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Gas withdrawals from European UGS facilities hit seven-year low in March

Gas withdrawals from European storage facilities in March totaled 5.7 bln cubic meters

MOSCOW, April 2. /TASS/. Gas withdrawals from European underground storage facilities (UGS) in March reached a seven-year low, but UGS reserves still fell below 28% due to the prolonged heating season, according to TASS calculations based on data from Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE).

Gas withdrawals from European storage facilities in March totaled 5.7 bln cubic meters (bcm). This is the lowest level in the last seven years. That said, gas injection into UGS facilities was the third highest since records started, having reached 3.4 bcm.

At the end of March 2026, European UGS facilities were less than 28% full (12.93 percentage points lower than the average for that date over the past five years), compared to 33.8% in the previous year. Roughly 31 bcm of gas were stored in EU UGS facilities last month.

Since the heating season started on October 13, 2025, EU countries have withdrawn over 70 bcm of gas from storage facilities. Net withdrawal (the net difference between withdrawal and injection volumes) equals around 61 bcm, which is 6 bcm higher than the volumes pumped in the summer.

Europe set an all-time record for liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in March amid a prolonged heating season and looming challenges for the LNG market due to the Middle East conflict.

In March, LNG flows from European terminals to the EU gas transportation system amounted to around 13.7 bcm, which is 15% higher than in February, and 8% higher than in March 2025.

In Q1 2026, LNG supplies from terminals to the European gas transportation system remained at a record level, exceeding 38 bln, which is 13% higher than in the same period in 2025.

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