A roundup of news and commentary from NGI’s LNG Insight

  • The German regulatory agency overseeing power and natural gas markets said it won’t certify Russia’s Nord Stream 2 (NS2) pipeline for service in the first half of 2022. The 5.3 Bcf/d pipeline is completed but still needs to be certified by Germany in a decision that would also be reviewed by the European Union. 
  • Bundesnetzagentur President Jochen Homann reportedly said Thursday that the agency is still awaiting documentation, according to various news media reports. The certification was delayed last month so that NS2 owner Gazprom PJSC could establish a subsidiary to operate the system.
  • NS2 is considered a crucial new supply conduit for Europe, which has faced natural gas shortages this year. Title Transfer Facility (TTF) prices, a European benchmark, again hit records on the news Thursday. The TTF prompt-month gained nearly $4 to finish above $47/MMBtu, while prices through June also jumped. 
  • Gunvor Group Ltd. has secured a $1.1 billion loan from a syndicate of banks to support growing liquefied natural gas (LNG) activities globally. The company is the largest independent LNG trader in the world. The first-of-its-kind borrowing base would finance physical and derivative positions. Gunvor secured the loan after paying more than $1 billion in margin calls earlier this year amid extraordinary volatility in the global gas trade.