UK Energy Market Summary to Friday 22nd November 2024
Closing Prices 22.11.2024
British near-term gas prices declined on Tuesday, driven by strong imports into the UK. Thus, the NBP spot price fell by nearly 4% to close at 3.9 p/kWh. Market volatility persists amid fears of an escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Gas prices extended gains on Thursday, with the NBP spot price climbing by nearly 4%, to close at 4.1 p/kWh due to an unplanned outage at the Norwegian Karsto facility. The duration of the outage remains uncertain Across the forward market, the Sum-2025 contract increased by 3.5%, settling at 3.9 p/kWh, driven by concerns over the supply tightness and geopolitical risks related to Russia.
At time of writing, European gas storage levels are 88% full, with the UK 59% full. European gas storage levels ae trending within the 5-year average throughout 2024. Over the past week gas has accounted for 31% of the UK generation mix with wind accounting for 37.7%, solar 1.6% and nuclear accounting for 1%. Below summarises curve prices as at close of business on Friday.
Curve UK Gas & Electricity Markets
Other Energy Markets
Oil prices rose by approximately 2% on Thursday due to the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine, with Kiev accusing Moscow of launching an intercontinental missile. Brent crude closed at $74.23 per barrel, while WTI crude ended the day at $70.10 a barrel.
European carbon prices increased by over 2% on Thursday. The EUA Dec-2024 contract traded at 70 EUR/tonne, influenced by the EU Commission’s pause on EUA auction adjustments, which analysts viewed as bullish.