In a commentary published on Sunday 23 February, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said that Europe’s energy systems would face a “challenging year“ as they exit the 2024-2025 winter with below-average levels of gas in storage.
European gas markets remained volatile at the start of 2025, with prices reaching their highest level in two years. This is due in particular to the cessation of Russian gas transit via Ukraine on 1 January, the cold weather and the low production of renewable energies, which increased withdrawals from gas storage facilities.
Stocks are therefore lower than at the same time last year (see EUROPE 13576/21). According to the IEA, this will further increase Europe’s dependence on liquefied natural gas (LNG) on world markets, since the EU’s stock-filling targets will have to be met before next winter starts.
“Global gas markets are unlikely to start to ease significantly until well into 2026 when a huge wave of new LNG supply is set to start hitting international markets”, say the commentary’s authors.
However, they believe that waiting for these new projects is not a viable strategy for European economies currently facing high gas prices. They call on governments to act quickly to improve energy efficiency, diversify energy supplies and implement other measures to enhance energy security, “with options including the agreement of long-term contracts to provide more stable supplies and strengthening the transatlantic partnership on LNG trade” (see EUROPE 13584/9).
To see the IEA commentary: https://aeur.eu/f/fn4 (Original version in French by Pauline Denys)