Europe has record gas stocks for this winter — but consumers still face historically higher bills
A worker heats the seal of a joint between two segments of pipe during construction of a section of an interconnector gas pipeline, linking the gas networks of Bulgaria and Serbia, on the outskirts of Sofia, Bulgaria, on Friday, Feb.24, 2023. Bulgaria has begun work on a new pipeline to neighboring Serbia that will enable gas supplies from other countries to reduce dependence on Russian flows. Photographer: Oliver Bunic/Bloomberg via Getty Images
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A feared European winter gas shortage has yet to materialize for the second year in a row — but consumers are set to stay stuck paying significantly higher rates than they used to.
A crisis situation was averted last winter, following a scramble to find new suppliers, reopen old storage facilities and roll out initiatives to reduce consumption in some energy-intensive areas, as flows from Russia dried up in the wake of its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
According to research published by Moody’s this month, the EU had record high gas stocks of around 97.5% at the end November 2023, meaning both very low risk of energy shortages this winter and a strong position for the next cold season, analysts found.
“Europe’s improved energy reserves going into this winter are the result of the effectiveness of government actions on the supply and demand side, and consistent energy savings by both households and companies,” the Moody’s report stated, citing greater supplies of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 2023, a higher availability of nuclear and hydropower plants and a mild winter as improving the situation.
Lower consumption has also been helped by economic stagnation in the continent, the report said.
Moody’s expects gas storage to be higher than previously anticipated at 55% at the end of March 2024.
Household and business bills
Yet, “European gas prices will remain high and volatile,” the report finds.
Energy has been one of the strongest forces pulling down inflation in recent months, after being a chief driver in hikes in consumer prices suffered in the immediate wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Annual headline inflation was 2.4% in November in the euro zone, with energy showing disinflation of 11.5% year-on-year, even as the extent of price rises simply moderated in all other sectors.
In the U.K., gas price inflation has plunged by 31% in the year to November, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed.
But all that is a fall off the back of a very large spike.
Using Factset data, Moody’s found that European gas prices are well above their 2015-2019 average — and sees them remaining above this level until at least 2031. In 2020 and 2021, prices were below the average.
“The tariffs paid by households and industries are still historically very high,” James Waddell, head of European gas and global LNG at Energy Aspects, told CNBC by email.
“Movements in these prices generally follow movements in the wholesale gas market with a lag of several months, because of supplier hedging. So the fall in European wholesale gas prices from last year has not fully been passed through yet.”
Wholesale prices are overall around four times lower than they averaged over 2022, but still more than double what they were historically, Waddell said.
“This means that there are still price pressures on households and industries and in the case of the latter, increasingly we see interest in these firms relocating production outside of Europe.”
He also said that, despite healthy supply in the short term, concerns remain about the ability for European gas storage capacity to set itself up for the years ahead, since “stocks can be drawn down quickly in the event of cold weather.” That can also be the case if an increase in Asian demand pulls a lot of LNG away from Europe, he said.
Moody’s says gas prices will stay volatile primarily because of “increased geopolitical risks, which reflect their intrinsic vulnerability to supply disruptions.”
It cites various downside risks to its gas market outlook, including a further cut in Russian pipeline supply and episodes of supply disruption, as seen in the strikes at Australian LNG facilities earlier this year.
Additional volatility has arisen following the Israel-Hamas war, which has lifted risk premiums and driven spot gas prices higher despite Europe’s relative distance from the conflict, researchers say.
According to Moody’s, “Under the unlikely adverse scenario where the conflict could escalate to the broader region with the direct involvement of Iran, European gas prices could spike to similar levels seen following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This scenario would hurt economic activity and add further challenges for energy-intensive sectors.”
Environment
PG&E customers can snag huge incentives on GM Energy charging products through a V2X pilot program
Pacific Gas & Electric Company (PG&E) residential customers can now take advantage of incentives in the thousands off the price of qualifying GM Energy home charging and energy management products. GM has joined PG&E’s vehicle-to-everything (V2X) pilot program, enabling energy customers to bundle their GM Energy systems and eventually get paid to supply excess energy back to their local grid.
