Viikkoraportti

Electricity prices in the Nordic region remain at a relatively low level compared to earlier this year. October was one of the cheapest months this year in the spot market.

At a summit in Brussels last week, the EU came one step closer to agreeing on a gas price cap. The European Commission will now present a detailed plan to implement this price cap

Liquidity is low across European energy markets. Market players are unsure what market interventions the EU and its member states may introduce to influence prices.

The extremely high spot prices we have now become familiar with were replaced by a sudden price fall last week and periods of negative hour prices in some parts of the Nordic region.

The dramatic events in the Baltic Sea last week, with the Nord Stream pipelines appearing to have been blown up, led only to short-term price climbs in the markets.

For the second week in a row, there were price falls across the European energy markets. The markets appear to have stabilised slightly following the extreme price climbs in August.

The European Commission and several member states are considering intervening in the electricity and gas markets to stop the extremely high prices. How such an intervention would play out remains uncertain.

Most of the Nordic region experienced record-high electricity prices again last week, and the level looks set to climb even further this week.

The seemingly never-ending spiral of price climbs continued last week, with both the spot prices and the forward prices reaching new record highs in the Nordic region.

Focus week 33: Electricity prices continued to climb in the Nordic region last week The forward prices climbed even further, and the heatwave means that this week looks set to become the most expensive week ever in the spot market.

Focus week 32: Dry weather forecasts are causing the Nordic hydro-balance deficit to grow further, and Norway is now considering limiting exports abroad.

Focus week 29: As if the markets did not already have enough to worry about, Central Europe is now in the midst of a severe heatwave, which is causing prices to climb further.

Focus week 28: Gas supplies from Russia have dropped further after the Nord Stream 1 pipeline was shut down for maintenance. The markets fear that the pipeline will not return to service.

Focus week 27: Spot prices climbed again last week in certain parts of the Nordic region and southern Sweden experienced the most expensive week ever in the spot market.

Focus week 26: The European energy markets have still not stabilised after the drastic decline in Russian gas supplies earlier this month. Fluctuations remained substantial last week.

Focus week 25: Gas imports to Germany from Russia via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline have plummeted, and this has led to another significant price jump across the markets.

Focus week 24: Concern about the global economy has characterised the markets in recent weeks and risk appetite has been low, which has led to falling prices both in the Nordic region and on the continent.

Focus week 22: While spot prices in the Nordic region fell to their lowest levels this year last week, the price climbs continue in the forward market, where we reached record-high prices again last week.

Focus week 21: The EU is set to put a large number of additional carbon allowances up for sale to raise money to complete the green transition and remove the reliance on Russian gas. The news led to price falls in the carbon market last week.

Focus week 20: All headlines in the energy market involved Russia again last week. The country has shut down exports of electricity to Finland, and the markets also fear a complete stop to gas exports.

Focus week 19: Both spot prices and forward prices fell in the Nordic region last week, as there was a particular focus on milder and wetter weather forecasts for the coming weeks. Gas prices also fell despite the uncertainty.

Focus week 18: The gas dispute between Russia and the West escalated further last week, when Russia decided to stop gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria. This news was received with relative calm in the market.

Focus week 17: Low temperatures and low levels of precipitation, combined with high levels of exports to other countries, mean that the water reservoir levels in Norway are currently unusually low.

Focus week 16. In the week leading up to Easter, electricity prices in the Nordic region climbed further due to the cold, dry weather forecasts and the continued uncertainty surrounding European energy supplies.

Focus week 15. The impact of the war in Ukraine on the energy markets grew further last week, when the EU stopped importing Russian coal.