Carbon markets have continued to rise

02 February 2023

 NBP gas markets extended the gains from the previous session on Wednesday

NBP gas markets extended the gains from the previous session on Wednesday, with near term contracts rising by roughly 5.00%. An unplanned outage at the Norwegian facility of Kollsnes removed 13.00 MCM of supply with a total of 22.00 MCM of Norwegian capacity offline throughout the day. UK temperature forecasts for the upcoming week have been revised down, potentially increasing the pressure on prompt contracts. Contracts for the front month of March gained 6.56p to settle at 152.07p per therm. The summer 2023 contract also gained, adding 7.38p to finish the session at 156.50p per therm. With the UK system remaining short throughout the day yesterday, pressure was sustained on the prompt. The within day and day ahead contracts gained an average of 3.18p per therm.

GB baseload contracts recorded gains yesterday

Reflecting gains in the NBP gas and carbon markets, GB baseload contracts recorded gains yesterday. With UK temperatures and wind generation forecasts revised downward for next week, pressure remains on baseload prices. The new front month of March added £4.50/MWh to settle at £152.50/MWh, while the summer 2023 contract gained £5.50/MWh to settle at £155.50/MWh. On the prompt, the day ahead contract pushed £4.80/MWh higher to close at £131.04/MWh. Carbon prices continued to rise on Wednesday, with the December 2023 EUA contract up €2.02 at €95.45 a tonne.

Crude oil markets started February with prices retreating

Crude oil markets started February with prices retreating for the new front month of April. Despite an imminent EU embargo on Russian oil products, prices have failed to rally and supplies are expected to remain sufficient to satisfy demand. OPEC+ ministers decided on Wednesday to maintain the current output targets, although actual output has been roughly 850,000 barrels a day shy of targets for December and January. Expectation that further US interest rate increases will be tamer than recent months has helped push the dollar lower. The new front month of April ended the session down $2.33 at $82.84 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate shed $2.14 to end the day at $76.73 a barrel.

UK gas markets have opened lower this morning

UK gas markets have opened lower this morning with declines recorded for the contracts which have traded so far. The front month of March most recently traded at 146.95p per therm, down 5.12p while the summer 2023 contract has traded down 4.25p at 152.25p per therm. The system has opened marginally undersupplied with a demand of 355.00MCM. On the prompt, the within day contract has yet to trade, but the day ahead contract has traded down 3.05p at 148.00p per therm. Crude oil for the front month of April is marginally down by 9 cent to $82.75 a barrel. Carbon markets have continued to rise, with the December 2023 EUA contract up 75 cent at €96.20 a tonne.  
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