(Adds quote, detail) OSLO, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Norway’s Equinor posted its strongest quarterly result in nine years on Wednesday, driven by a global energy supply crunch that pushed Europe’s natural gas prices to all-time highs. The company said it will increase the size of its share buybacks this year, while maintaining its quarterly dividend level at $0.18 per share. Adjusted earnings before tax rose to $9.77 billion in the July-September quarter from $780 million in the same period a year ago, exceeding the $8.4 billion predicted in a poll of 25 analysts compiled by Equinor. “The current unprecedented level and volatility in European gas prices underlines the uncertainty in the market,” Chief Executive Anders Opedal said in a statement. “Equinor has an important role as a reliable energy provider to Europe and we have taken steps to increase our gas exports to respond to the high demand,” he added. Global gas prices rose sharply in the third quarter, with Europe’s benchmark TTF front-month contract increasing threefold to around 90 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) due to rising demand, below average storage levels and concerns over Russian supply ahead of the winter heating season. (Reporting by Nerijus Adomaitis and Nora Buli, editing by Terje Solsvik) Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.