MOSCOW, August 24. /TASS/. The price of gas in Europe surged above $2,900 per 1,000 cubic meters during Wednesday trading again following reports on a delay in the launch of the Freeport LNG plant in Texas after repairs, according to data provided by London's ICE.

The price of gas futures for September delivery at the TTF hub in the Netherlands went up to $2,931 per 1,000 cubic meters, or 285.495 euro per MWh (on the basis of the current euro exchange rate against the dollar, prices at ICE are in euro per MWh). The increase in the gas price since the beginning of trading totals around 10%.

Earlier, the US company Freeport LNG said it planned to restore partial operation of its LNG terminal after an accident in early or mid-November, and full production in March 2023. It was previously scheduled to restart operations in October and reach full capacity by the end of the year.

The capacity of Freeport LNG enterprises is estimated at 15 mln tonnes of LNG per year, or around 16% of total US exports.

Earlier this week the spot price of gas in Europe rose above $3,000 per 1,000 cubic meters first since early March as supplies via Nord Stream were expected to be completely stopped from August 31 to September 2 due to the repair of the only gas compressor unit remaining in operation.

In turn, Gazprom did not rule out that gas prices in Europe in winter could rise above $4,000 per 1,000 cubic meters.

Experts interviewed by TASS believe gas prices could rise to a record-breaking $5,000 per 1,000 cubic meters in winter due to possible cold weather and a reduction in stocks in storage facilities. In their opinion, there is no reasonable limit for spot prices on the market at the moment.

The Nord Stream gas pipeline, which supplies gas from Russia to Europe, has been used at about 20% of its maximum capacity since July 27 due to the shutdown of two gas turbines. One of them, built in Canada by Siemens Energy, was sent to Montreal for repairs. Due to Ottawa's sanctions against Russia, the manufacturer initially refused to return the repaired turbine to Germany, but after numerous requests from Berlin, the company decided to do it. On July 25, Gazprom announced the forced shutdown of another gas turbine engine at the Portovaya compressor station. Consequently, only one turbine remains in working condition now.