Natural gas consumption in Greece in the first quarter of 2024 increased compared to the same period last year, according to DESFA’s data. This signals the return of the gas market to its pre-crisis level, ceenergynews.com reported.
According to DESFA’s data for the period of January – March, total gas demand decreased by 8.63%, reaching 16.51 TWh, from 18.07 TWh in the same period 2023, due to the significant decrease in exports by 94.9% to 0.29 TWh from 5.68 TWh. Exports have decreased in the first quarter of 2024 due to Bulgaria’s increasing gas imports from Turkey. On the contrary, a significant increase was recorded in domestic natural gas consumption by 30.91%, reaching 16.22 TWh from 12.39 TWh in the first quarter of 2023.
In terms of natural gas consumer categories, electricity production units continue to represent the largest part of total consumption, covering 55.5% of domestic demand. Compared to the previous year, demand from electricity production units increased by 29.5%, reaching 9 TWh from 6.95 TWh.
A significant increase of 237.84%, compared to the first quarter of 2023, was recorded in natural gas consumption by industries and CNG refuelling stations, directly connected to the NNGTS, amounting to 2.5 TWh, which corresponds to almost 15.41% of domestic demand. Consumption from distribution networks in the first quarter of 2024 reached 4.72 TWh, which increased by 0.43% compared to last year, covering 29.10% of total demand.
Regarding the contribution of the remaining entry points during the first quarter of 2024, Sidirokastro covered 43.8% of imports (7.25 TWh), recording a significant increase of 113.86% compared to the first quarter of 2023. LNG continues to play a crucial role in gas imports. The Revithoussa LNG terminal (Agia Triada Entry Point) remained a key gateway for the country, covering about 39% of total imports.
In Q1, 6.93 TWh were unloaded from nine tankers compared to 9.51 TWh from 13 tankers in the corresponding period of the previous year. More than 65% of LNG cargoes came from the US, reaching 4.54 TWh, compared to 3.98 TWh in the same period last year. In second place were imports from Russia (1.91 TWh), followed by Algeria (0.48 TWh). The Nea Mesimvria entry point, which, through the TAP pipeline, covered 17.5% of imports (2.90 TWh). Finally, no quantities of natural gas passed through the Kipoi entry point at the Greek-Turkish border.
