At the Budapest LNG summit, Molnar said the war is changing the medium-term outlook for the gas market, with tighter market conditions likely to last longer than previously thought, Reuters reported.
He pointed out that the crisis has cut LNG supplies by about 15 percent, but a significant increase in liquefaction capacity will help offset losses caused by production suspensions in Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
Iran’s attacks have knocked out 17% of Qatar’s LNG export capacity, jeopardizing supplies to Europe and Asia ahead of the summer season, when storage is usually filled before winter.
According to the IEA’s Molnar, European Union gas storage reserves are about 30 percent below the five-year average. Another 10 billion cubic meters of gas will be needed to replenish them to the target level of 90%.