While this particular incentive program only applies to certain customers of PG&E, it is big news for the growing segment of home energy management solutions, including energy storage systems, solar panels, and bidirectional EV charging.
GM Energy, the home and commercial charging solutions arm, spun out from Ultium Charge 360 three years ago, is establishing itself as a leader in that segment. In the summer of 2023, GM Energy launched its initial portfolio of Ultium Home products, which consisted of three separate bundles complete with vehicle-to-home (V2H) charging capabilities.
In May of 2024, GM Energy showed off the capabilities of its energy management products by powering an entire mansion using the products and a Chevy Silverado EV. Since then, GM Energy has expanded its business to all 50 United States, giving EV owners nationwide access to its portfolio of energy management products, which also includes two versions of an energy storage system (ESS) called PowerBank, which was introduced last October.
With a growing lineup of home energy management and EV charging solutions, GM Energy is working alongside PG&E to expand its reach by incentivizing those customers to implement said technologies and explore more sustainable solutions. There may also be an option for vehicle-to-grid capabilities, which could be an absolute game-changer in how we use and manage our daily energy.
PG&E customers can save $4,500 on GM Energy charging
GM shared that now that it has joined PG&E’s V2X pilot program, those energy customers in Northern and Central California can take advantage of incentivized pricing on specific charging and power hub products.
Customers who enroll in the Vehicle-to-Everything pilot program can receive up to $4,500 off the price of GM Energy home products, such as its Vehicle-to-Home (V2H) Bundle, which includes a PowerShift EV charger and V2H Enablement Kit or the all-encompassing Home System, which includes bidirectional EV charging plus a GM Energy PowerBank, Home Hub, and Inverter.
GM Energy’s products also currently qualify for federal tax incentives, so PG&E customers can get a robust energy management setup complete with EV charging for upwards of $5,000 off. GM Energy Vice President Wade Sheffer spoke about these savings opportunities:
For Northern California customers looking to take more control of their home energy, this program with PG&E represents a great opportunity. For utilities, legislators, customers and others, this pilot is an opportunity to see the full value of our V2H technology beyond just providing power to a home during power outages. This can be a tool that helps overall grid resiliency and showcases the unique advantages of EVs while, in the future, may even reduce the overall total cost of EV ownership.
In exchange for the incentives, GM Energy and PG&E plan to study charging data from customers to evaluate the potential of bidirectional charging and its ability to support electrical grids by flushing excess energy from those storage devices (EVs, PowerBanks, etc) during peak energy demand.
The goal is to scale bidirectional c,harging installations to more PG&E customers and eventually throughout all of California to demonstrate the energy freedom and financial benefits it can provide to all customers. Mike Delaney, Vice President of utility partnerships and innovation at PG&E also spoke:
PG&E is leading the way to enable vehicle-grid-integration technology creating a path for EVs to power customer homes, ultimately benefiting all Californians. We are proud to continue leading this electric renaissance as we collaborate with automakers and some of the world’s top innovators to pioneer bidirectional charging technology where EVs have the potential to offer greater reliability, resiliency and cost savings.
To begin, the following GM EVs will be eligible for the V2X program, but the American automaker plans to add all 2025 model-year EVs soon:
You can learn more about the PG&E pilot program and bidirectional charging on GM Energy’s website and enroll here. GM also provided more details of the capabilities of its home energy management products in the video below:
Electrek’s take
While this particular incentive program only applies to customers from one energy company in a single state, PG&E is a behemoth in California, and it’s encouraging to see it at least exploring the possibility of bidirectional charging enabling vehicle-to-grid capabilities.
Anyone who will lend an ear has heard me go on and on about how the energy companies should be shaking as more energy management power (and freedom from the grid) is being put into the hands of individual homeowners. I can easily imagine a world where most homeowners have an EV paired with solar panels on their roof and some sort of power bank in their garage. They can charge their vehicle and power their home during peak hours using free energy from the Sun and/or store it to sell back to energy companies via V2G.
Say you’re going out of town for a week and you know you won’t need your car or the energy you’ve gained from solar. Flush it back to the grid when everyone is home from work at night and booting up Netflix, and you’ll get some money back on your monthly bill!
