EUROPE GAS-Prices rise on supply concerns amid Houthi attacks

LONDON, Oct 23 (Reuters) - Benchmark Dutch and British gas prices rose on Friday as renewed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and shipping exacerbated fears that Middle Eastern LNG exports could remain severely disrupted for an extended period.

The benchmark Dutch front-month contract at the TTF hub rose by €3.50 to €92.50 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) by 0813 GMT, ICE data showed.

The British front-month contract rose by nearly 8 pence to 229.95 pence per therm.

Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia have intensified expectations of further disruptions to energy supplies and attacks on shipping in the Strait or Hormuz continue.

Saudi Aramco has told staff to evacuate its Dhahran headquarters and work remotely, six people with knowledge of the matter said on Thursday, a day after two people were killed in an attack on a nearby airport, while the US State Department has ordered some diplomats and family members to depart from its missions in Saudi Arabia.

"European gas prices also remain extremely sensitive to developments in the Persian Gulf, with LNG flows increasingly likely to be largely absent from the market for at least much of the Northern Hemisphere winter," said analysts at ING.

"EU gas storage also appears to have peaked at just under 75% full, with storage falling marginally on Tuesday," they added.

On the supply side, Norwegian exports are expected to rise for the day ahead by 36 million cubic metres (mcm) per day to 341 mcm/day if the Troll, Oseberg and Kårstø outages finish. Demand from power plants is expected to fall due to above normal German wind generation, LSEG data showed.

In the European carbon market, the benchmark contract was down €0.17 at €86.30 per metric ton.