News from PowerPartners

Prompting calls for hard sanctions from the West. Russian forces have launched a full invasion of Ukraine following televised statement from Russian President Vladimir Putin. This has led to calls for Western nations to impose hard sanctions on Russia, with stricter sanctions like restricting Russian banks access to international payment....

If Russia invades all bets are off and prices will climb, however as we come out of Winter and the threat of a prolonged cold snap recedes, we could see the familiar summer drop in prices as demand eases, but a lot will depend on if LNG cargoes continue to....

Mostly off the back of increased concerns over Russia/Ukraine but also helped by some unplanned outages affecting North Sea output corresponding with cooler temperatures and increased gas heating demand. Yesterday prices retreated from these recent highs and this morning that trend has continued with March 22, Summer 22 and Winter....

A weekend of increasing tensions over the Russia Ukraine situation as well as the drone and missile attacks aimed at the UAE by Iranian supported rebels in Yemen saw prices open higher Monday and go on to make significant daily gains. Temperatures remain stubbornly cool despite previous warmer forecasts though....

Having made new highs and trending up throughout December front month power traded at a high of £575/MWh while the Feb-22 contract made £590/MWh, While the gas equivalents both topped 470p/th. Panic buying undoubtedly played a part in the latest spike with holders of short positions covering before the usually....

Russia’s Nord Stream 2 may need a few more months to clear remaining red tape before the controversial pipeline begins pumping natural gas to Germany to help ease Europe’s energy crunch. The Baltic Sea project – which has raised concerns over the Kremlin’s control of energy supplies to the continent,....

Before that, the market had already been witnessing growing nervousness over French power supply in January and February, amid several warnings about nuclear availability and outages. In addition, the colder and windless weather forecasts (including snow) for the UK and much of Europe for the second half of December was....

It is unclear what might happen in the event of a full Russian invasion, but the west is preparing harsh economic sanctions and the possibility of Russia turning of the gas in response is now a real risk.  

The continued rise in Carbon is keeping upward pressure across the curve and with a couple of gas seasons hitting new highs and the remaining gas and power season all approaching previous highs there doesn’t seem many prospects of any sustained decline in the near term. However, as more information....

Weather forecasts for the near-term future have also turned colder and concerns over the supply of Russian gas are putting continued upward pressure on prices. The only bearish driver now is the concern over the new Omicron Covid variant and the potential for this to lead to restrictions and a....

A wave of panic swept through the markets on Friday. The announcement of the emergence of a new variant, referred to as ‘Omicron’, with multiple mutations, apparently highly contagious and potentially resistant to existing vaccines, led to a sharp fall in the markets. The markets seem to be regaining some....

Meaning bills are set to soar even higher. This has been determined by the credit risk scores of the remaining electricity and gas suppliers on the market. These suppliers have been deemed ‘maximum risk’, which puts them at imminent risk of collapse. Bulb – the seventh biggest supplier in the....

A similar pattern was seen for end of curve prices with gas contracts heading back towards their recent lows. Despite the mixed picture, there is some reason for optimism, the last week has seen the arrival of a drop in temperatures coinciding with another period of weak wind generation –....

Over the past few months, the UK energy market has seized up. Spiralling wholesale gas prices have let to the demise of 21 energy suppliers and about 2 million customers having to be switched to a new supplier appointed by the energy regulator, Ofgem. For most customers, it has been....

We will see if the market settles following the news in the next few days, but with cooler temperatures and lower wind generation, expect continued volatility. If these prices continue to rise then we could see the price cap on standard and variable tariffs increasing also. Wholesale gas was worth....

UK energy prices rose again yesterday by 17% as Germany’s energy regulator suspended approval of the controversial Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. It has said the pipeline’s operating company needed to be compliant with German law before it would certify the project. Russia once again....

Torn between lower Norwegian supply, hopes of higher Russian flows and the additional easing in global coal markets. In other news, the IFA1 interconnector, a power link between Britain and France, was damaged by a fire back in September, affecting half of its capacity. National Grid has said that it....

As colder weather forecasts have driven increases since open and Wind forecasts have also moved lower day on day, impacting demand to the upside. It is clear to see that the pickup might not be enough. The market remains sceptical as to whether the Russian pipeline flows into Europe will....

In particular a school in Bristol has reportedly warned parents that it faces bills of over £30,000 if it doesn’t take these energy saving measures. A recent report by the Labour Party suggested that schools across the UK could face an increase of 48% on their gas bills and 26%....

So far, the flows have not yet matched the rhetoric of the Russian government. So, the market remains sceptical. However, if flows do come, we would expect it to have a significant downward pressure on prices. The current energy crisis has had a few different causes and combined it has....

The past month has been a tumultuous time in the UK’s energy market. Prices have spiked numerous times and suppliers have been pulling pricing constantly. The difficulty for brokers lies in the fact we are now trying to sell contracts where rates are at least 30% higher than customers signed....

Though flows have been weak at the Ukrainian border, everyone is still focusing on the commissioning of Nord Stream 2 to provide an easing of prices. In other Power Partners news, we have been working hard on creating some great marketing materials available for our partners. These will soon be....

The chief executive at Scottish Power claims that the current market is unsustainable and could bring about the return to the days of only the ‘big 5/6’ suppliers and their monopoly of the market. There has been demand from suppliers for urgent changes to the price cap, which was brought....

So far, the most evident theme to have come from COP26 has been the division between the Global South and the Global North & between energy consumers and energy producers. There has definitely been some limited successes achieved – however it is unlikely that a major breakthrough will happen as....

Colder temperatures, low wind generation and reduced Russian flows has kept short-term gas prices high. In other news, CNG, MA Energy & Ampower are the latest casualties to current energy crisis and have now exited the market. Contacting CNG customers would be a good opportunity as they have announced they....

The project, which is going to be launched during COP26, aims to build a global grid that will transfer solar power from one country to another. Named Green Grids Initiative (GGI), the solar grid will connect all different parts of the world. It will bring together an international coalition of....

The world is only just starting to recover from the pandemic and its aftermath will hang over this conference, but this is a chance for the whole world to come together. It is a huge step towards the net zero, cleaner planet that we all want. The focus on energy....

They have both continued to ease slightly to beginning of Sept levels. Mild weather forecasts and much improved wind generation have eased gas demand. North Sea production remains at near capacity. We also have more LNG cargoes heading to Northwest Europe. It is reported that Russian gas storage levels are....

They have confirmed that there is extensive work to be done before it can return to service. The fire-damaged power link is between the UK and France and the fact that it will not be fully restored for another two years shows that we might not see prices settling for....

With COP 26 starting next month – the focus on energy efficiency and net zero has never been greater. Ofgem announced yesterday that pursuing their net zero goals was a top priority for them. They stated that achieving their net zero goals further and faster not only benefits the climate....

BUT all contracts have stayed below recent highs so this does show that we may have peaked. There are still many risks but as the weather is forecasted milder and there is improved wind output, we could potentially see further easing of prices. It is too early to be seeing....

Bringing in more Gas from Russia is NOT the long-term answer to energy issues in the UK. The project, finally finished last month, has been controversial since it’s inception. The current Gas crisis is giving Nord Stream 2 it’s moment to shine as politicians panic about ways to cut costs....