Natural gas price forecast 2030-2050: What next for gas prices?

After trading below $3 per million British thermal units (BTU) for much of 2024, natural gas prices have fluctuated in 2025, influenced by weather patterns and other factors. For instance, on 22 April 2025, Henry Hub US natural gas opened 16.55% down year to date, and 72.86% up year on year. Meanwhile, Dutch TTF EU natural gas traded 28.61% down year to date, and 20.10% up year on year.

What’s next for natural gas prices in the coming years? Here are third-party analysts’ forecasts and price predictions for 2030-2050.

Natural gas predictions: 2025-2030 price targets

When it comes to the natural gas predictions for 2025-2030, ING forecasted volatility ahead for the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) EU natural gas, Europe's gas price benchmark measured in euro/megawatt-hour (EUR/MWh). ING anticipated an average price of 45 EUR/MWh in Q2 2025, dropping to 42 in Q3as seasonal demand declines. 

Prices are expected to average 44 EUR/MWh in Q4 before falling to 37 in Q1 2026. Overall, ING forecasted a 45 EUR/MWh average for 2025 and 33 EUR/MWh for 2026.

Meanwhile, Trading Economics predicted that Henry Hub US natural gas prices – measured in US dollar/million British thermal units (USD/MMBtu) – could trade for 3.41 USD/MMBtu by the end of Q2 2025, increasing to 3.95 by April 2026. The financial data platform anticipated EU TTF to reach 36.57 EUR/MWh at the end of Q2 2025, rising to 40.39 by April 2026. 

The World Bank projected EU natural gas prices to average 11.5 USD/MMBtu in 2025, and 10.5 in 2026. Meanwhile, it forecasted US natural gas to average 3.4 USD/MMBtu in 2025, rising to 3.7 in 2026.

Scotia Bank targeted a 4.11 USD/MMBtu average for US natural gas in 2025, increasing to 4.63 in 2026, based on Henry Hub pricing.

The US Energy Information Administration (EIA)  offered a short-term outlook, predicting a 4.30 USD/MMBtu average for 2025, rising to 4.60 in 2026. 

Deloitte provided international natural gas price forecasts for 2025-2030, measured in USD per thousand cubic feet (USD/Mcf). The table below includes US benchmarks such as NYMEX Henry Hub, Permian Waha, Rocky Mountain Opal, and San Juan Ignacio, alongside European markets like UK NBP and Dutch TTF, as well as India domestic gas and Global LNG Asia.

Here’s how they compared:

Natural gas price forecasts: US, EU and International

Natural gas forecast for 2030-2050

While analysts typically don’t provide a long-term outlook for natural gas prices, algorithm-based price prediction services can offer such forecasts by assessing historical data. 

In March 2025, the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) forecasted a 32% increase in global natural gas demand, rising from 4,018 bcm in 2023 to 5,317 bcm by 2050, reflecting an average annual growth rate of 1%.

EU natural gas prices could stand to resist long-term volatility caused by US tariffs, according to ING Think, which said: ‘For now, fundamentals in the European gas market remain supportive… While TTF has been affected by the broader risk-off move, we’re reluctant to revise our forecasts lower for this year. The market is still set to be tight through 2025.’

Deloitte’s ‘Energy, oil, and gas price forecast’, published in December 2024, anticipated that US natural gas prices would climb in 2030-2032. The report predicted:

• NYMEX Henry Hub to average 4.40 USD/Mcf in 2030, rising to 4.50 in 2031, and 4.60 in 2032.

• Permian Waha to average 3.60 USD/Mcf in 2030, 3.65 in 2031, and 3.75 in 2032.

• Rocky Mountain Opal to average 4.20 USD/Mcf in 2030, 4.30 in 2031, and 4.35 in 2032.

• San Juan Ignacio to average 4.10 USD/Mcf in 2030, 4.15 in 2031, and 4.25 in 2032.

For European natural gas, Deloitte forecasted:

• UK NBP to average 10.50 USD/Mcf in 2030, 10.70 in 2031, and 10.90 in 2032.

• Dutch TTF to average 10.65 in 2030, 10.85 in 2031, and 11.10 in 2032.

Both analyst and algorithmically-generated price forecasts are based on historical market data. Predictions may be inaccurate or subject to change based on evolving market conditions. Past performance does not guarantee future results.

Natural gas price history

Natural gas prices were volatile from 2018 to the end of 2021. Henry Hub US natural gas traded between 1.63 and 5.51 USD/MMBtu while TTF EU natural gas traded between 4.38 and 97.77 EUR/MWh. Decreased demand due to the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to lower prices during this period, while the post-pandemic recovery contributed to a sharp price increase in late 2021.

Prices escalated following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, officially declared on 24 February 2022, which led to the Ukraine War and triggered a major energy crisis in Europe.

In August 2022, the TTF reached an all-time intraday high of over 330 EUR/MWw, driven, in part, by concerns over Russian supply disruptions, as Europe relied on Russia for nearly approximately 24% of its gas imports at the time. In response, European nations ramped up liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from the US and other suppliers, leading to price fluctuations throughout 2022. Meanwhile, the benchmark Henry Hub price surged to a 14-year high of 8.81 USD/MMBtu in August 2022, which fell to 5.53 by December 2022.

2023 onwards

TTF dropped below 60 EUR/MWh in January 2023, below 27 in May 2023, and by December 2023, the TTF price averaged around 32.35 EUR/MWh. In March 2023 Henry Hub dropped to 2.15 USD/MMBt, -52.85% lower than the previous year, as record US gas production and mild winter conditions in Europe lowered demand.

Natural gas prices remained subdued in 2024, with Henry Hub averaging 1.49 to 3.18 USD/MMBtu, with a cold snap in December 2024 and January 2025 driving a short-term rally that lifted its price. European storage levels fell faster than expected, increasing demand for LNG imports, while geopolitical tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East contributed to further price uncertainty.

Prices gradually eased in spring 2025, falling to around 3 USD/MMBtu by mid-April due to strong US production and milder weather, which reduced heating demand and allowed higher storage injections. Similarly, European TTF prices declined from early-year highs to approximately 33-36 EUR/MWh by April, supported by healthy storage levels and lower consumption.

Learn more about natural gas markets, read our comprehensive US natural gas and EU gas trading guides.

Past performance isn’t a reliable indicator of future results.

The growth story for LNG

LNG continues to play a crucial role in the global natural gas market, with supply set to rise over the coming decades JPMorgan Research analysts said ‘With this increase in capacity, LNG prices are expected to fall in the longer term.’ They predicted that LNG supply capacity would rise by approximately 250 Bcm by 2030.

On 4 February 2025, Barron’s writer Avi Salzman said: ‘LNG shipments have grown from less than 2 billion cubic feet a day in 2017 to about 14 billion now, making the US the largest exporter of LNG in the world. LNG sales are already twice as valuable as exports of US movies and television shows, according to S&P Global Commodity Insights.’ 

Deloitte commented that, due to the recent growth of AI models, it’s now expected that electricity demand will grow by 160% from current levels by 2030, and that natural gas is a strong contender to meet this demand.

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