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Gas withdrawal from EU’s UGS at 12-year low, requests for transit via Ukraine up 3%

Requests for transit of Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine for February 21 have increased by another 2.8% to 40.3 mln cubic meters via the Sudzha gas distribution station

MOSCOW, February 21. /TASS/. Gas reserves in European underground gas storage (UGS) facilities have fallen below 64%, while withdrawal from them has dropped to the lowest level since 2012. That said, requests for transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory have risen by another 2.8% to 40.3 mln cubic meters, which is the highest level since January 3.

Gas withdrawal from EU countries’ UGS facilities only amounted to 216 mln cubic meters on February 19, the lowest level in 12 years, according to data provided by Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE). Meanwhile, the pumping into them amounted to 85 mln cubic meters.

The heating season started in Europe on November 14. Since then, EU countries have withdrawn 39.12 bln cubic meters of gas from UGS facilities. Currently European UGS facilities are roughly 63.95% full (20.84 percentage points higher than the average as of this date in the past five years), with 69.2 bln cubic meters of gas stored in them.

Requests for transit of Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine for February 21 have increased by another 2.8% to 40.3 mln cubic meters via the Sudzha gas distribution station, according to data released on the website of the Gas Transmission System Operator of Ukraine (GTSOU). Pumping nominations have risen above 40 mln cubic meters for the first time since January 3. Consequently, supplies of Russian gas may again equal last year’s figures. They have already climbed by 64.5% in February compared with end-January.

The transit line through Ukraine remains the only route to supply Russian gas to western and central European countries after Nord Stream was damaged.

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