Planned Nord Stream shutdown drives new record high for European gas prices at close

It is a planned closure that has immediate consequences.

The European gas price continued its inexorable rise on Friday to end at a new closing record, boosted by the closure "for maintenance" of Nord Stream by the Russian giant Gazprom for several days.

The European Union's difficulty in amassing sufficient reserves to be able to do without Russian exports during the winter without creating a shortage was felt at the end of the session.

While Gazprom has said that gas deliveries will resume after a shutdown from August 31 to September 2, the market remains nervous: the European Union accuses Moscow of using gas as leverage in the context of its invasion of Ukraine.

As a result, the German energy regulator reported on Thursday that the country risks missing its target for filling its reservoirs set by the government of Olaf Scholz.

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Regulator chief Klaus Müller warned that shortages were to be expected in some regions during the winter, and that it was "not one winter but at least two, and the second winter could be still more difficult ".

Europe is painfully trying to wean itself off Russian gas, on which Germany is particularly dependent.

A flow of 33 million cubic meters of gas per day after the interruption

"On August 31, 2022, the only Trent 60 gas compression unit will be shut down for three days for maintenance" which will be attended by Siemens technicians, Gazprom said in a statement.

Therefore, "gas transport through the Nord Stream pipeline will be suspended for three days", he continued, saying that equipment maintenance was "necessary every 1,000 hours" of operation.

At the end of this period, deliveries will resume with a flow of 33 million cubic meters of gas per day, he said.

The announcement of this decision risks rekindling fears of shortages in Europe, where Moscow is accused of energy blackmail.

Since Western countries imposed sanctions on Moscow after the launch of its offensive against Ukraine, Russia has several times reduced its gas deliveries to Europe, which is heavily dependent on it.

Russia accounted for some 40% of EU gas imports until last year.