Natural Gas Storage: +103 Bcf

Natural gas inventories post the largest build so far this season.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a weekly injection of 103 billion cubic feet (Bcf) from Lower 48 natural gas storage inventories for the week ending April 17, 2026 (Link).  Total inventories now stand at 2,603 Bcf, 142 Bcf (7.4%) above year-ago levels and 137 Bcf (7.1%) above the 2021-2025 average for the same week. 

This morning’s EIA report showed a historically large 103-Bcf build into underground inventories, marking the earliest point in the year that a triple-digit storage build has been recorded in the 33-year history of the weekly report. The injection came in stronger than both the year-ago and five-year average builds, widening the surplus to each benchmark. This marks the fourth consecutive week that storage has increased at a faster pace than the five-year average. On March 20, inventories held just a 3-Bcf cushion, but in the four weeks since, that surplus has expanded to 137 Bcf.

For the second time in the past three weeks, the EIA data included a revision to previous reports. The revised data effectively reduced working stocks in the Mountain Region by 10 Bcf dating back to August 2025. While this lowered the reported volume of gas available from underground storage, the implied flow balance over the period since the revision is unchanged.

This does not represent a material change in the storage situation.