Wholesale prices fluctuate within a narrow range
NBP gas prices fluctuated within a narrow range towards the end of last week as major Norwegian supply restrictions nullified the bearish potential of the subseasonal demand we are currently observing.
The Netherlands–UK BBL interconnector has now switched to its forward flow configuration, enabling EU exports to Great Britain, though no capacity has been booked due to unfavourable price spreads.
Norwegian flows to the UK continued to decline, dropping to just 21.6mcm, around 20% of available capacity at Easington and St Fergus terminals. Unplanned outages at the Troll and Njord fields cut a combined 53.6mcm of output. 19.8mcm remains offline at the Nyhamna plant, leaving the UK disproportionately affected vs the continent.
UK baseload power contracts also struggled to establish a clear direction on Wednesday.
An increase in wind power from 5.8GW (18.1%) to 9.7GW (29.8%). This surge weighed heavily on near-term pricing.
However, contracts further along the curve found support amid heightened demand driven by below-average temperatures across Northwest Europe and forecasts of highly variable renewable output in the coming days.
Meanwhile, ongoing strikes in France, Europe’s largest electricity exporter, have disrupted both power and gas generation, limiting export capacity that typically relies on stable nuclear output.
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Price commentary courtesy of Crown Gas and Power 