S&P/ASX 200 Index (ASX: XJO) energy shares counted amongst the top performers in 2022.
But the first week of trading in 2023 proved to be a difficult one for the big energy stocks.
In fact, none of the pure play ASX 200 energy shares finished the first week of 2023 trading in the green, while the benchmark index managed to notch up a 1.27% gain.
What headwinds did ASX 200 energy shares face in the first week of 2023?
Did someone say headwinds?
Yes, there've been a few.
First, investors in ASX 200 energy shares may be feeling a bit skittish over the Federal Government's price gaps on domestic coal and gas sales. That legislation is due to last for 12 months. But there are no guarantees it might not be rolled over for an additional year. And analysts are still debating the potential impacts on the profitability of the big producers.
Second, windy conditions to drive wind turbines combined with unseasonably warm weather saw gas prices in Europe fall to levels not seen since before Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
And the big oil and gas producers didn't get any relief on the oil side either, with Brent crude oil finishing the week at US$80 per barrel. That's more than 7% below the price where Brent crude was trading at the end of 2022.
So, which ASX 200 energy shares fared the best?
The best of the pack
The third-best performer in the first week of trading in 2023 was oil and gas giant Woodside Energy Group Ltd (ASX: WDS).
Woodside has a market cap of $64 billion and, at the current share price, pays a partly franked trailing dividend yield of 8.7%.
After gaining a stellar 62% in 2022 on the back of surging oil and gas prices, this ASX 200 energy share is down 2.1% in these early days of 2023, finishing the week at $34.61 per share.
Up next, we have oil and gas producer Santos Ltd (ASX: STO).
Santos has a market cap of $23.1 billion and, as of Friday's closing price, pays an unfranked trailing dividend yield of 3.2%.
Having gained 13% in 2022, the Santos share price is down 1.3% in the new year, closing Friday at $7.02 per share.
Which brings us to the best of the pack over this first week, Origin Energy Ltd (ASX: ORG).
The diversified energy provider and producer has a market cap of $13.2 billion and pays a partly franked, trailing dividend yield of 3.8%.
Origin Energy shares gained 47% in 2022. In the first week of 2023, the ASX 200 energy share edged 0.1% lower, closing at $7.69 per share.
