According to the Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, the EU's gas demand this winter may need to be cut 7% year on year. Currently, gas storage stocks are low, and the region's energy resilience to risks declined after entering the heating season. The storage capacity of European gas storage facilities is only slightly above 73%, far below the normal level of 88% in the same period of the previous year. The EU completely banned the import of Russian liquefied natural gas from January of the following year, which also intensified this pressure. The institute estimates that if demand is not cut, the cost will be 3 billion euros if additional imported natural gas is used to fill the gas storage gap. Affected by the Iran conflict driving up global gas prices, this procurement cost is 12% higher than the same scale procurement in 2025. As a result, “increasing reliance on gas storage facilities” has become a major “financial burden” for Europe, according to IEEFA.

According to the Institute of Energy Economics and Financial Analysis, the EU's gas demand this winter may need to be cut 7% year on year. Currently, gas storage stocks are low, and the region's energy resilience to risks declined after entering the heating season. The storage capacity of European gas storage facilities is only slightly above 73%, far below the normal level of 88% in the same period of the previous year. The EU completely banned the import of Russian liquefied natural gas from January of the following year, which also intensified this pressure. The institute estimates that if demand is not cut, the cost will be 3 billion euros if additional imported natural gas is used to fill the gas storage gap. Affected by the Iran conflict driving up global gas prices, this procurement cost is 12% higher than the same scale procurement in 2025. As a result, “increasing reliance on gas storage facilities” has become a major “financial burden” for Europe, according to IEEFA.