IEA calls for urgent action on European gas supply gap
OSLO, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Europe needs to take urgent action to avoid a natural gas shortage next year given the loss of Russian supply and expectations Chinese demand will increase, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday.
"We are ringing the alarm bells for the European government and for the European Commission for next year," IEA head Fatih Birol told journalists when presenting a report on Europe's supply-demand balance for 2023/24.
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The report found that Europe could face a gap of as much as 30 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas during the summer period of lower demand that is crucial for refilling its gas storage sites in 2023.
Such a gap could see storages only 65% full ahead of next winter, instead of a targeted 95% level, Birol said.
The European Union had succeeded in filling storages to 95% ahead of this winter, 5% or 5 bcm above their 5-year average.
(Reporting by Nora Buli; editing by Barbara Lewis)