LITTLETON, Colo., Oct 6 (Reuters) – Europe’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports are on track to hit a record in 2022, with inbound volumes through the end of September already 16.5% above 2021’s full-year total and 8% over 2019’s pre-COVID tally, according to Refinitiv.
The continent’s scramble to cut use of Russian natural gas following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine all but guaranteed more European LNG demand, and made it just a matter of time before 2022’s purchase volumes entered the record books.
What is less clear is just how much this splurge on super-chilled fuel will cost, and how that may affect the region’s spending power and ambitions to transition its energy system away from fossil fuels.
With budgets already shredded by the enormous costs associated with fighting COVID-19, European governments face paying out billions more on subsidies and stimulus packages to help industries and households adapt to the severing of trade ties with Russia.
Governments have been under particular pressure to rein in power prices, which have surged as utilities lurched en masse from primarily using cheap pipelined natural gas – mainly from Russia – to a more costly and inefficient mishmash of imported LNG, coal and other power-generating fuels.
And with winter still ahead, ensuring adequate power for heating and industry will become an even greater challenge as competition for power fuels picks up.
