The benchmark European Union carbon permit price, which power generators hold to cover their carbon emissions, fell to its lowest since November 2018 as the coronavirus epidemic was expected to drive down industrial output and emissions
PARIS: European baseload power prices for year-ahead delivery hit near two-year lows in wholesale trade on Wednesday, tracking the fall in leading oil, coal and carbon emissions contracts.
Germany’s Cal ’21 baseload, the European futures benchmark, shed 3.1 per cent to 35.1 euros ($38.58) a megawatt hour (MWh) by 0915 GMT, hitting a near two-year low.
The equivalent French year-ahead contract lost 2.6 per cent to 38.20 euros/MWh.
The benchmark European Union carbon permit price, which power generators hold to cover their carbon emissions, fell to its lowest since November 2018 as the coronavirus epidemic was expected to drive down industrial output and emissions.
The December 2020 expiry European CO2 allowances were 6.1 per cent down at 17.19 euros a tonne, at a 16 month-low, extending the sharp slide seen this week.
Hard coal for northern European delivery in 2021 fell 0.6 per cent to $55.60 a tonne.
Oil prices fell for a third session on Wednesday with U.S. crude futures tumbling to a 17-year low as the outlook for fuel demand darkened with travel and social lockdowns triggered by the coronavirus epidemic.
In day-ahead markets, spot prices rose on a forecast drop in German wind power supply and French nuclear availability.
The price of day-ahead baseload delivery in Germany was up 24.7 per cent at 30.25 euros/MWh.
The French day-ahead contract in was up 4.1 per cent at 25 euros/MWh.
Electricity generation from German wind turbines is forecast to drop by around 13.7 gigawatts (GW) day-on-day to 2.8 GW on Thursday, Refinitiv Eikon data showed.
French nuclear power availability lost 1.2 percentage points Wednesday to 69.1 per cent of available capacity due to an unplanned outage at EDF’s Paluel 4 nuclear reactor.
Power supply from wind turbines is expected to add 640 megawatts (MW) to 1.4 GW, the data showed.
Power consumption is expected to slip by 220 MW day-on-day in Germany to 67.4 GW on Thursday.
Demand will fall by 2.9 GW to 53.6 GW in France.
Source: reuters
