This year, Gazprom supplied 43 percent less gas to Europe than last year, which raised prices three times on average. This translated to the company’s European export revenue increasing from $53 billion dollars to $100 billion dollars, wrote Olivér Hortay, head of the energy and climate policy research at Hungarian think tank Századvég Konjunktúrakutató, in his Facebook post in response to an article published in the Financial Times. According to the paper, the higher gas prices will help the Russian natural gas extraction company Gazprom offset the decrease in supply.
In an article published on Friday, the Financial Times reported that the company Gazprom is keeping its revenues from gas sales stable, as rising prices have compensated for its decision to reduce deliveries to Europe.
The Kremlin said this week that it would keep the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline, which carries gas to Europe across the Baltic Sea, closed as long as the West maintains its economic sanctions.
This means that Gazprom is now delivering approximately 84 million cubic meters of gas to Europe via Ukraine and Turkey per day, compared to last year’s average of 480 million cubic meters per day, the British newspaper pointed out.
However, the drop in supplies is expected to push prices this year to an average of three times that of 2021, which BCS Global Markets oil and gas industry analyst Ron Smith said would help Gazprom increase its total revenue by 85 percent to $100 billion.
Last year, Gazprom exported gas to Europe and Turkey at an average price of $310 per cubic meter, resulting in gross export earnings of $54 billion. Now, Ron Smith estimates that for all of 2022, the company will ship 43 percent less volume, but at an average price of $1,000 per cubic meter.
Hortay highlighted in his Facebook post that “Gazprom is delivering 43 percent less gas to Europe this year than last year, which increases prices three times on average. The company’s European export revenue will increase from $53 billion to $100 billion.”
A relatively small decrease in volume can cause a large increase in gas prices, which can result in an increase in revenues for the producer who is reducing his supply. In other words, it can be reasonably argued that Gazprom earns more by transporting less gas, analyst Ron Smith pointed out.
Sergei Vakulenko, an independent Russian energy analyst, estimates that Gazprom is earning about €250 million a day at current prices and deliveries, which means that it would lose as much if it stopped gas deliveries to Europe.
The Russian gas supplier achieved a net profit of $41.75 billion in the first half of 2022, compared to a profit of $29 billion for the whole of last year, according to the company’s announcement last week. The company paid an additional $20 billion in dividends to the Russian state.