It’s a no-brainer to me, and I see V2G as inevitable. That said, I feel most energy companies will fight tooth and nail to at least slow that transition down to maintain their energy monopolies as long as possible. That’s why it’s refreshing to see a company like PG&E at least open to possibility… especially since it’s an energy company that’s not exactly known for its moral fiber (see Erin Brockovich).
California often serves as a crystal ball into the future for the rest of the US, so this pilot program, albeit small, is a step forward in full-scale integration throughout the state and into additional ones. We must wait and see what the data brings before anything becomes a bonafide standard for energy customers. Still, this program does offer a sweet little taste of a future in which sustainable energy becomes widespread… not because it’s the right thing to do unfortunately, but because it will save everyone money.
Well, maybe not the energy companies, but they will continue to do just fine.
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Environment
Trump tariff threats are pushing Canada’s largest oil producer to break its dependence on the U.S.
The Suncor Energy Refinery is seen during extreme cold weather in Edmonton, AB, Canada, on Feb. 3, 2025.
Artur Widak | Nurphoto | Getty Images
HOUSTON — The deeply integrated North American oil and gas market stands at crossroads, with Canada’s largest oil producer warning that it will diversify its exports away from the United States if President Donald Trump‘s tariff threats do not end.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Wednesday presented two possible futures for the continent. In one, Canada and the U.S. reach an agreement to create “Fortress North America,” with new pipeline capacity built to support 2 million barrels per day in additional exports to the U.S. market, Smith said at the CERAWeek energy conference.
This will support Trump’s “energy dominance” agenda, Smith said, allowing the U.S. to increase its exports to the global market by backfilling those barrels with imported oil from a neighbor and close ally. It will maintain low consumer prices in the U.S., she said, which is also part of the agenda Trump campaigned on.
Alberta wants to supply the U.S. with the energy it needs to win the race against China to achieve dominance in artificial intelligence, Smith said. “I don’t think any of us want to see a communist, totalitarian regime become a world, global leader in AI,” the premier said.
In the other future, Trump continues to wage his trade war against Canada and Alberta starts looking for oil and gas customers beyond the U.S., Smith said.
Canada is the fourth largest oil producer in the world and Alberta is the country’s biggest producer. Some 97% of the country’s 4 million bpd of oil exports went to the U.S. in 2023 with several European nations and Hong Kong taking the remainder, according to Canada’s energy regulator. Alberta supplied 87% of the oil exported from Canada to the U.S. in 2023.
“There are at least six or seven projects that are emerging in Canada in the event we’re not able to come to a partnership agreement with the U.S.,” Smith said.
The uncertainty caused by Trump’s tariff threats has already forced Alberta to start “looking at more opportunities to get more barrels off our borders besides the United States,” provincial energy minister Brian Jean said Tuesday.
Alberta is in active discussions with South Korea, Japan and European nations about shipping oil exports to those countries, the energy minister said. “The truth is we’re looking in every direction right now except the United States in relation to our priorities,” Jean said.
Canada looks to Europe, Asia
Trump’s tariffs have roiled financial markets and caused confusion among investors over the past week. The president on Wednesday imposed 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from Canada. He has paused until April 2 penalties on Canadian oil and gas as well as duties on other goods that are compliant with the trade agreement that governs North America.
The Trump administration has not provided clarity on how much of Canada’s energy exports to the U.S. conform to the trade agreement. Oil and gas that is not compliant would face a 10% tariff. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright declined to provide details when asked Monday by CNBC.
Smith said Wednesday that Canadian oil producers are busy filling out paperwork to ensure that their exports to the U.S. are compliant.
“There was a bit of a paperwork issue that our companies had,” Smith said. “There was no reason to register, and so now there is. I would imagine that they’ve all called their lawyers and they’re in compliance. I wouldn’t expect very much of our oil and gas is tariffed at all.”
But it is unclear whether Trump will proceed with tariffs when his pause expires on April 2. Wright said Monday a deal with Canada that avoids tariffs on oil, gas and other energy is “certainly is possible” but “it’s too early to say.”
“We can get to no tariffs or very low tariffs but it’s got to be reciprocal,” Wright said in an interview with CNBC’s Brian Sullivan.
