Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov said on Wednesday that domestic gas storage was 9 7% filled, without disclosing the specific figure. Ronald Smith, senior oil and gas analyst at Russia’s BCS brokerage, estimates that the storage stands at around 69 billion cubic metres (bcm), close to the
Gas markets in Asia and Europe have sky-rocketed this year, with benchmark Dutch gas hub spot prices jumping by 365 % since the year-start, fuelled by low inventories and surging demand as economies recover from the COVID-19 crisis.
The former Soviet gas ministry, which became a state company in 1990s, runs a network of 23 gas storage sites in various locations; from abandoned gas fields to salt caves, securing between 20% to 40% of all domestic supply in the heating season.
And even if Russia increases supply, it’s unlikely to have an immediate impact on European spot prices, analysts at the Sweden-based bank SEB said, as prices at the European gas market are linked to the globally set LNG price.