Prices spike on tighter supplies
The European spot electricity prices increased strongly on Tuesday in response to the forecasts for a lower supply of wind and solar energy in Germany, and a reduced availability of nuclear capacity in France.
Riccardo Paraviero, LSEG analyst, said: "The bullish signals continue. They are underpinned by a significant increase in residual load – mainly because intermittent renewables have decreased."
LSEG data shows that the German baseload electricity for Wednesday at 0850 GMT was 11.3% higher at 111.3 Euros ($121.57 per megawatt-hour).
The French equivalent day-ahead contract increased 16.1% to 81 euros/MWh.
The German wind energy output is expected to be more than halved, with a projected 6.1 Gigawatts (GW), compared to 11.3 GW on Tuesday.
Germany is also expected to produce 12.9 GW solar power in the coming day, down from 15.3 GW as anticipated on Tuesday.
The latest French nuclear availability fell by three percentage points, to 73%.
Market messages revealed that among reactors with heat restrictions, Bugey 2 (and Tricastin 2) will see their operations reduced from Aug. 12 to 15 and respectively Aug. 11 to 16 according market messages.
The Swiss Beznau 1 reactor, which produced 365 MW and had a brief outage on Sunday, has resumed its production.
The power consumption in Germany is expected to stay at 54.9 GW for both days, while in France it will fall by 1.7 GW and reach 41.7 GW Wednesday. This is due to temperatures that have boosted the air conditioning easing.
The curve shows that the German baseload for the year ahead has risen 1% to 98 Euro/MWh.
Cal '25, the French equivalent of Cal '25, did not trade after closing at 84.5 Euros.
Prices of gas fell on Monday, after reaching a year-high on Monday amid fears that fighting in Ukraine might disrupt the flow westward from Russia.
The price of oil has also been on the decline.
The European CO2 allowances expiring in December 2024 fell 0.8%, to 72.03 Euros per metric ton.
(source: Reuters)
