Gazprom, Russia’s major gas company, increased its natural gas shipments to Europe by 23% in June compared to the same month last year, according to Reuters estimates. The daily average volume of pipeline gas deliveries was 81.8 million cubic meters (mcm) in June, an increase from 66.8 mcm in June 2023.
This data is derived from European gas transmission group Entsog and Gazprom’s daily reports on gas transit via Ukraine.
Despite the year-over-year increase, Gazprom’s export volumes in June 2024 were lower than in May 2024, where the daily average was 89.5 mcm. The decline was primarily due to maintenance work on the TurkStream pipeline earlier in June. Notably, Gazprom stopped providing monthly export data at the start of 2023, making detailed comparisons more challenging.
Gazprom Increases Gas Shipments to Europe by 23% in June Amidst Ongoing Uncertainty
The context of these changes in gas export volumes lies in the significant reduction of Russia’s gas exports to Europe following the invasion of Ukraine. After cutting off supplies to Poland, Bulgaria, and Finland weeks after the invasion, Gazprom further reduced supplies via the Nord Stream pipeline to Germany in June 2022, citing issues with gas turbine maintenance due to Western sanctions.
This reduction preceded the sabotage of the Nord Stream pipelines in September 2022, which stopped all gas deliveries to Germany via this route.
Historically, Russia supplied about one-third of Europe’s gas before the Ukraine conflict. However, in 2023, Gazprom’s pipeline gas exports to Europe fell by 55.6% compared to 2022, leading to the company’s first annual net loss in 23 years. This financial downturn was driven by reduced gas shipments and pricing pressures.
While Gazprom’s gas deliveries in May and June 2024 were higher than the low levels seen last year, the future stability of these supplies remains uncertain.
The uncertainty has caused brief spikes in Europe’s benchmark gas prices, particularly after German energy company Uniper ended its long-term gas supply deal with Gazprom and Austrian firm OMV warned of potential supply halts due to a foreign court ruling affecting payments to Gazprom Export.
