La subida del gas a nuevos máximos agrava la cuenta atrás para almacenar reservas para el invierno

Six months have passed since the war in Iran began, and there are no signs of a swift resolution. The United States has recently announced economic retaliations against those trading with Tehran, which will only complicate the energy supply through the Strait of Hormuz. As summer comes to an end, Europe is not meeting the usual gas storage needs for this time of year.

The shortage of supplies from the Middle East has taken its toll, and the EU's overall reserves are at their lowest point since 2009, sitting at 63%. Gas operators are warning that time is not on their side, as winter approaches. The biggest risk is a supply cut when winter arrives, a scenario that is not currently considered most likely but still necessitates vigilance.

The price of natural gas in Europe is at a January 2023 high, having risen by 14% in August, reaching €68 per megawatt-hour on Monday. Extending the closure of Hormuz keeps the cost tension high, complicating the competition between Europe and Asia for supplies and threatening to make the electricity bill more expensive for Europeans in the coming months.