European prices reached their highest point since January, with TTF prices closing 4.2% higher at almost €34.39 per megawatt hour.
The increase follows an announcement by OMV, an Austrian energy company, indicating a possible disruption of Russian gas flows to Austria due to a court ruling that could hinder payments to Gazprom (MCX:) Export for natural gas delivered. The implementation of the court decision remains uncertain.
The supply at risk amounts to 6 billion cubic meters annually, which Gazprom supplies to OMV under a long-term contract for supply to Austria.
Austria is highly dependent on Russian gas: 93% of its gas imports in March came from Russia. A stop to this supply could lead to local market tightening, although Europe as a whole is expected to be able to cope with the situation.
Mutual funds have adjusted their positions in response to market dynamics. As of May 17, they have reduced their net long positions in TTF by 11.66 million contracts to 91.55 million contracts. This marks the first decline since early April and reflects the market’s response to various factors affecting the energy sector.
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