16th February 2017 | Posted by: Daniel Birkett | Market Analysis

Gas Power
Market Close Market Close
Unplanned outages in Norway offered support to the near gas curve yesterday despite weaker demand levels as a result of milder weather. Norwegian exports to Europe fell to 320mcm during the session compared to an average of 349mcm last week. Movement was minimal on the far-curve with little support provided by the oil market. Power prices moved higher in the morning as gas contracts increased on the back of supply issues. A mild weather outlook was offset by weak wind generation and movement on the prompt was minimal, while rising coal offered additional support further out.
Market Open Market Open
Norwegian flows have decreased once again this morning, falling to 317mcm as exports continued to be impacted by the outage at Oseberg. The UK gas system has fallen short on the back of this drop in supply, with weaker UKCS production also a factor and gains can be seen across the near-curve. Further support has also been provided by increases on the coal and power markets. Power contracts track the bullish movement of gas this morning, with rising coal contracts and an expected drop in temperatures in March helping prices move higher. Restrictions on coal output in China are still being considered as the market could potentially become oversupplied, while oil prices are stable.

Brent Summary

Brent 1st-nearby prices display a small increase this morning as market fundamentals are generally unchanged following the release of the latest EIA report; Brent currently trades above $55.8/b.

1-year forward prices

Market close data has revealed that the 1-year forward price for both commercial gas & commercial electricity increased – closing at 47.55ppt and £46.02/MWh, respectively.

Today’s prices can also be found in an easy to read table on or ‘current UK energy price' page.

Click graph to enlarge

energy price graph - 16-02-2017

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