MOSCOW, March 13. /TASS/. Gas withdrawal from European underground gas storage (UGS) facilities is high for March due to the moderately cold beginning of spring in the region and the halt of LNG terminals in France because of strikes. Amid this background reserves in UGS facilities are no longer the highest for this season, whereas LNG regasification capacities in the EU are only employed by half. Requests for transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory equal 41.6 mln cubic meters.

Gas withdrawal from EU countries’ UGS facilities amounted to 302 mln cubic meters on March 11, the highest level for the day over the past seven years, according to data provided by Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE). Meanwhile the pumping only equaled 23 mln cubic meters.

The heating season started in Europe on November 14. Since then, EU countries have withdrawn 47.75 bln cubic meters of gas from UGS facilities. Currently European UGS facilities are 56.61% full (20.32 percentage points higher than the average as of this date in the past five years), with 61.5 bln cubic meters of gas stored in them.

LNG supplies from terminals to Europe’s gas transport system remain low amid ongoing halt of LNG terminals in France due to strikes. Currently the capacities for regasification of liquified gas and its further pumping into European pipelines are only employed by 46%.

Requests for transit of Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine for March 13 stand at 41.6 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). Supplies of Russian gas have returned to last year’s figures.

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