European gas futures rose for the third day in a row on Friday, reaching their highest level since December, reaching €40/MWh on fears of a disruption to Russian gas supplies following the invasion of Ukrainian troops into the Kursk region bordering Russia, where an important gas entry point.

The station is part of the last remaining pipeline link that will bring Russian gas to Europe via Ukraine. However, “according to nominations published by the Ukrainian network, gas flows via Ukraine remain normal,” writes ANZ Research, also pointing out that the European Union’s gas storage facilities are over 86 percent full, well above the five-year average.

But Central European countries such as Austria, Slovakia and Hungary are still supplied with Russian gas that flows through Ukraine. According to the consultancy Baringa, these pipelines still cover three to five percent of the European total.

Analysts do not expect the current gas transit contract, which expires at the end of the year, to be extended. A possible disruption could mean an early end to gas supplies.

“It’s small, but not insignificant,” said Pete Thompson, head of gas analysis at Baringa The Wall Street Journal“Supply disruptions could well lead to higher prices.”

ETFs: (NYSEARCA:UNG), (BOIL), (KOLD), (UNL), (FCG)

The US front-month natural gas futures for September on Nymex (NG1:COM) are currently +1.4% to 2.157 USD/MMBtu.