NEW YORK, March 25. /TASS/. Europe is entering the gas injection season with depleted reserves in underground storage facilities, which will force the region to intensify competition with Asian buyers for supplies amid disruptions caused by the conflict in the Middle East, Bloomberg reported.

Gas reserves in underground storage facilities in the Netherlands have reached a historic low, falling to about 6%, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe. Bloomberg writes that in Germany, which has the largest storage capacity in the region, reserve levels are also significantly below normal at around 22%. This situation could force Europe to purchase more liquefied natural gas cargoes this summer to replenish reserves, competing with Asia for limited supply volumes, the agency noted.

Earlier, European Commissioner for Energy and Housing Dan Jorgensen urged EU countries to begin filling storage facilities in advance. The European Commission recommended showing "flexibility" in the process of filling gas storage facilities and proposed lowering the mandatory storage filling target for next winter to 80%, which is 10% lower than the level required by the European Commission since 2022.