UK spot gas prices were sliding again Thursday morning, compared with Wednesday's close, as the system remained well supplied and demand low, and with regular deliveries of Qatari LNG recently.
By 09:25 UK time, the NBP within-day had traded at 50.80 pence/therm and day-ahead at 51.00 p/th, compared with a day-ahead closing price Wednesday of 51.30 p/th.
Front-month May was at 51.95 p/th, down 0.35 p/th.
National Grid, the system operator, showed the system long in the morning forecasts, with supplies for the day forecast at 201 million cu m at 08:00 UK time, against demand of only 193 million cu m.
Demand remains, as it has throughout recent months, significantly below seasonal normal, currently estimated at 231 million cu m.
Norway's Langeled line was flowing to the UK at rates of 27 million cu m/day. That's a long way below the line's maximum 70 million cu m/day capacity, but the UK didn't need any more gas.
The Dutch BBL was sending in 17 million cu m, while the UK-Belgium Interconnector was forecast to carry around 21 million cu m/day out of the UK, making the UK a net exporter to the Continent over the day.
The South Hook LNG terminal kept up relatively strong flow rates of 37 million cu m/day. South Hook has received a number of Qatari cargoes recently.
There was the Lijmiliya on Sunday, followed by the Umm Slal on Tuesday, with the next delivery expected being the Aamira on April 23.
Prices for LNG sales would theoretically be higher in Asia or South America. However, Qatar continues deliveries to the UK because it controls the entire integrated value chain from upstream production, to shipping, to downstream terminal, and it wishes to maintain a long-term relationship with the UK.
UK storage is currently 58% full, with stocks of 2.7 billion cubic meters, compared with only 6% at the same time last year.
Last year, a cold end to winter drained storage facilities of their reserves, but this year winter was mild.
That will greatly reduce the need for reinjections over the current summer, giving a bearish fundamental backdrop to the summer, which has been partly countered by concerns over the political situation between Russia and Ukraine.
