Gas prices in Europe are moving upward as maintenance work at the Norwegian Skarv field and the expected deterioration of the weather in the coming months affect supply and demand.

In particular, the benchmark October delivery contract added up to 4.2% on its last trading day, after gaining around 15% in September. Maintenance work in Norway and strikes at two LNG plants in Norway, which were suspended, caused strong market volatility despite strong European stocks.

The first days of October will mark the start of the new year for gas – which is usually accompanied by the first withdrawals from storage as demand grows ahead of winter. It is also the time when certain supply contracts within the region are usually renewed.

As Bloomberg notes, Europe is well prepared for its second winter without Russian gas but remains alert to any disruptions in global supply. Reliance on LNG also means potential competition from Asia if demand in the region recovers

Next month’s Dutch TTF contract, the October contract, was up 3.3% at EUR40.60 per megawatt-hour earlier today. The November and December contracts also rose.