RE: Gas Storage10 Jan 2023 13:31
Back on topic- Here you go Stokey…don’t shoot the messenger.
After cold, still December days caused fears of blackouts, this year’s mild, gusty arrival has helped wind generation set new records and prompted roughly a halving in the gas price over the past month. Consumers and businesses have cut gas usage. On the continent, the warm winter, so far, has enabled opportunistic refilling of gas storage facilities, almost unheard of in January, with record back-up levels providing comfort not just for this winter, but for next.
In fairness, the government’s energy to-do list is daunting, from better targeting household and business relief in the near-term to the total redesign of the market. But it could be, argues former government adviser Adam Bell now at consultancy Stonehaven, that the government is questioning how long natural gas storage will be relevant for the economy and whether having (hopefully) navigated this winter, the chance of another genuine supply crunch is low.