Gas prices back on the rise

The average Dutch electricity price was €88.7/MWh last week, nearly €9 higher than the previous week. Both the Netherlands and Germany had a significant amount of wind power generation throughout the week. As temperatures decreased in France during the week, electricity demand decreased. On Sunday, there were again several hours during the afternoon with prices below €0/MWh, while prices in Germany and France ended the week positively.

After hovering around €40/MWh for two weeks, the day-ahead gas price rose to €50/MWh at the end of the week. The average day-ahead gas price was just below €44 last week, and given that the residual demand in the CWE region was so low over the weekend, this price increase had little impact on electricity prices. Gas contracts for May and June both rose by €6 to €47.8/MWh and €48.2/MWh, respectively.

Coal contracts also rose, with May closing more than €13 higher at €126.8/tonne and June rising by €14 to close at €126.2/tonne. The CO2 contract for December 2023 increased by around €4 and closed just below €92/EUA.

These price increases resulted in Dutch electricity contracts becoming more expensive. The May contract rose by more than €11 and closed at €114/MWh, while June closed nearly €9 higher at €123.4/MWh.

The price movements of the long-term contracts largely corresponded with those of the short-term contracts. For 2024, gas prices rose sharply towards the end of the week, closing more than €7 higher at €57.1/MWh. CO2 increased by €4.5 and reached €96.1/EUA.

The Dutch electricity contract for next year rose significantly, up by almost €19. The contract closed the week at €142.5/MWh.

The clean spark spread (CSS) rose by €3.3 and closed the week at -1 €/MWh. The dark spread (CDS) increased by more than €10 and closed around €10/MWh.

Weekly changes