Overview
- The Bundesnetzagentur president Klaus Müller on Monday urged gas traders to increase injections after reporting German storages were about 49–50% full, and he said enough gas exists on world markets for companies to act.
- By law Germany must reach 70% storage fill by November while European targets aim for roughly 90%, leaving a substantial gap from current mid‑August levels.
- Wholesale gas prices have more than doubled this year, rising from about €30/MWh in January to over €60/MWh in mid‑August, a jump traders attribute to the Iran–US conflict and partial closures of the Strait of Hormuz that make summer buying costly.
- The federal economics ministry rejects state purchases of gas and calls supply stable, but neighbouring countries have used state measures—Dutch ordered fills and Italy offers premiums—that compete for cargoes and complicate commercial supply decisions.
- Operators and regulators warn that LNG terminals and pipeline imports can partly offset low stocks but cannot fully replace stored volumes, so a colder‑than‑normal winter would raise shortage risk and likely push household and industry bills higher.