The near halt of commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, which holds strategic importance for global energy supply, and the stoppage of production at the liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility owned by Qatar have caused gas prices in Europe to rise rapidly.
Medianews.az reports that on the European gas trading platform TTF, on February 27 (before the attacks by the US and Israel on Iran), the price of gas for April futures was 31.95 euros per megawatt-hour, but amid the war in the Middle East, prices have increased by 67% over the past week to 53.4 euros. Today, at 11:00 Baku time, it has risen up to 68.5 euros.
Thus, prices at the market opening have risen by 28.5% compared to the closing level recorded last Friday.
At the same time, the drop in the fullness level of Europe's gas storage facilities below 30% is also putting additional upward pressure on prices.
It should be noted that about 20% of the world's LNG exports are carried out through the Strait of Hormuz. Approximately 93% of the liquefied gas exported by Qatar, one of the world's largest LNG exporters, is transported to international markets via this route.
According to information, after attacks by Iran on commercial ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz, especially those related to the US and Israel, only one ship could pass through the strait until March 7, and oil or LNG shipments have effectively not been carried out./Apa