EU Gas Storage at "Critically Low" Level, Gazprom Warns

(MENAFN) Russian energy giant Gazprom sounded the alarm Monday over dangerously depleted natural gas reserves across the European Union, even as the European Commission continues to press member states to accelerate storage refilling operations.

Drawing on Gas Infrastructure Europe data current as of March 28, Gazprom revealed that EU storage facilities sat at just 28% capacity, with active gas withdrawal still underway across multiple member states — including Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Croatia, the Czech Republic, and Sweden.

Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller delivered a stark assessment of the situation, stating that gas reserves in EU storage facilities could be characterized as “critically low for modern Europe,” adding that inventories stood at 33.5% on the same date in 2025 and 58.7% in 2024 — underscoring how sharply conditions have deteriorated year over year.

The picture grows even grimmer when examining Europe’s heaviest-consuming nations. Miller disclosed that storage sites across Germany, France, and the Netherlands were filled to only 17.4% on average as of March 28. Most alarming was the Dutch figure: underground gas storage facilities in the Netherlands held a mere 5.3% of total capacity — a level Gazprom identified as an all-time record low.

Looking ahead, Miller cautioned that reserves in European underground gas storage facilities may not even reach 70% by the start of the next withdrawal season, adding that colder-than-normal temperatures last week in several key gas-consuming regions of continental Europe had increased demand — compressing the already narrow window available for meaningful inventory recovery before winter returns.

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