Energy Wholesale Market Review
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 29th July 2016
Day-ahead gas hit a seven-month high of 36.75p/th on 25 July, as a Norwegian gas field outage was extended into August. However the price slipped week-on-week 0.1% to 35.8p/th, with high UK domestic production flows weighing. Along the curve gas and power contracts experienced mixed movements. Winter 16 gas decreased 4.0% to 44.1p/th. Day-ahead power gained 3.8% to £39.4/MWh, amid lower wind output. In contrast, the winter contract dropped 3.0% to £46.5/MWh. Brent crude oil dropped 8.6% to $42.3/bl. On Friday 29 July, prices reached a new three-month low of $42.3/bl, with data from the US government which showed a rise in crude and gasoline inventories and reported builds in US crude stocks, both of which added to the continued concerns regarding global oversupply and uncertainty surrounding global markets. API 2 coal increased 4.3% to $61.0/t, prices peaked at $61.75/t on Thursday 28 July, the highest price since March 2015. EU ETS carbon lost 5.2% to €4.4/t.
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 29th July 2016
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 22nd July 2016
The majority of gas and power contracts made significant gains this week. Winter 16 gas experienced the largest rise, lifting 6.0% to 46.0p/th and hitting a one-year high of 46.9p/th on Monday. Centrica announced it is extending the closure of its Rough gas storage site, the UK’s largest, until spring 2017 following the discovery of an issue with one of its wells. This has caused concerns around storage supplies for the coming winter, and supporting winter prices. Consequently, the winter 16 power contract climbed 4.6% to £48.0/MWh, reaching a high of £48.3/MWh on Monday, the highest price since March 2015. In the shorter-term, day-ahead gas climbed 8.5% to 35.8p/th, a seven-month high, as a series of outages tightened supplies. In contrast, day-ahead power fell 3.6% to £38.0/MWh. Brent crude oil lost 0.1% this week to average $46.9/bl, and hit a 10-week low of $45.5/bl on Friday afternoon. API 2 coal prices were up 0.7% to average $59.2/t, peaking at a 16-month high of $60.5/t on 18 July.
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 22nd July 2016
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 15th July 2016
Most power and gas contracts moved lower again this week. An exception was day-ahead power which jumped 9.7% to £39.4/MWh, amid a failure with the IFA interconnector which reduced flows and limited supplies. Day-ahead gas decreased 2.7% to 33.0p/th, despite a rise in national system gas demand and a decrease in temperatures. On average seasonal gas contracts declined 2.5%, with winter 16 gas down 2.6% to 43.3p/th. Week-on-week Brent crude oil rose 0.8% to $46.9/bl, however on average prices lost 3.6% to average $47.0/bl. On Monday prices dropped to $46.3/bl, a new two-month low, after US producers increased the number of active rigs to the highest since April. API 2 coal experienced gains, up 1.7% to $59.0/t. Week-on-week EU ETS carbon climbed 4.5% to €4.7/t, but on average carbon prices fell 0.5% to €4.7/t. Carbon prices have fallen almost 20% since the UK voted to leave the EU on 23 June on fears the country, could also leave the bloc's Emission Trading System.
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 15th July 2016
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 8th July 2016
Most power and gas contracts increased this week. Day-ahead gas increased 0.9% to 33.9p/th, with a rise in national system gas demand. On average seasonal gas contracts gained 4.0%, with winter 16 up 3.1% to 44.5p/th, amid the temporary closure of Rough gas facility, which is expected to be shut down until 3 August 2016. In contrast, day-ahead power lost 3.2% to £35.9/MWh, with higher wind power generation and lower demand. There was a larger than normal amount of changes in domestic retail tariffs in June, the majority have lifted owing to higher annual power and gas wholesale prices. Week-on-week Brent crude oil declined 6.2%, as on Friday 8 July prices dropped sharply to $46.5/bl, the lowest price in two months, as data from the US Energy Information Administration showed a decline in stockpiles that was less than traders expected. In contrast, API 2 coal rose 0.9% to $58.0/t and EU ETS carbon gained 0.7% to €4.5/t.
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 8th July 2016
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 1st July 2016
Throughout the week commodity prices have continued to be influenced by the UK’s EU referendum decision. The average price of power and gas contracts have been mixed. Day-ahead power went up 0.3% to £37.1/MWh, despite increased wind power and lower demand. In contrast, day-ahead gas lost 3.4% to £33.6/MWh, with a fall in national system gas demand this week. Winter 16 power fell 0.2% to £46.1/MWh, with average seasonal prices 8.4% lower than the same period last year. On average seasonal gas contracts went up 0.6% this week, amid the temporary closure of Rough gas facility, which is expected to be shut down until 3 August 2016. Week-on-week Brent crude oil gained 2.1% to $49.6/bl. Prices declined at the beginning of the week following the UK’s referendum, however during the remainder of the week prices generally began to show signs of recovery. EU ETS carbon dropped 11.7% to €4.5/t. On Wednesday 29 June carbon prices hit €4.46/t, the lowest price in over two years.
Energy Wholesale Market Review Week Ending 1st July 2016
Written By Graham Paul
