of December’s gas market and system can be viewed here.