In the context of the COVID-19-driven economic crisis and an abnormally warm climate, global gas consumption fell 1.8% in 2020, the third decline ever recorded in the history of the global natural gas industry. In the face of extreme volatility, driven by the evolving influence of the pandemic on energy demand throughout the year, as well as weather events and technical outages, natural gas demand, especially LNG demand, was resilient, contrary to other fossil fuels.
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Quarterly report – Q1 2021 – International natural gas prices
- Low storage inventories, combined with robust winter demand in both Asia and Europe kept spot prices relatively high in the first quarter 2021.
- In the first half of January, Asian and European spot prices spiked to all-time highs as extremely cold weather coincided with tight supply. The Northeast Asian spot price peaked at $30/MBtu by mid-January, opening the widest premiums on record.
- European and Asian spot prices retreated in the second half of January as buying focus shifted to the March and April shoulder months. Moreover, temperatures had warmed and nuclear availability improved in Japan, while supplies were creeping up in Asia.
GLOBAL BIOMETHANE MARKET 2021
The International Association Cedigaz has just released its report “GLOBAL BIOMETHANE MARKET 2021 ASSESSEMENT” showing that the overall momentum of Renewable Natural Gas is accelerating.
This report updates the 2019 CEDIGAZ’s comprehensive study on global biomethane (also known as renewable natural gas, RNG). It focuses on biogas upgrading and looks at key developments in the marketplace, policies, and major markets. The main outcome is summarized below.