France's Total said Monday its average global gas price realization in the fourth quarter was $3.89/MMBtu, up from $3.45/MMBtu in the previous quarter as prices continued to recover from their multi-year lows earlier in 2016.
While Total saw its Q4 realized price rise, fellow European oil and gas company, Austria's OMV, failed to increase its average realized price. In Q4, OMV saw its average price drop to Eur12.10/MWh -- the equivalent of around $3.76/MMBtu using current exchange rates -- down from Eur13.10/MWh in the previous quarter.
Both companies' realized prices are down on Q4 2015, however, Total by 12.6% year-on-year and OMV by 17.6%.
OMV also said its sales volumes in Q4 rose to 29.8 TWh from 28.7 TWh in Q4 2015 and from 22.2 TWh the previous quarter.
Total's quarter-on-quarter rise in the realized gas price in Q4 came as global oil and gas prices were boosted from the early-year lows.
Benchmark Brent crude averaged $49.30/b in Q4 compared with an average of just $33.90/b in Q1.
US gas prices have also rallied, with the Henry Hub price currently running at around $3.40/MMBtu.
European prices are currently higher still, with the Dutch TTF day-ahead price trading at the equivalent of $6.62/MMBtu, according to Platts' assessments.
The US Energy Information Administration last week raised its forecast for first-quarter 2017 Henry Hub gas spot prices to $3.65/MMBtu, 29 cents above its December estimate.
The agency, in its January Short-Term Energy Outlook, projected Henry Hub gas prices would average $3.55/MMBtu across all of calendar-year 2017, up from an average of $2.51/MMBtu in 2016.
Those European majors with the most exposure to the US gas market remain the hardest hit as prices remain low, driven by the well-supplied market in the continued shale gas boom.
