Norwegian natural gas exports via pipelines hit a record high for the month of April after a 40% year on year increase in exports, while flows from Russia to Northwest Europe were steady, data from Eclipse Energy, an analytics unit of S&P Global Platts, showed Tuesday.
Norwegian exports to Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK totaled 9.511 Bcm last month, up 40% from from April 2015 and down 6% from March levels.
Gas production on the Norwegian Continental Shelf was higher year on year due to the summer maintenance schedule surrounding the giant Troll gas field being pushed back this year, which is set to see maintenance begin at the end of May for a two-week period, compared with April in 2015.
April exports from the NCS breached the previous monthly high of 8.668 Bcm from 2013 and were more than 25% above the five-year average of 7.537 Bcm.
During the first four months of the year, Norway exported 39.624 Bcm, 12% higher year on year and the highest cumulative amount for the time of year.
Conversely, Russian gas exports to Northwest Europe were up 1% year on year last month and down 10% drop from March levels.
Russian exports via the Nord Stream, Yamal, and Brotherhood pipelines combined was seen at 9.202 Bcm in April, down from 10.244 Bcm in March and little changed from the 9.109 Bcm in April 2015.
Cumulative Russian gas flows to northwest Europe for the first four months of the year stood at 37.531 Bcm, up 36% year on year and 11% higher than the previous record high for the time of year from 2011.
MAY SUPPLY TO REMAIN ELEVATED
Pipeline gas supply from both Norway and Russia can be expected to continue at robust levels during May.
There is a 15-25 million cu m/d volume impact at an unspecified gas field on the NCS which was expected to end at the beginning of Saturday's gas day, with no further planned maintenance due to commence until May 27, according to Gassco, leaving a three-week period free of annual works during the month.
Furthermore, despite the recent increase in oil prices that saw Brent Crude reach a 2016 high of $48.50/b late last week, Russian oil-indexed pricing remains much more competitive compared with European hub pricing in comparison to recent years, allowing for high customer nominations at current price levels.
