European natural gas prices rose above €66 per megawatt-hour on Thursday after a two-day decline, as investors assessed diplomatic progress in the Middle East. Iran’s military said Tehran and Oman had reached agreements on the sharing of control and revenues from the Strait of Hormuz. However, Tehran stressed that a deal does not imply an immediate reopening of the waterway and warned that the strait will remain closed if the US does not accept the proposal’s terms, raising uncertainty over when energy flows can return to normal. Continued restrictions in the strait have disrupted LNG flows from the Persian Gulf, causing severe delays to shipments from major exporter Qatar. At the same time, extreme summer heat has boosted demand for gas-fired power generation, leaving European gas storage just 63% full, the lowest level for this time of year since 2009. As a result, prices remain vulnerable to further volatility, particularly if supply disruptions persist into the heating season.