Germany's gas storage falls to 44% as Russia boosts LNG shipments to Spain

Germany’s gas storage level was 43.94 % on 13 July 2026, a drop compared with the same date in previous years and below the European average of 51.84 %. The Bundesnetzagentur says the storage can cover two to three cold winter months and that overall supply remains stable thanks to pipeline imports from Norway and France/Belgium and LNG from U.S. terminals, which account for about 96 % of German LNG imports.

In June 2026 Russia delivered 5,473 GWh of LNG to Spain, overtaking the United States as the country’s second‑largest LNG supplier and marking a 67.5 % increase over June 2025. Spain’s imports rose despite the European Union’s decision to ban all Russian gas, including LNG, from 2027. Across the EU, record‑high Russian LNG imports continued in the first half of 2026, driven largely by the Yamal project, with France, Belgium and Spain the top recipients.

The divergent trends underline the EU’s short‑term reliance on Russian LNG while storage levels fall, raising questions about how the bloc will replace Russian supplies after the 2027 ban.