Conexus: Inčukalns UGS fulfillment is secured by natural gas supplies from Lithuania this year

This year, Inčukalns underground gas storage (Inčukalns UGS) is mainly supplied with natural gas supplies from Lithuania, covering the needs of the Latvian, Estonian and Lithuanian markets. Such information is included in the nine-month unaudited financial statement of the single natural gas transmission and storage operator AS “Conexus Baltic Grid” (Conexus). In the nine months of this year, the amount of natural gas received from Lithuania amounts to 13.2 TWh.

In order to ensure the safe and predictable availability of natural gas, natural gas traders have actively diversified natural gas supply sources and carried out natural gas supplies from Klaipeda LNG terminal, with a significant increase in the amount of natural gas received from Lithuania, reaching 13.2 TWh during the reporting period. On the other hand, the volume of natural gas received from Russia has decreased significantly to 3.4 TWh, which is 81% less than last year.

Overall, the volume of natural gas transferred during the period mentioned this year fell to 23.4 TWh, 26% less than last year. At the same time, Conexus Board Chairman Uldis Bariss points out that the fall is legal, adding to factors such as geopolitical challenges, the uncertainty they create in the natural gas market, and the warm weather during the reporting period.

U. Bariss continues: “The volume of natural gas transported during the nine months of 2022 was primarily affected by the decrease in electricity production in the country's largest thermal power plants and the substantially increased price of gas. As a result, the total demand for gas for consumers was less than in the relevant period of the previous year - the volume of natural gas consumption for Latvian users reached 5.8 TWh, which is 33% less than a year earlier. It is positive that Inčukalns underground gas storage has reserved all storage cycle capacity, as well as from the end of February, storage users have been provided with the possibility of continuous injection or withdrawal of natural gas.”

2022./2023The volume of capacity reservation products for Inčukalns UGS storage cycle amounts to 24.1 TWh, which is 27% more than a year earlier. All available capacity for Inčukalns UGS 2022./2023 storage cycle is fully reserved. This is the largest amount of storage reservations reached during Conexus.

In total, during the 9 months of this year, Conexus net turnover amounted to EUR 39.32 million, which is 5% less than a year earlier. "The drop in natural gas consumption directly affected the drop in turnover. In this time, ensuring natural gas flows, storage availability and energy security, respectively, has been our absolute priority,” points U. Bariss.

During the reporting period, Conexus EBITDA decreased by 9% compared to the relevant period of 2021 and reached EUR 23 million. While revenues and EBITDA profits were negatively affected by the drop in transmission service volume, storage service revenues and EBITDA exceeded the corresponding period of the previous year.