MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Gazprom expects "with cautious optimism" gas exports to Europe in 2020 to reach 170 bln cubic meters, department head at Gazprom Export Andrey Zotov said during a telephone conference with investors.

At the same time, the company forecasts the price of gas exports to Europe in 2020 at $100-160 per 1,000 cubic meters.

Meanwhile, Gazprom noted signs of a recovery in gas prices on the European market, Head of Gazprom's Financial and Economic Department Alexander Ivannikov said.

"The current dynamics with the pandemic allows us to assume that the Q2 was the lowest point of this crisis and in the future we expect a recovery in the global economy. This means an increase in gas prices. We are already observing positive dynamics in the European gas market. For example, spot prices have won back the decline of the first half of the year to a large extent, and forward contracts for the winter are already trading within $160-170 per 1,000 cubic meters. This, in fact, reflects the fact that players expect it to be more balanced in the near future," Ivannikov said.