• Norwegian gas flows fall as maintenance at Aasta Hansteen continues
• Lower wind output forecasts support today’s bullishness
• Brent prices jump by over 6% due to warnings of supply shortages

Gas markets across both the near curve and front seasonal index’s rose this morning as gas flows from Norway fell due to ongoing maintenance at the Aasta Hansteen gas plant and expectations of lower wind generation across this week and the next. Wind speeds are likely to remain volatile in the coming days with temperatures likely to increase next week which could limit some of the gains. The rise in Asian prices for LNG has also supported today’s bullishness as imports coming into Europe remain vital in stabilising the supply. With that said Norway has stated it is likely to increase the amount of flows coming into the continent over the next few months which will support storage levels over the summer period.

Oil prices closed under $100/Bbl yesterday but rose by over 6% today on the prospect of Russian exports falling by over 3 million barrels per day by next month. With the supply already relativity tight any cuts in production of this size will likely outweigh any drop in demand due to the high prices.