European gas storage facilities, at their lowest levels amid the Hormuz crisis

MadridIt is from spring when Europe prepares for winter, at least as far as the supply of natural gas is concerned to face the energy consumption of families and companies in the cold months, when it skyrockets. In April, when the underground natural gas storage facilities are already half empty from the cold period being left behind, the different member states begin to fill these deposits. Furthermore, doing so when demand falls – the arrival of good weather and the entry of more renewable energy translates into a drastic drop in gas consumption, especially in northern Europe where seasonality is very marked – means that companies buy fossil fuel at a more reasonable price.

But this year, this race begins with European gas reserves at their lowest level in the last five springs, as the ARA has verified through data from the GIE-AGSI registry. Specifically, the underground natural gas deposits of the entire European Union were at 28.9% on April 10 (327.11 TWh), the lowest level since 2021, when they were at 30.5%.

It has not escaped anyone's notice that this starting point coincides with the war in the Middle East, which affects the main gas-producing countries, and the consequent tension in the Strait of Hormuz, practically closed for more than a month. All this is putting pressure on the global market for raw materials such as gas and, although the gas sector is asked not to fall into alarmism, they acknowledge that the situation is "complicated" due to how the war may evolve and the impact it will have on supply, but especially on the price of this fossil fuel. "Cautious expectation," summarize sources from the sector, who maintain that there is time to do homework. Furthermore, they cling to the residual weight that the Middle East has on the total gas that Europe imports. Qatar, for example, represented only 3.8% of gas imports in 2025, according to European Commission data.

The process of filling warehouses in spring is common and, in fact, had never caught attention until 2022. When Russia began to threaten to cut off gas to Europe – at that time it was the main supply source of this fossil fuel –, the European Commission forced countries to do everything possible to find gas and fill underground storage tanks. They had to reach November, just before the start of winter, with capacity levels at 90%, while states that did not have natural gas storage facilities – this is the case for Greece or Cyprus – had to keep a minimum level of reserves in other countries. Today those requirements remain, but with some flexibility: countries have the binding objective of reaching 90% before the colder months, but they can do so between October 1 and December 1 with a flexibility margin of 15% (meaning a country could be left at 75%).

The price problem

Behind the levels of this 2026 lies the fact that private agents involved in gas marketing foresaw a summer with very low fuel prices. "They were waiting to buy cheaper, but the conflict has broken out and now prices are higher," explain sector sources to ARA. This has created a kind of "panic," they add.

Before the conflict, the TTF, the European benchmark for natural gas prices, was around 30 euros/MWh and now it is already close to 45 euros/MWh, although over 60 euros have been reached. For now, futures remain at these 45 euros. "We are not as before the conflict, but there are no strong variations [in the market] sending alert signals either," indicate from the Spanish gas association, Sedigas, who believe that "there is room [to fill the tanks]," although they acknowledge that countries should not relax. "You can't leave it to the last minute," add the association.

But gas buyers were not only looking at the TTF, but also at the price of liquefied natural gas (LNG), a market to which Europe was not accustomed before the war in Ukraine when it was fed, mainly, by Russian natural gas via pipeline. "The storage facilities were quickly filled with Russian gas, which was cheap, and now [buyer] agents are adapting to LNG volatility [...] There is a lack of experience," reflects a sector source. It should be taken into account that as a result of the war in Ukraine, the gas purchased today in Europe comes mainly from the United States in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). The same applies in the Spanish case.

This LNG can be converted into gas through regasification plants and, in addition to using it, it can be re-exported to a neighboring country via pipeline, but also stored underground for winter. In fact, LNG storage facilities across Europe are operating at much higher levels compared to underground ones. Today, some countries have an advantage over 2022 because they have expanded this regasification capacity after the installation of LNG plants: this is the case of Germany or Italy.

But precisely in relation to LNG, a fear derived from the war in the Middle East is that a situation similar to 2022 will be repeated: a competition for this gas. That is, that countries that do depend heavily on the Persian Gulf, such as Asian ones, have to explore other markets, which can lead to LNG carriers selling to the highest bidder. And the more competitors, the higher the prices. Taking this into account, some also believe that the market is responding with a certain "moderation" due to the lack of certainty about the Strait of Hormuz and because the LNG shipments that passed just before the closure have not yet reached their final destination – they take between 30 and 40 days to arrive, for example, to a country like China, one of the main buyers from the Persian Gulf. Therefore, there is a delay between the closure of the strait and the direct impact on gas reception.

Disparity of situations

However, the gas supply in the coming months varies greatly depending on the country. Spain, for example, has its underground gas reserves at 60.2% (21.57 TWh), while the Dutch storage facilities are only at 5.5% (7.94 TWh), according to data from the GIE-AGSI registry consulted by ARA. The gas sector in Spain believes it can breathe easy, especially due to LNG infrastructure: Spain has a large part of the European Union's total regasification capacity (40%).

For their part, the Netherlands, like other Northern European countries, have found it more difficult to fill their storage facilities now that they can no longer be supplied with Russian gas. Furthermore, the Netherlands in particular, despite being one of the largest importers and at the same time a producer of European natural gas, then re-exports it to neighboring countries with much less capacity.

The case of Sweden (9.91%), which also has very low gas reserves, is particular because the demand for fossil fuels in the country comes mainly from the fertilizer industry, but in general terms households and companies consume little gas.