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(Bloomberg) — Germany’s gas storage operators are set to face a “difficult” stockpiling season this summer as it’s unprofitable to refill the vast sites, according to the country’s market manager.
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“Summer prices are relatively high, while winter 2026/27 prices are more or less at the same level, so there is no incentive to buy gas in summer and pay for storage,” said Torsten Frank, managing director of Trading Hub Europe GmbH. “That makes it very difficult for storage operators to sell their storage capacities for the next year.”
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Europe’s gas storage sites are back in focus after the coldest winter since the energy crisis led to hefty withdrawals in recent months. Germany is the region’s biggest gas market and also has the largest storages. Those sites are now just over 26% full, well below the average for the season.
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Two German gas storage operators have already notified the energy regulator of plans to shut their facilities amid waning profitability, with regulatory approval for the closures still pending. The sites are Uniper SE’s Breitbrunn facility and Bayernugs GmbH’s Wolfersberg.
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Trading Hub Europe monitors the situation at every gas storage individually, but currently sees no need to intervene and remains in close contact with the economy ministry, Frank said in an interview at the E-world conference in Essen.
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Ahead of next winter, “some storages might only need additional filling in September to meet the October threshold, while others may need to start already in July or August,” he said.
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Introduced during the 2022 energy crisis, storage targets were designed to ensure sufficient gas supplies for winter. But European inventories have repeatedly struggled to reach required levels, a problem policymakers and traders alike expect to re-emerge in 2026.
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German officials are preparing to push for an end to EU-wide storage targets after 2027, eying a smaller, nationally managed strategic reserve instead.
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“This winter is effectively over, as the relevant threshold applied only until Feb. 1,” he said, referring to an interim deadline for gas storage targets. “Any potential activity would relate to next winter, which is still a long way off.”
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