The United States has consolidated its position in February this year as the main exporter of natural gas to Spain. And for the second month in a row, purchases of this raw material from the US country have exceeded those from Algeria, the main supplier until the end of last year. This is revealed in the statistical bulletin of Enagás, the Spanish gas system operator. It flags that in February…
Alphavalue | On Friday last week, Electricité de France cut its 2022 nuclear production target by almost -10% to 300-330 TWh, following extended shutdowns at five of its 56 nuclear reactors (7.3 GW). This is coupled with deadlocked NATO-US talks with Russia over the Kremlin’s military presence on the Ukrainian border. The situation means that if there is less nuclear power, the dependence on Russian gas will be greater. Didn’t we see this problem coming in the last three months when Russia upped the ante on Ukraine?
Santander | The arrival of the new government in Spain is good news for the gas and electricity markets, given that it is probable that it will respect the regulatory periods; it appears more focused on the spirit of the law (“fair returns”) than on the application of methodologies (differential over 10 year bonds) and it has the intention of reinforcing the role of the CNMC as an independent regulator.
MADRID | By J.P. Marín Arrese | The Spanish government is thoroughly reshuffling the electricity market. Confronted with a ramping deficit between market prices and overall costs, transferred into automatic commitments to fill the gap, it is taking tough action to curb an unsustainable situation. The unwarranted imbalance is mainly due to an overgenerous policy, implemented by the former Executive, in fostering renewable energies. Fat subsidies, coupled with preferential access to the market, have propelled electricity generation costs. As demand slumped in the crisis, the share of highly expensive green energies markedly increased the toll.