Low winds push wholesale electricity prices higher

Irish wholesale electricity prices rose 6 per cent in March, compared to February, offsetting a decline in both oil and wholesale UK gas prices. The climb in electricity prices pushed the Bord Gáis Energy Index up 1 per cent. Low volumes of electricity from wind turbines on certain days in March combined with other plant outages to force wholesale electricity prices higher.

John Heffernan, a gas and power trader at Bord Gáis Energy, said the low wind volumes in March were in sharp contrast to February, when a significant volume of wind helped drive down wholesale prices. "It shows how volatile prices have become given the capacity of wind-powered generation installed on the Irish system," he said.

“Brent crude oil prices are continuing to trade in a tight range as further reductions in supplies from Libya and some bullish expectations of oil demand growth in 2014 were offset by growing concerns over China’s economic strength,” he added.

To date, events around Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula have had no long-term impact on gas or oil prices, the Bord Gáis Energy report noted. “However, there remains a concern that non-payment by Ukraine for its own gas imports could still trigger a crisis,” it said.