Gazprom's natural gas production from Jan. 1 to Aug. 15 this year decreased 13.2% compared to the same period last year, Russian energy company Gazprom said Tuesday.
Output fell to 274.8 billion cubic meters, according to preliminary data.
The company's natural gas exports to countries outside the Commonwealth of Independent States decreased by 36.2% during the same period.
Exports totaled 78.5 billion cubic meters from Jan. 1 to Aug. 15.
However, despite the fall in exports, the price of natural gas in the European spot market exceeded the threshold of $2,500.
'According to conservative estimates, if this trend continues, prices will exceed the level of $4,000 per thousand cubic meters in winter,' Gazprom said.
The price of natural gas per megawatt-hour on Tuesday for September contracts in Europe, trading on the Netherlands-based virtual natural gas trading point (TTF), showed a weekly 21% rise to €233 ($236.1) at 1.00 p.m. local time (1000 GMT), compared to €192.1 ($194.6) on Tuesday last week.
Reporting by Emre Gurkan Abay in Moscow
Writing by Zeynep Beyza Kilic
Anadolu Agency
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