Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices cooled on Friday from their highest level in the past five months after workers at Australia’s Woodside Energy dismissed the idea of carrying out strike action amid a dispute between the unions representing workers and the company. The average price of LNG for October delivery into north-east Asia declined from $14 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) last week to $13 per mmBtu.
“It has very much been a week of two halves,” Samuel Good, head of LNG pricing at commodity pricing agency Argus observed. During the first half of the week, LNG prices surged as worries rose about supply disruptions arising from potential strikes. Prices suddenly plunged following the in-principle deal struck between the unions and Woodside Energy.
Price fluctuations have been largely limited by high gas storage volumes in Europe and northern Asia throughout the second quarter compared to levels seen earlier in the year.