The evolution of European traded gas hubs

This paper by Patrick Heather is the third he has written on the development of European traded gas hubs. It is the culmination of extensive field research interviewing a range of market participants from regulators, TSOs, traders and government officials – from Spain to the Baltics, from Britain to the Balkans and many points in between. In addition to comparing national aspirations with EC goals and deadlines he has noted not just the infrastructure projects required to create the connectivity for traded market development, but equally importantly the political will, cultural acceptance of traded markets and the commercial appetite. Clearly to achieve the vision of the Gas Target Model there is certainly ‘much left to do’.

In terms of assessing the stage of development of the various hubs, Patrick presents not only an update of his own quantitative and subjective measures but also incorporates the work of other relevant surveys and academic analyses. Based on this substantial synthesis, the results, both intuitively and analytically compelling, highlight the limited progress made by other hubs in ‘catching up with’ the Dutch and British hubs.

Executive Summary

By: Patrick Heather