Thus, the average electricity price for Thursday will be 86.66 euros/MWh, 7.7% higher than Wednesday
MADRID, 19 Oct. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The sharp drop in the price of natural gas, which has placed the reference price for gas plants for this Thursday at 31.77 euros per megawatt hour (MWh), will temporarily leave the so-called Iberian exception without application.
Thus, the reference price for gas plants is for the first time since the mechanism came into force, in mid-June, below the cap of 40 euros/MWh and it cannot be applied, although it will be reactivated when I get over that barrier again.
In this way, the average electricity price for regulated rate customers for Thursday will be the one set by the wholesale market, the so-called ‘pool’, which will be 86.66 euros/MWh, 7.7% higher than this Wednesday, according to provisional data from the Iberian Energy Market Operator (OMIE) collected by Europa Press.
The maximum price will be registered between 9:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m., with 122.96 euros/MWh, while the minimum for the day, of 64.22 euros/MWh, will be between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.
The ‘Iberian mechanism’, which came into force on June 15, limits the price of gas for electricity generation to an average of 48.8 euros per MWh over a period of twelve months, thus covering the coming winter, a period in which which energy prices are more expensive.
Specifically, the ‘Iberian exception’ sets a path for natural gas for electricity generation from a price of 40 euros/MWh in the initial six months -until December 15-, and subsequently, a monthly increase of five euros/ MWh until the end of the measurement.
Already for this Wednesday, the compensation to the gas companies that has to be paid by the consumers who benefit from the measure, the consumers of the regulated rate (PVPC) or those who, despite being in the free market, have an indexed rate, it showed a negative balance, with -1.27 euros/MWh, since the mechanism exists.
Sources from the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge indicated that this gas adjustment was negative due to the low price of gas in the market, which left the reference price for gas plants at 41.49 euros per megawatt hour (MWh). ), very close to the reference price of 40 euros/MWh of the Iberian mechanism.
Thus, when considering the income derived from the congestion rents of the interconnection with France, 50% of which is destined to defray the cost of the gas adjustment, this value is negative.
The price of natural gas has plummeted in recent days to stand at 119.5 euros/MWh this Wednesday in the Dutch reference index TTF, while in the Spanish Mibgas it is trading at 27.78 euros/MWh.
This significant drop in price is due to the coincidence of various factors, such as lower demand due to higher temperatures than usual for this time of year, together with a greater presence in the ‘mix’ of renewables, as well as to very high conditions for filling the tanks in the face of winter.
