Fluxys Belgium to merge gas trading services: a single Belgian reference price from October

The question of which price index to choose for a natural gas contract is set to get simpler. From 1 October 2023, a single index, ZTP, will be used for the Belgian reference price. The ZTP index was on average 14% lower than the Dutch TTF index in 2022 thanks to the Belgian grid's good connections to all sources for the Northwest European market.

The move to a single index is the result of Fluxys Belgium's decision to merge the two existing gas trading services “ZTP notional” and “ZTP physical” on 1 October 2023. For a long time, the two gas trading services met the various preferences of wholesale market players. In recent years, a shift towards the ZTP notional trading services has been observed.

To reflect the changed dynamics on the wholesale market, and to simplify and increase liquidity, Fluxys Belgium proposed early this year, in accordance with the sustained willingness of the CREG, to switch to a simpler system bringing together all trading volumes in the Belux market zone at a single point: ZTP. The market welcomed the proposal. The CREG approved the merger of the two trading services in June 2023 and welcomed the increased transparency for the end consumer when choosing a natural gas product. Price reporting agency ICIS will assist the market as it did with the merger of gas trading zones in France and Germany.