'Beast' Leads to Record 1Q UK Gas Imports
UK official data released June 28 show record gas import volume during 1Q2018.
Gross gas imports to the UK reached a new record high for Q1 in any year, rising 14% to 193 terawatt-hours (17.95bn m3) as imports from Belgium and the Netherlands more than doubled and pipeline imports increased by a fifth, said the petroleum statistics team at the UK Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Beis).
In contrast exports fell by 40% to the lowest level recorded this century, due to lower pipeline exports to Belgium/Netherlands. Once they were taken into account, net gas imports in 1Q2018 were 184 TWh (17.1bn m3), the highest recorded volume for any quarter.
The rise in net gas imports was driven by strong demand of 312 TWh (29bn m3), up 7.4% year on year, thanks to colder weather - including the ‘Beast from the East’ which resulted in a 16% increase in 1Q gas use by households. That underpinned a 13% year on year increase in total final UK gas consumption.
Imports of LNG decreased by 14% year on year in 1Q2018 as its share of imports diminished, but the period did saw the first LNG cargoes from Russia to enter the UK gas pipeline system. However Beis noted that "these accounted for less than 1% of imports over the three months."
Undoubtedly, some of the record UK imports by pipeline from the near-continent were originally Russian imports to Britain's EU partners. However, the remark from Beis goes to emphasises that, when it comes to overall gas supply, the main direct sources in recent times have been Norway, UK domestic gas production itself, and Qatari LNG.
Even in 1Q2018, Beis notes that the UK imported gas primarily from Norway (predominantly via the Langeled, Tampen Link and Gjoa/Vega pipelines). Langeled alone funneled 65 TWh (6bn m3) of Norwegian gas into eastern England during 1Q2018. UK indigenous gross natural gas production in 1Q2018 declined by 4.1% year on year, following particularly strong production in the same quarter last year.
Demand for gas use in electricity generation fell against the previous year for the fourth quarter in a row in 1Q2018, down 1.9%, because increased renewable energy output has been displacing gas.
Gas accounted for 39.9% of UK 1Q2018 electricity production, versus 40.5% in 1Q2017; renewables grew to 30.1% (from 27%) whereas nuclear eased to 17.9% (from 18.8%) and coal fell to 9.4% (from 11.1%). Total UK electricity generation was 1 TWh lower in 1Q2018, at 92.8 TWh, than in the same quarter last year.