UK households and businesses will not face blackouts this winter, government officials say as gas shipped from Australia is set to dock in the country.
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The Attalos gas tanker was set to arrive at the Isle of Grain terminal in Kent, by the mouth of the Thames, on Monday - believed to be the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) sent from Australia to Europe in six years.
The squeeze on gas supplies in Europe has helped fuel rocketing inflation and driven up household bills, with analysts expecting the energy price cap to rise to 3,554 pounds ($A6,078) in October.
But officials in London insisted that there was no risk to the United Kingdom's energy supplies and consumers should not panic.
Some of the gas on that Attalos is likely to be used in the UK straight away but much of it will probably flow to Europe through the pipelines that connect the UK to the continent.
There it might be channelled into European gas storage sites and some of it could return to the UK during winter.
Concerns that shortages in Europe could jeopardise the supply of gas back to the UK were played down by officials who highlighted both North Sea production and the use of "reliable partners" such as Norway in ensuring homes could be heated and the lights kept on over the winter.
The UK has some of the highest LNG import capacity in Europe but it has very little gas storage.
Therefore, much of the LNG that comes to Europe this northern hemisphere summer will arrive in UK ports but be shipped over to European storage sites.
"Households, businesses and industry can be confident they will get the electricity and gas that they need over the winter," A Downing Street spokeswoman said.
"That's because we have one of the most reliable and diverse energy systems in the world."
The Attalos departed from Malaysia on July 20, according to data from Vessel Finder.
It had picked up a shipment of gas that had come from Australia, according to commodity experts at Kpler.
The Attalos is expected to dock on Monday evening.
Because of the long distances involved, it is rare for Australian gas to find its way to Europe.
Most instead goes to countries in Asia.
But the deep gas crisis that Europe is currently facing has catapulted the need for new sources of the fossil fuel.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4 on Monday, Octopus Energy chief executive Greg Jackson said that if the price of beer had risen as much as gas prices, getting a pint would cost 25 pounds.
Australian Associated Press
