TTF vs Henry Hub Gas Prices
What Are Henry Hub, TTF and NBP?
TTF vs Henry Hub deals with two of the best-known natural gas price benchmarks. TTF stands for Title Transfer Facility, which serves as the standard price for gas in continental Europe. It's traded out of the Netherlands. Henry Hub, on the other hand, is the main benchmark in the United States, named for an actual pipeline junction in Louisiana. When you're buying or selling gas contracts, you use these benchmarks as the price reference point.
Hubs are locations (some virtual, some physical) where different pipelines or gas markets intersect, letting gas change hands without needing to move right then. The TTF is a virtual hub based in the Netherlands. NBP, or National Balancing Point, is the virtual equivalent for Great Britain. Henry Hub is a physical junction; its price is what NYMEX uses for natural gas futures, the main US gas market contract.
If you want to check live gas prices or recent trends, you can find them on our natural gas price page.
Why Regional Gas Prices Can Differ
Oil can be shipped on most tankers, so after you add the transport cost, prices almost line up worldwide. Gas is different. Most gas travels long distances in pipelines. The rest must be chilled into liquefied natural gas (LNG), which lets it fit into special vessels for shipment.
Because not every region has pipeline links, each hub reflects its own balance of supply, demand and storage. When export facilities in the US are at their limit, the spread between Henry Hub and TTF widens. Spare capacity to send more gas across the Atlantic, and prices move closer together. If you want to learn what shapes oil pricing, see what drives oil prices.
Natural gas prices can swing sharply. Investing in gas futures or products tied to those prices means you can lose money.
How LNG Shipping Links the Hubs
LNG tankers carry natural gas between regions, connecting markets that aren't joined by pipeline. When the price gap between two hubs is bigger than the total cost to liquefy, ship, and regasify gas, traders may redirect cargoes to where they're paid more. This practice, known as arbitrage, tends to pull prices closer together when it works.
There are limits. You can't move more gas than the available liquefaction plants and import terminals can process, and every Atlantic ship crossing takes weeks. When capacity caps are reached, price differences can stick around. These bottlenecks are a main reason regional gas prices separate more than oil does under most conditions.
Frequently asked questions
Why is TTF quoted in euros per MWh but Henry Hub in dollars per MMBtu?
It comes down to each market using the currency and units that are standard locally. TTF is set in euros per megawatt-hour (MWh), while Henry Hub uses US dollars per million British thermal units (MMBtu). Both units measure energy, and you can convert between them. Our gas units guide outlines how that works.
Is the TTF price the same as the NBP price?
No, these are different. TTF and NBP represent separate virtual trading points for continental Europe and Great Britain, so prices aren't always aligned. They usually shift in the same direction because pipeline connections and flexible LNG cargo routes let companies move gas between the Netherlands and Britain, but price gaps open and close depending on available supply, demand and transport.
Do households pay the wholesale hub price for gas?
No, households do not pay the hub price shown on wholesale markets. That's the rate for gas companies trading bulk supply with each other. On your home bill you'll see other charges stacked on top, such as network fees, your supplier's costs, taxes, levies and the supplier's own margin. These add up differently, depending on which country you're in and the contract you have. You can find details in your supplier's tariff documents and from your national energy regulator's site.