Explainer: Can Qatari gas offset disruptions to Russian supply in Europe?

Explainer: Can Qatari gas offset disruptions to Russian supply in Europe?

The United States, the world’s top natural gas producer, has asked Qatar and other major energy producers to divert gas supplies to Europe if Russia attacks Ukraine and the United States imposes sanctions on Russia.

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Russia, which supplies around a third of Europe’s gas, has amassed some 120,000 troops near its neighbour but denies plans to invade Ukraine.

Any interruption of supplies because of an attack would worsen the existing energy crisis caused by a global shortage of oil and gas.

WHERE DOES EUROPE STAND?

Europe’s natural gas supplies from Russia are mostly delivered through pipelines and since October last year have been well below seasonal levels.

Flows in 2021 through Russia’s three main pipelines to Europe totalled 37,409 gigawatt hours/day (GWh/d) Refinitiv Eikon data showed, down from 41,263 GWh/d in 2020 and 49,431 GWh/d in 2019.

European storage stocks are around 19 billion cubic metres (BCM) below their five-year seasonal average, according to Platts analytics, despite other sources of supply being close to maximised over recent months.

Platts Analytics expects that even if Russian flows continue, European stocks will be near record lows at the end of winter, leaving little scope to absorb