UK Energy Market Summary to Friday 25th October 2024
Closing Prices 25.10.2024
British gas prices continued to rise on Tuesday, with the NBP spot increasing by over 2%, closing at 3.5 p/kWh reflecting heightened sensitivity to supply developments. On the forward curve, the Sum-2025 contract rose by nearly 2%, after several LNG projects by TotalEnergies, originally set to come online in 2025, were delayed until 2027.
The NBP spot price rose by 3.5% to close at 3.6p/kWh, driven by a four-day extension to the outage at the Sleipner platform and a compressor failure at the Oseberg gas field. On the forward curve, the Sum-2025 contract rose by about 2%, settling at 3.4 p/kWh as short-term supply constraints and delays to new LNG facilities continued to tighten the market heading into 2025.
At time of writing, European gas storage levels are 95% full, with the UK 62% full. European gas storage levels have remained above the 5-year average throughout 2024. Over the past week gas has accounted for 31% of the UK generation mix with wind accounting for 32%, solar 3% and nuclear accounting for 13%. Below summarises curve prices as at close of business on Friday.
Curve UK Gas & Electricity Markets
Other Energy Markets
Oil prices edged 0.8% lower on Thursday, weighed down by ongoing diplomatic efforts aimed at de-escalating tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude closed at $74.38 per barrel, while WTI crude settled at $70.19 per barrel.
European carbon prices climbed to their highest level since September the 30th, rising by nearly 3% on Thursday. The EUA Dec-2024 contract closed at 66.63 EUR/tonne, supported by geopolitical concerns and a stronger gas market.