06:06 AM EST, 02/11/2025 (MT Newswires) -- A cold snap in the U.S. in mid-January resulted in the fourth-largest reported weekly draw from natural gas storage due to increased gas consumption, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported Monday.

In the week ended Jan. 24, gas stocks fell by 321 billion cubic feet, nearly 70% more than the five-year average draw from the same week in January, the EIA said.

With withdrawals in January amounting to nearly 1,000 Bcf, U.S. natural gas inventories are now 4% below the five-year average after being 6% above the five-year average at the start of the current heating season that began in November 2024, the agency reported.

Temperatures in the U.S. Southeast fell to record lows, and snow fell in parts of Louisiana, Texas and the panhandle of Florida. In the week ended Jan. 24, U.S. heating degree days reached 262, or 28% more than normal, the EIA said, citing data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Cold weather also resulted in gas production declines in January as water and other liquids freeze at the wellhead or in natural gas gathering lines near production centers.