Global natural gas commodity prices by region 2020-2024

Natural gas prices increased across Europe, the United States, and Japan in 2021 due in large part to an energy supply shortage brought about by an increase in electricity demand. Apart from economic determinants, unexpectedly cold winters or warm summers may also drive price spikes. In 2022, natural gas prices increased further, largely as a result of tighter supplies following the Russia-Ukraine war. During the same year, Europe saw an annual average price of 40.3 nominal U.S. dollars per million British thermal units. The United States, as the largest natural gas producer worldwide, has significantly lower prices for the fossil fuel. The U.S. has had lower natural gas prices than Europe for much of the past four decades.

LNG on the rise

In the near future, LNG capacity growth is expected to alter the composition of natural gas markets which have been mostly linked to oil prices in the past. Increased long-distance gas trade through the expansion of pipelines such as between Russia and China also has the ability to reduce price differences between regions. Asia has some of the highest landed prices for liquefied natural gas worldwide.

Natural gas prices by country and sector

Switzerland has the highest industrial natural gas price in the world, at 64.94 U.S. dollars per megawatt hour. This compared to an industrial gas price of 10.86 U.S. dollars per megawatt hour in the U.S. Residential prices for natural gas are generally much higher at about 116.8 U.S. dollars per megawatt hour in Sweden and 35.77 U.S. dollars in the U.S.