Curve Rebounds on Firmer Gas, Coal, Ends Week Lower
European forward power prices edged up on Friday, helped by rising coal and gas prices, although not enough to recoup losses made this week when the curve hit 11-year lows.
Germany's Cal' 16 baseload position, the benchmark for European electricity prices for delivery next year, was last at 31.85 euros ($38) a megawatt hour (MWh), up 15 cents.
The French contract also rose 15 cents to 38.30 euros per MWh.
The German year-ahead contract on the EEX bourse was still down 1.57 percent over the week and more than 3 percent since the beginning of the year, having hit a low of 31.15 euros on Wednesday, levels unseen since April 2004.
The German Cal' 16 has found strong support at 30.88 euros/MWh, and may hover above this level for a few weeks, or rebound to 33.65 euros, technical charts show.
The power curve took its cue from firmer gas and coal prices on Friday, with UK prompt natural gas prices up 0.55 percent at 45.45 pence per therm, and coal for delivery cif north Europe trading at $62 a tonne, up $0.15 from the previous night's McCloskey index.
Carbon prices were down 1.16 percent at 6.82 euros per tonne, while Brent crude headed for a seventh straight weekly loss, just above $50.
In the spot market, prices were mixed.
Germany's spot contract for Monday delivery was 50 cents lower than the price paid for Friday at 19.25 euros/MWh, while the equivalent French contract was 25 cents higher at 33.25 euros per MWh.
German power demand was seen 590 MW lower on Monday than on Friday, Point Carbon data showed, while in France consumption was expected to rise by 550 MW.
Wind power production was seen up 970 MW in Germany at 25.7 GW, while in France wind output was forecast to drop by 680 MW to 4.3 GW.
German and Austrian power plant capacity is likely to rise by 2.2 percent on the week to Jan. 16 to reach 71,532 MW, data from the EEX bourse showed, reflecting rising coal- and gas-fired availabilities.
Reporting by Michel Rose; Additional reporting by Vera Eckert in Frankfurt
