60 %
Coal looks interesting
 
11 January 2008
Coal although massively in demand has risen so much in price that players have switched to gas, this in turn has risen and perhaps as all commodities prices start to fall on economics some will start to look at coal more seriously again.  
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Weather Forecasts and Iranian Threats
 
27 January 2012
Forecast and outturn cold weather drove gas and coal prices this week which in turn had an impact on the power curve. Iran threatened to cut off crude supplies ahead of the EU's proposed July sanctions; a move that would impact EU nations as they seek to find alternative sources ahead of the import ban.  
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The downward trend comes to an end
 
22 July 2011
The Power market was finally knocked of its downward slide on 19th July with oil and gas prices helping to break the trend. Oil received a boost from lower than expected stock levels (again) and hopes that a US debt deal could be reached. While a Eurozone Emergency Summit was held to rescue the Euro and throw a further lifeline to Greece.  
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Energy Curves regain some of the Losses
 
01 July 2011
The energy markets have recovered from the 'plunging losses' seen earlier in June which dragged down fuel and power prices. Prices across the power curve all report strong week on week gains.  
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European Credit Downgrades add to European Woes
 
13 January 2012
Standard & Poors, the credit rating agency has downgraded 9 eurozone countries: France, Italy,Spain,Cyprus, Portugal, Austria, Slovakia, Slovenia and Malta. This comes at the end of a week that has seen strengthening oil prices but surpressed UK gas and power markets.  
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November 2011 Review
 
02 December 2011
While debt repayment concerns combined with woeful economic indicators continued to be a feature throughout November, supply and demand fundamentals were an obvious driver too. Unseasonably warm weather combined with (and causing) plentiful gas storage meant that UK power and gas markets went into a nose dive.  
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Turmoil returns on Greek Announcement
 
01 November 2011
Following last weeks announcement that the eurozone leaders had reached an agreement on a Greek bailout - one that would see banks take a 50% hit on their holdings of Greek debt, the Greek Prime Minister made his own shocking announcement that he plans to hold a referendum on the matter. The Markets tumble in response.  
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Eurozone Debt Deal Announced
 
27 October 2011
After prolonged discussions and late night talks, European leaders have announced a agreement on a a Eurozone debt deal. But will the devil be in the detail?  
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What's in the Mix?
 
24 September 2010
While gains may have been seen in both the power and gas markets this week – the gains were not equal causing a big shift in the generation mix  
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Unseasonal Temperatures help to melt prices
 
16 November 2009
Middle of November but no sign of wintery temperatures. The effect was to soften the prompt power market, which also felt the pressure from weak commodity curves. The downward trend fed through the power curve.  
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What's Happening in the Back-End?
 
19 June 2009
The back end of the curve is extremely difficult to trade. Those dipping their toe in tend to be Producers (with excessive length adjusting their risk positions) and Banks looking for some exposure. At the same time Retailers tend to be short-termist.  
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Summer Spreads
 
30 January 2007
Summer 08 looks out of kilter in comparison to the rest of the curve in reality traders seem to see some value in SUmmer 08 which does not at face value appear to be anything other than greed.  
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Making sense of power prices.
 
11 September 2006
Power prices have fallen in the past 3 months, 2009 is trading at a £5 discount to 2007, yet suppliers are increasing their tariffs and offering contracts to fix this year’s price for the next few years. Does it make sense?  
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Is now a good time for a three or five year deal.
 
05 May 2006
Five year deals may look attractive because the market is in backwardation but in reality there will be other opportunities as more detail on fuel fundamentals is released. No harm in hedging some exposure for five years but not all of it.  
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Monthly Review - Jan 2012
 
01 February 2012
Weather, oil sanctions and European debt concerns were the pushers and pullers this month as energy markets responded to competing indicators. Volatility was the only constant.  
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Weather Forecasts and Iranian Threats
 
27 January 2012
Forecast and outturn cold weather drove gas and coal prices this week which in turn had an impact on the power curve. Iran threatened to cut off crude supplies ahead of the EU's proposed July sanctions; a move that would impact EU nations as they seek to find alternative sources ahead of the import ban.  
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Warm weather weighs heavy on prices
 
06 January 2012
Unseasonably warm weather and European debt crisis fears continued to influence the markets at the start of 2012. While oil did open the year up on the back of strong economic data from both the US and China, it retraced its steps on surprise US stockpile data combined with the Euro debt fears.  
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The Market in April 2011
 
28 April 2011
In comparison to the activity seen in March – the energy markets seemed relatively sedate shedding some of the value along the way.  
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Confidence Returns to Market
 
20 December 2010
Despite a continuation of cold conditions, confidence was seen returning to the market with a stabilisation of spot prices and comfortable system margins. There was some focus on the curve with seasonal contracts all reporting some gain on the previous weeks levels apart form Summer 13.  
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