UK GAS-Prices mixed in quiet trade

Prompt British wholesale gas prices were mixed in quiet trade on Thursday morning, with higher supply expected in the coming days and reduced consumption.

* The within-day contract was down 0.40 pence at 38.90 p/therm by 1010 GMT.

* Britain’s gas system was slightly oversupplied, with demand forecast at 306.6 mcm and supply at 310.9 mcm/day, National Grid data showed.

* Imports from Norway were stable on Thursday, according to Gassco data.

* Maintenance at the Culzean gas field of the UK Continental Shelf is expected to end tomorrow, ramping up production by 11 mcm per day.

* Liquefied natural gas (LNG) sendout fell by 7 mcm from Wednesday volumes, but new cargoes were confirmed to arrive in Britain, meaning send-out will remain high this month.

* Residential gas consumption is forecast to weaken on Friday and over the weekend, with temperatures expected to be slightly higher than predicted earlier, Refinitiv data showed.

* Friday’s residential gas demand is expected at 217 million cubic metres (mcm) and weekend demand at 196 mcm, from 223 mcm/day on Thursday.

* The day-ahead contract was up 0.25 pence at 38.60 pence per therm.

* Thursday’s consumption is higher than earlier forecasts, which could prompt around 30 mcm of storage withdrawals, Refinitiv gas analysts said in a morning report.

* There is also a risk of higher gas-for-power demand, a source in the UK gas market said.

* The December gas contract was yet to trade.

* Day-ahead gas price at the Dutch TTF hub was down 0.10 euro at 14.80 euros per megawatt hour.

* Benchmark Dec-19 EU carbon contract was down 0.17 euro at 24.22 euros per tonne.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Ekaterina Kravtsova; editing by Nina Chestney)