The US ‘reciprocal’ tariffs released last week have created uncertainty across global markets, plummeting both equities and commodities worldwide. Gas and power prices have been highly volatile this month, amid stalled progress on the Russia-Ukraine peace deal and a lack of clear signs that Russian gas will return.
Concerns over refilling EU gas storage have persisted, compounded by slightly cooler temperatures expected across Europe in mid to late April. Meanwhile, President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs of at least 10% on most imported goods (excluding energy) have weighed on prices, with markets closely monitoring their effects. The markets briefly dipped below their lowest level since September 2024 as US tariff concerns wiped trillions off global markets, and significantly downgrading demand forecasts.
The start of April saw a substantial drops to the gas markets, which improved Europe’s storage outlook by incentivising injections due to lower costs (restocking storage levels ready for Winter), earlier than normal. Additionally, the ongoing halt on Chinese imports of US LNG now seems unlikely to resolve anytime soon, boosting available cargoes and supply for the European market due to the absence of their largest competitor from the spot market.
This is certainly presenting some fantastic buying opportunities for both short- and longer-term gas and energy purchasing. Norway’s first major planned maintenance of the summer began at the Nyhamna gas processing plant and is scheduled to last until mid to late April.
During this period, the Dvalin and Aasta Hansteen fields feeding into the terminal will be fully shut down and when you consider that Norwegian gas accounts for over 30% of Europe’s consumption, any unplanned outages or extensions this summer could have significant consequences for gas prices and given these risks, even a moderate decline in prices could present an optimum buying opportunity.
