MOSCOW, July 21. /TASS/. Europe's daily liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports plunged to a 23-month low in mid-July 2026, despite scorching heatwaves and the urgent need to replenish depleted underground storage facilities, according to TASS calculations based on data from Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE).

Since the beginning of July, LNG flows from European terminals into the EU gas transmission system have dropped by 26% year-on-year. Specifically, on July 19, daily LNG imports bottomed out at just 226 million cubic meters, marking the lowest level since September 2024.

The pace of storage replenishment this year has been severely hindered by a lost "battle" with Asia for uncommitted LNG volumes during the Middle East conflict, coupled with higher fuel prices and extreme heat in June and July. During such summer periods, electricity demand for cooling systems and air conditioners surges dramatically. Natural gas remains one of the primary sources for power generation, along with nuclear, wind, and solar energy.

Currently, European underground gas storage (UGS) facilities are 54% full, which is 15.52 percentage points lower than the five-year average for this date, compared to 64.8% recorded a year earlier. Current inventories stand at 59 billion cubic meters, which is 12 billion cubic meters less than last year's reserves. Russian gas giant Gazprom has predicted that European UGS inventories may fail to reach even 75% capacity by the start of the upcoming heating season.