It will take time for Alberta to pivot to markets beyond the U.S. if the tariffs do go into effect. Nearly all the pipelines in Canada run south to the U.S. Canada only has one pipeline stretching from Alberta to the country’s West Coast in British Columbia, providing access to Asian markets. There are no pipelines that run from Alberta to the country’s East Coast.
Smith said Canada is looking at three different pipeline proposals to its West Coast, at least one pipeline into the Northwest Territories, one into Manitoba, one to the Hudson Bay, and one into Eastern Canada.
“Those are conversations we were not having three months ago,” Jean said of the pipelines. But it took 12 years for Canada to expand its Trans Mountain Pipeline that connects to the country’s West Coast.
Alberta is not interested in taking a page from Ontario’s playbook, Jean said Tuesday. Premier Doug Ford imposed a 25% surcharge on electricity exported to the U.S. in response to Trump’s tariffs. He later suspended the penalty after the U.S. agreed to resume talks.
“We don’t believe that that this is the right way to do it,” Jean said of Alberta’s position. “We want to deescalate the situation.”
Canada has presented the U.S. with several options, the Alberta energy minister said. Jean declined to provide specifics, but he said the Trump administration needs a strong strategic petroleum reserve to achieve its goal of energy dominance.
“It also means that they have to be able to continue to get a good steady supply of product from Canada,” he said.
If the tariffs go do into effect, they will hurt both Canadians and Americans, particularly people who cannot afford a price increase, he said. The price hike will be split “fairly evenly” between U.S. customers and producers in Canada, he said.
“It’s going to be felt by all parties and frankly there’s many people right now […] that can’t afford it,” he said. “We need to think about those people because they’re the less fortunate that truly have no other choice but to buy fuel.”
Jean took a swipe at Trump’s repeated calls for Canada to become the 51st state.
“As long as we’re in charge, we don’t mind,” Jean said. “But the truth is the Republicans would never be elected again.”
Toyota’s first electric SUV is getting a major overhaul. The new bZ4X now has a bigger battery for more range, faster charging, dedicated EV features, a stylish facelift, and much more. Here’s our first look at the new Toyota bZ4X.
Toyota unveils new bZ4X with significant improvements
The bZ4X launched in 2022 as Toyota’s first fully electric SUV. Although it was expected to rival the Tesla Model Y and other top-selling electric SUVs, the bZ4X failed to live up to the task.
“I think it’s fair to say that we experienced a few bumps in the road during the launch,” Toyota’s chief branding officer, Simon Humphries, said during the company’s premiere event in Brussels this week.
Toyota listened to feedback from drivers, retailers, and journalists who experienced the bZ4X and delivered with the upgraded model.
The new electric SUV has more driving range, up to twice as fast charging, and double the towing capacity. But, that’s not all. The bZ4X has been updated inside and out. The interior is completely redesigned with a new 14″ infotainment and instrument display panel.
Toyota finally added a battery pre-conditioning feature as standard. For the first time, Toyota said the bZ4X can now fast charge in around 30 minutes in cold weather. Maximum DC charging power is still 150 kW.
A new route planning function that automatically selects the best charging station is also included. Toyota said the feature is available through an OTA update for current bZ4X drivers.
The new bZ4X has two battery options, 57.7kWh and 73.1 kWh. The smaller battery will be available exclusively in FWD while the larger battery has FWD and AWD configurations.
With up to 338 hp (252 kW), the upgraded AWD model is one of the most powerful Toyota vehicles in Europe. Its towing capacity has doubled to 1,500 kg.
Combined with an upgraded eAxle, the new long-range bZ4X has a WLTP driving range of up to 573 km (356 miles). That’s a significant improvement from the outgoing model’s range of up to 516 km (320 miles).
Although US specs have yet to be revealed, the 2025 bZ4X is rated with up to 252 miles on the EPA rating scale. When it arrives in the US, you can expect to see upwards of around 270 to 280 miles.
Toyota will launch the updated bZ4X in Europe later this year, one of three new EVs arriving by the end of 2025. The smaller Toyota C-HR+ and Urban Cruiser electric SUVs will join the updated model in Toyota’s growing European EV lineup.
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