UK GAS-Prices rise on Groningen field output reduction news

(Updates prices)

Jan 10 (Reuters) - British wholesale gas prices rose on Wednesday afternoon, shortly after Dutch gas firm NAM suggested reducing production at the Groningen gas field in the wake of Monday's earthquake. * Within-day gas rose by 0.20 pence to 53.50 pence per therm at 1228 GMT. * The February contract was up 0.60 pence at 55.05 pence/therm. * Day-ahead gas inched up by 0.83 pence to 54.00 pence per therm. * Dutch gas company NAM will propose reducing production at the Groningen gas field in the wake of Monday's earthquake, a spokesman for the company said on Wednesday. NAM will present details of its proposal to the government around 1400 GMT. * Britain imports gas from the Netherlands through the BBL (Shenzhen: 002776.SZ - news) pipeline, so a potential reduction in Dutch gas flows can push up prices in the British market. * A Netherlands-based gas trader said the expected reduction at the Groningen gas field was behind the higher prices. * Britain's gas system was oversupplied by 12.1 million cubic metres (mcm), with demand forecast at 336.8 mcm and supply at 348.9 mcm/day, National Grid (LSE: NG.L - news) data showed. * Gas supply from Norway to Britain on Wednesday was stable at 138 mcm/day, close to the pipeline system's maximum capacity. * Earlier on Wednesday, within-day prices and the February contract had been declining, a move that was mostly weather-related. * Average temperatures on Wednesday could reach 8 degrees Celsius in southern Britain and are forecast to decline to 6 degrees C on Thursday until Sunday, data from Britain's Met Office showed. * In the Dutch gas market, the day-ahead gas price at the TTF hub rose by 0.06 euro to 19.48 euros per megawatt hour (MWh). * The benchmark Dec (Shanghai: 600875.SS - news) -17 EU carbon contract was up 0.06 euros at 7.84 euros a tonne. * Thomson Reuters (Dusseldorf: TOC.DU - news) analyst view: http://emea1.apps.cp.extranet.thomsonreuters.biz/cms/?pageid=united-kingdom-gas (Reporting by Lefteris Karagiannopoulos in Oslo; Editing by Edmund Blair)