The average price of gas imported into Germany in September was Eur7,008.69/Terajoule, or around Eur25.20/MWh, according to new data from German customs agency BAFA released Thursday.
That was down 50 euro cent from Eur25.70/MWh the previous month.
The average Platts NetConnect Germany day-ahead price for the same month was Eur23.44/MWh, showing the price of spot-traded gas.
The Platts North West Europe Gas Contract Indicator, which shows the price of a traditional long-term, oil-indexed gas contract, was at Eur33.05/MWh.
German customs prices used to closely match the price of gas sold under a long-term, oil-indexed formula.
But the customs data shows that the actual price being paid at Germany's borders is increasingly moving closer towards the spot gas price, rather than holding onto the price that would have been achieved under a traditional contract formula, as in the NWE GCI model.
Reasons could include German companies buying more spot gas and turning down volumes under long-term import contracts, and producers who used to sell at oil-linked prices offering concessions to their customers, such as discounts, or a change in indexation.
GERMAN IMPORTS DOWN 8.7% ON YEAR
Germany imported 204,036 TJ in September 2011, or around 5.3 billion cubic meters of gas. That was down 8.7% from the same month of the previous year.
From January to September 2011 German gas imports of 2,678,643 TJ were 1.3% under the same months of the previous year.
The three most important suppliers during January-September 2011 were Russia at 1,095,724 TJ, Norway at 946,926 TJ and the Netherlands at 540,248 TJ.
The total value of gas imports during January to September 2011 was Eur18.6 billion ($25.0 billion), up 25% in comparison with Eur14.9 billion the year before.
