MOSCOW, January 19. /TASS/. Net withdrawal of gas from underground gas storage (UGS) facilities in Europe has exceeded 36 bln cubic meters (bcm) since the beginning of the heating season, while UGS facilities are almost half empty, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE) data.

Gas withdrawal from UGS facilities in EU countries amounted to around 582 mln cubic meters (mcm) on January 19. The total rate of withdrawal from storage facilities since the beginning of the month has lost record pace and is currently the third-highest for January. The total volume of fuel in UGS facilities currently stands at 55.7 bcm.

The weather in Europe is expected to be uneven this week. The first half of the week is forecast to be relatively warm, but a significant cold snap will hit the region by the weekend. The share of wind power in the EU’s electricity generation averaged 20% in December 2025, and it has been at 19% in January 2026. The gas purchase price in Europe has averaged $365 per 1,000 cubic meters in January, up from $334 in December amid a cold snap. Prices are at their highest in six months.

European UGS facilities are currently 50.36% full (14.84 percentage points lower than the average as of this date in the past five years) compared to 61.7% in the previous year. Since the heating season started on October 13, 2025, EU countries have withdrawn around 40.5 bcm of gas from storage facilities. Net withdrawal has reached 36 bcm.

Gas reserves in underground gas storage facilities in Germany, Europe's leader in terms of storage capacity, have fallen to 42.8%. Other leading gas storage countries are also actively using up their stored fuel. UGS facilities are 42.4% full in France, 53.8% in Austria, 64.9% in Italy, and 36.2% in the Netherlands.

Storage facilities are 50.5% full in Slovakia, 51.1% in Hungary, 57.3% in the Czech Republic, 60.6% in Romania, 62% in Bulgaria, 41.6% in Belgium, 42.7% in Denmark, 38.3% in Latvia, and 28.5% in Croatia.