Energy is complicated to understand but easy to suffer from, as we clearly saw when bills skyrocketed after the invasion of Ukraine. Is the European Union at risk now of facing a new energy crisis? Well, let's see what Arturo Gonzalo Azpiri, CEO of Enagás, answers. Good afternoon, Mr. Gonzalo Azpiri. Good afternoon, thank you for coming.
Good afternoon, Inma. Thank you for the invitation. Are we at risk of an energy crisis now because the United States is demanding that we buy more gas, but it seems they are making it more expensive? The price is soaring and reserves are at half. We are not facing a risk of a supply security crisis in Europe. Gas will not be lacking, but it is true that we are seeing higher prices than we have seen in the last twelve years. But let's put it in perspective: we are seeing prices approaching 60 euros per megawatt hour. In August 2022, a few months after the start of the war in Ukraine, prices reached 330 euros per megawatt hour. So we have a situation of some tension in prices due to a combination of circumstances: a colder winter than usual in Europe, the cessation of gas that was still arriving by pipeline through Ukraine, which stopped flowing at the end of last year. But these are circumstances that do not put supply security at risk. Gas will not be lacking, and we believe that this price tension will ease in the coming months. In fact, we think we will see prices below 60 euros per megawatt hour before the end of the year.
The United States, Trump says to Europe: if you want fewer tariffs, buy more fuels, buy more gas. And even the European Central Bank thinks it would be a good option. So we say we need to fill the reserves, we would need more gas. Perhaps it could be a good deal, but we have stopped depending on the European Union? I mean, now we will talk about Spain, about Russia, about Putin, and we are going to throw ourselves into the arms of the United States and Trump?
There is a very important difference. First, in effect, Europe has greatly reduced its dependence on Russia. We have reduced the gas we bring from Russia by 67% since 2022. Moreover, the gas that now arrives from Russia is largely liquefied natural gas, which can be replaced by LNG from other places, for example, from the United States. Previously it was by pipeline with closed contracts and there was nothing to do; now it is easier to change, so that the ship comes from another place. Exactly. And the United States is already the first supplier of LNG to Europe: 45% of all LNG in Europe comes from the United States. 30% of the gas consumed in Spain since the beginning of the year has come from the United States; it is our first supplier. What is the big difference? That this gas does not arrive by pipeline. The pipeline, let's say, ties you irremediably to the source of that gas. LNG comes from anywhere in the world. In Spain, in the last year, LNG has arrived from 14 countries. Therefore, LNG provides flexibility and therefore supply security. And LNG from the United States is very convenient for Europe, of course, at international market prices. But today it is not a threat, but a clear contribution to our supply security.
And this, what we were saying, the European Union is considering reviving some kind of price cap. In Italy they have already said that if this is not done jointly, they might do it on their own. Because the price that comes to us from the United States is very expensive, up to three times more expensive here than in the United States. They said they are charging us more than they should.
Well, these are international market prices. Specifically, this price reference is the spot market in Europe. And gas comes from the United States, Qatar, Nigeria, Algeria, or any other origin. The price does not depend on the origin, but on the spot market quotation. I would also like to point out that at these times when prices are tense, Spain is clearly in a better position than our neighbors because we have a much more robust infrastructure. Inma, today the reference price in Italy is 58 euros per megawatt hour; in the Netherlands, the TTF, which is a kind of reference price in Europe, is 56; and in Spain it is 54. So we don't all pay the same price. In Spain we have a discount on the gas price because we have an infrastructure very prepared for LNG. But it's not that the United States charges us a lot; it's that in a moment of market tension, we have to pay the price set by the international quotation. Right now, Spain buys mainly from the United States. Algeria still arrives, and quite a bit from Russia. Where does it arrive to us? Algeria is always a supplier because we have a gas pipeline, the Medgaz, that connects us directly with Algeria, and it is a very important source of supply. But to put it in figures: so far this year, the first supplier of Spain has been the United States with approximately 30%, a very similar percentage to Algeria, which comes immediately after, and Russia is the third supplier, slightly above 15%.
Let's talk about the future bet that Enagás is strongly betting on: green hydrogen. That's right. The last time you were here, in summer, we explained that green hydrogen comes from separating oxygen and hydrogen in water. We already mentioned that water would not be a problem even if there is drought, because not much is needed, and later we can resort to other technologies. What will green hydrogen be, as you see it in the company? Will it be the new oil, the new gas?
