France's gas reserves drop below 25% amid active usage across Europe

Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) has announced that gas reserves in underground storage facilities in France, which ranks among the top five European countries in terms of storage capacity, dropped below 25 per cent. 

French underground storage facilities are filled to 24.87 per cent, with around 3.2 billion cubic meters of gas, Caliber.Az reports via Russian media. 

Other leading countries in gas storage capacity are also actively using their reserves. In Germany, underground storage facilities are filled to 40.65 per cent, in Austria to 54.27 per cent, in Italy to 55.03 per cent, and in the Netherlands to 29.79 per cent.

Storage levels in Slovakia stand at 50.45 per cent, Hungary at 47.85 per cent, the Czech Republic at 43.71 per cent, Romania at 35.69 per cent, Bulgaria at 44.04 per cent, Belgium at 31.39 per cent, Denmark at 36.94 per cent, Latvia at 47.53 per cent, and Croatia at 24.54 per cent.

Portugal currently has the highest level of storage in Europe, nearing 100 per cent. Other countries with high storage levels include Sweden (88.05 per cent), Spain (66.87 per cent), and Poland (55.99 per cent).

The most challenging years for the EU were 2018 and 2022, when gas reserves in storage facilities by the end of the heating season in spring fell to critical levels of below 18 per cent and 26 per cent, respectively. During these periods, the EU had to resort to drawing from so-called buffer gas, which is used to maintain the required pressure in storage facilities.

The first half of this week is expected to be cool across Europe, but a significant warming trend is forecast for the weekend. Wind power accounted for an average of 21 per cent of the EU's electricity generation in January, while this share dropped to around 12 per cent in February. 

The average purchase price of gas in Europe in December 2024 was $489 per 1,000 cubic metres, rising to approximately $518 in January 2025, and reaching $577 in February.

LNG deliveries from terminals to Europe's gas transportation system reached a record level in February. 

By Naila Huseynova