UK Gas Holds Narrow Range

UK natural gas futures were below 80 pence per therm in the second half of September, trading in a narrow range since the start of the month and remaining near their lowest in one year, largely in line with Dutch benchmarks amid ample supply and strong output in alternative power sources. Storage in the EU were over 81% full ahead of the European winter season, limiting sharper LNG buying competition in the UK. Supply was also steady as elevated output levels and higher LNG export capacity in the US increased the availability of the commodity in the UK, while gas flows from Norway inched higher following the end of some planned maintenance outages. Looking forward, Snam announced it plans to build a $1 billion natural gas storage site off the coast off the British coast.