MOSCOW, March 17. /TASS/. A slight drop in temperature and a decrease in wind power generation in the middle of the week pushed gas withdrawal from European underground gas storage (UGS) facilities up. That said, LNG regasification capacities in the EU are still employed only by half amid the halt of LNG terminals in France because of strikes. Requests for transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory equal 42.4 mln cubic meters.

Gas withdrawal from EU countries’ UGS facilities amounted to 311 mln cubic meters on March 15, according to data provided by Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE). Meanwhile the pumping equaled 31 mln cubic meters.

The heating season started in Europe on November 14. Since then, EU countries have withdrawn 48.62 bln cubic meters of gas from UGS facilities. Currently European UGS facilities are 55.84% full (20.17 percentage points higher than the average as of this date in the past five years), with 60.7 bln cubic meters of gas stored in them.

LNG supplies from terminals to Europe’s gas transport system remain low amid the ongoing halt of LNG terminals in France due to strikes. Currently the capacities for regasification of liquefied gas and its further pumping into European pipelines are only employed by 55%.

Requests for transit of Russian gas to Europe through Ukraine for March 17 stand at 42.4 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.