Greece and Italy received sharply higher liquefied natural gas (LNG) volumes in Week 42, as Southeast Europe entered winter with elevated gas prices and a growing premium on access to diversified supply routes. The weekly market analysis reported increased LNG deliveries to both countries.
Greek inflows reached 572.43 GWh, a 42.41% increase from the previous week. Italy’s volumes rose 28.01% to 2,789.46 GWh, while Croatia recorded inflows of 432.39 GWh.
The European TTF benchmark averaged €86.54/MWh during the week, up 11.6% week on week, and closed Friday at €87.55/MWh. The rise in LNG volumes alongside high prices highlights how diversified supply can strengthen physical security while leaving consumers exposed to international commodity prices.
Southern routes broaden gas access
The supply picture is particularly relevant to Southeast Europe. Greece has become an increasingly important southern entry point for gas moving towards Bulgaria and the wider Balkan region.
Croatia’s LNG infrastructure provides Central and Southeast European buyers with another access route. Italy, meanwhile, combines substantial LNG infrastructure with pipeline connections and one of Europe’s largest gas markets.
Together, the three systems are part of a wider southern supply architecture that can reduce reliance on any single source or corridor. Diversification, however, does not remove price risk: LNG cargoes compete in an international market.
When Asian demand strengthens or global supply is disrupted, European buyers may have to bid more to attract replacement cargoes. Europe’s relatively weak storage position adds to this sensitivity, potentially keeping prices elevated beyond the immediate winter period if the continent competes aggressively for LNG during the next storage-refilling cycle.
Gas prices feed into electricity markets
The effect extends to electricity markets, where gas-fired generators remain important sources of flexible power across Southeast Europe. Higher gas prices also raise the marginal generation costs of those plants.
That impact can reach countries with relatively little gas-fired generation because regional electricity markets are interconnected. Expensive gas plants may set the marginal electricity price in other markets.
Greece offers an example of this dynamic. In Week 42, its gas-fired electricity production increased materially despite elevated gas prices, while the country also expanded electricity exports.
This indicates that high regional power prices can still support gas generation even when fuel costs are high. The infrastructure implications therefore extend beyond gas security: LNG terminals, pipelines and interconnectors affect electricity-market competitiveness by shaping where flexible gas-fired generators can obtain fuel and at what cost.
Implications for investors and industrial buyers
For investors, gas infrastructure can provide security and flexibility during the energy transition, but projects exposed to international LNG prices may face substantial operating-cost volatility. Gas-fired power projects may therefore need robust hedging strategies, capacity revenues or complementary renewable portfolios to remain commercially resilient.
Industrial buyers face a similar trade-off. Diversified gas infrastructure reduces the risk of physical interruption, but it does not guarantee stable prices.
As a result, the economics of electrification, energy efficiency, renewable PPAs and flexible consumption can improve when imported gas becomes more expensive. Week 42 showed Greece, Italy and Croatia bringing more LNG into their systems while European gas prices remained exceptionally high.
Southeast Europe’s energy system may be more diversified and physically secure than in the past, yet remain substantially exposed to global commodity pricing. The strategic challenge is to use LNG as a tool for security and flexibility without allowing globally priced gas to become the dominant driver of regional electricity costs.
