IEA says Europe enters winter with lowest gas storage levels since 2013
Europe is entering the 2026-27 winter heating season with the lowest natural gas storage levels seen in more than a decade, the International Energy Agency said in its Global Gas Security Review 2026. The agency said European Union storage sites are starting the heating season at inventories not seen since 2013, leaving the region more dependent on global liquefied natural gas supplies to cover winter demand.
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The IEA warned that reduced storage buffers could make Europe more vulnerable to supply shortages if colder-than-expected weather or further gas flow disruptions occur. It also said low inventories could keep European demand strong through summer 2027 as governments and market operators rebuild reserves ahead of the next winter, extending pressure on global gas markets.
The report projected global LNG supply will fall by 3% in 2026, while global gas demand is expected to decline by around 1.5%, in part because of lower industrial gas use in Europe and gas-to-coal switching in power generation across several Asian countries. The IEA said growing LNG supply, particularly from North America, and more flexible trading arrangements had helped offset some losses from disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, but the effective halt of LNG flows through the strait between March and October pushed Asian and European gas prices to their highest levels since the 2022-23 energy crisis.
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