Dutch and British gas prices traded lower on Monday morning, as latest weather forecasts suggest a current cold spell will be followed by milder temperatures from mid-December and as gas storages remain well-filled.

The Dutch December contract TRNLTTFMc1 was down 2.15 euro at 43.90 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) by 0934 GMT, LSEG data showed.

The Dutch January contract TRNLTTFMc2 was down by 2.50 euros at 44.95 euros/MWh. The British December contract TRGBNBPMc1 was down by 5.15 pence at 113.25 pence per therm.

“Prices are weakening this morning, probably because of the upward revision of temperatures compared to Friday,” analysts at Engie EnergyScan said in a daily market note.

The latest long-term weather forecasts expect temperatures to return to the seasonal normal by the end of the second week of December, but will be much cooler than normal this week, LSEG data showed.

“As we approach the end of November we still hold some impressive levels of gas storage inventory, which may be called upon as we are expecting some colder temperatures in the days ahead,” consultancy Auxilione said in its daily market report.

European gas storage inventories remain 97.7% full, a record for the time of year, according to the latest data from Gas Infrastructure Europe.

Prompt prices also traded lower, with higher demand amid cold weather offset by steady supply of Norwegian pipeline gas and liquefied natural gas (LNG) shipments.

The British day-ahead contract TRGBNBPD1 fell by 3.50 pence to 116 p/therm, while the within-day contract TRGBNBPWKD shed 6 p to 113.50 p/therm.

The Dutch day-ahead contract TRNLTTFD1 was down by 1.20 euros at 45.00 euros/MWh.

Peak wind power generation in Britain was forecast at 12.4 gigawatts (GW) on Monday, falling to 9.9 GW on Tuesday, out of total metered capacity of about 23 GW, Elexon data showed.

In the European carbon market, the benchmark contract CFI2Zc1 fell by 1.38 euros to 75.22 euros a metric ton.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Nora Buli, Editing by Susanna Twidale)