LONDON: Prompt natural gas prices in Britain eased on Tuesday, as strong imports and high withdrawals saw supply exceed demand, even with a cold snap causing a surge in fuel needs for heating.
National Grid data showed the system was around 14 million cubic metres (mcm) oversupplied, with supply flows at around 380 mcm and demand forecast at around 366 mcm.
This was up from seasonal demand norms of around 297 mcm.
Gas prices for within-day delivery were down 0.6 percent at 44.40 pence per therm at 0952 GMT.
Flows from Norway's Langeled pipeline were 72 mcm, in line with the previous day and near full capacity.
Meteorologists forecast temperatures remaining below seasonal norms at between 1 and 4 degrees Celsius this week, before returning to more normal levels.
"Temperatures are forecast to increase from tomorrow and should approach seasonal norms on the weekend, as a result we expect a noticeable drop in storage withdrawals compared to today, which is a bearish factor," analysts at Thomson Reuters Point Carbon said.
Winter has been mild thus far, but Weather Services International (WSI) forecasts cooler than normal temperatures across Scandinavia and Britain for the February to April period.
Prices for February delivery were down 0.3 percent at 44.50 pence per therm.
In the Netherlands, the day-ahead gas price at the TTF hub was up 0.3 percent at 19.10 euros per megawatt-hour.
The benchmark European Union carbon price rose 0.3 percent to 7.32 euros per tonne on ICE Futures Europe.
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