Oil prices up amid Russia and West tension

There was a pick-up in oil prices today, trading up at nearly $111 per barrel amid geopolitical tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine. It also affected power and […]

There was a pick-up in oil prices today, trading up at nearly $111 per barrel amid geopolitical tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine.

It also affected power and gas markets as they both saw “very large gains” today, according to the market report from npower.

Gemma Bruce, Client Portfolio Manager said the standoff between Russia and Ukraine has raised concerns over natural gas supply to Europe as the EU receives roughly a quarter of their gas from Russia, which is largely piped through Ukraine.

“This has seen very significant gains in the gas market this morning with those also feeding towards the power market”, she added.

 

The gas system opened around 17 million cubic meters “under-supplied”, largely due to reduction in flows via the Langeled and the BBL pipelines from Norway and the Netherlands.

The power system was however “reasonably comfortable” this morning, with a peak margin of around 11GW. But wind generation dropped, currently standing at around 500MW, Ms Bruce said.

She added: “We are however seeing the continuation of strong imports from the Continent via the French interconnector and we’ve seen gas-fired generation pick up to compensate for the low wind generation.”

Ms Bruce also suggests keeping an eye on the Russia-Ukraine tension: “It will be key to monitor this story as it develops today as it’s likely to continue to drive prices.”

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