Is the UK facing a gas storage crisis?

Low storage levels and growing import dependency provoke concern, but some commentators believe the market will sort out any future supply problems, as Rachel Morison reports

With less than five days' worth of natural gas in storage, the UK is facing the prospect of a severe gas shortage and possible interruptions to supply, according to Greg Clark, shadow energy and climate change secretary, in a press release last month.

"Our gas stores today are more than a third below the volumes held in March 2006 and it is reduced demand due to the recession that has prevented this situation from becoming an emergency," Clark said.

There is a genuine concern about the adequacy