The weekend baseload contract last changed hands at EUR 24.84/MWh at one broker, up by EUR 1.85 from the prior close.
“There will be low renewable energy production at the weekend, and RWE has said that they will go on strike then, and that’s why the weekend contract is trading higher now,” a Germany-based trader said.
Analyst Bengt Longva at Oslo-based Nena agreed, saying that lignite availability in Germany is set to fall by around 1,600 MW from Friday to Saturday.
RWE will cut back output at its lignite-fired power plants and curb mining activities over the weekend, as 10,000 workers are set to protest against government power sector proposals in Berlin on Saturday.
Lower renewables output
Solar and wind power plants in Germany are forecast to provide an average of about 9.5 GW of electricity throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday, down from an expected average of more than 11 GW in the current session and on Friday, according to data from Nena.
Further in, baseload for the day-ahead traded EUR 0.65 lower on the day, at EUR 33.60/MWh, mainly due to solar forecasts for Friday having been revised up slightly, the trader said.
The benchmark Cal 16 baseload contract traded down EUR 0.05 at EUR 31.90/MWh.
Reporting by:
Iselin Rønningsbakk
iselin@montel.no
11:55, Thursday, 23 April 2015