Gas Market
The NBP moved sideways in a volatile session on Tuesday. Throughout much of the day, gas prices were lower compared to Monday’s close, with the February contract dipping to 114.72p/th, marking a decline of 3.19p. Similarly, the Summer-25 contract hit an intra-day low of 111.41p/th. However, the market regained momentum in the afternoon as bullish sentiment emerged. The front-month contract climbed to a session high of 119.22p/th before settling at 118.16p/th, reflecting a modest day-on-day increase of 0.25p. This recovery was mirrored along the curve, with the Summer-25 contract closing at 114.805p/th. Driving the reversal was an outage at the Kollsnes processing plant, which lifted the day-ahead contract by 3.35p/th. Although the market initially reacted strongly to the outage, further details suggesting it would likely be resolved within a day allowed the curve to surrender some of its earlier gains, closing the session flat.
Power Market
Movements on the GB Baseload power curve were mixed as the market tracked the gains and losses on the NBP wholesale market, with the overall impact being a flat market. The front month Feb-25 contract gained 13 pence settling at £97.25/MWh, while the March contract settled at parity. The day ahead contract rallied to £159.00/MWh due to low wind forecasts for Wednesday while outages at a number of interconnectors is limiting GB’s ability import cheaper power.
The Dec-25 EUA contract tracked volatile European gas in the across the session. However, movements were tempered slightly by the impact of the first allowances auctions of 2025 as the contracts settled at €74.31, up a cent from the previous close.
Oil Market
Brent crude front-month prices traded within a narrow range on Tuesday, mirroring Monday’s trend. The Brent contract for delivery in March hovered around Monday’s settlement before climbing in late trading. Global supply concerns influenced the market after Shandong Port Group, which manages major ports along China’s east coast, issued a notice effectively banning vessels on the U.S. sanctions list. This measure would restrict China’s ability to import Iranian oil, thereby boosting demand for alternative sources. In response, Saudi Arabia raised its oil prices to Asia for February for the first time in three months. Reflecting the increased demand for alternative oil the Brent front month price rose by 75 cents to settle at $77.05 per barrel, while WTI gained 45 cents, closing at $74.25 per barrel.
Markets this morning
The issue at the Kollsnes processing plant is rectified this morning and as a result gas contracts are trending lower once more. The front month last exchanged hands at 116.39p/th, down 1.77p from yesterday’s close. The day ahead contract is also trading lower reflecting the strong supplies from Norway, although UK demand is currently forecast to outstrip supply due to the ongoing cold weather. Crude oil is continuing higher once more this morning as the latest figures from the American Petroleum Institute are showing a drop in oil supplies from OPEC and Russia. The front month Brent contract is currently trading 57 cents higher than Tuesday’s settlement.
08 January 2025
