Electricity prices in Europe have climbed to another record high, sparking fears that the continent’s ongoing energy crisis may only worsen.
According to analysts, rising electricity prices are primarily the result of soaring natural gas prices.
The price of the key electricity futures contract in Germany increased by more than three percent to €475 ($483) per megawatt-hour (MWh) on Monday on the European Energy Exchange (EEX). [bold, links added]
Prices have roughly doubled in the past two months and are nearly six times higher than a year ago.
Due to limited gas supplies, there is concern about whether Europe will manage to generate enough electricity in the winter, according to the Czech news outlet Echo24.
Russia has drastically reduced gas flows to Europe, which are currently 20 percent lower than average following the European Union’s decision to adopt a series of anti-Russian sanctions in retaliation for the invasion of Ukraine.
According to analysts from the Danish power company Energi Danmark, there are no clear signs yet that the rise in electricity prices will slow any time soon.
The price of the key gas futures contract for the European market in the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) virtual trading hub gained roughly four percent on Monday at noon and reached above €214 ($218) per MWh.
A year ago, it was below €30 ($31) per MWh.
“Electricity prices in Germany have gone off the chain. Very expensive electricity for households will be a matter for many years in the Czech Republic as well. One cost-saving tariff will not be enough,” added Lukáš Kovanda, chief economist of Trinity Bank.
Environmentalists are trying to “blame Putin for super-expensive electricity,” but this is their failure, says the economist.
According to Kovanda, Petr Fiala’s government lives under the illusion that expensive electricity will only last one or two heating seasons for Czechs.
“But it can be high for maybe five years, just like gas. People suspect this and ask for systemic solutions such as the partitioning of ČEZ,” Kovanda pointed out. ČEZ is the largest electricity producer in Czechia.
The rise in energy prices has pushed up inflation in European countries and increased the costs for households and businesses.
European governments are working on measures to mitigate the effects of expensive energy, but some officials are already warning of potential social unrest and even violence as inflation continues to burden citizens.
Read more at Remix
The other thing coming to American (this winter) will be blackouts and I’m sorry to say, some people are going to die as a result. If the northern hemisphere has a winter like ours here in Australia this season, you are in for a really bad one which is likely to start early. Keep and eye on mid October forecasts !!!!
Biden is going to Crash & Burn with these proposed Taxes and take lot of Democrats with him
Social unrest and violence? Get on with it. The people responsible need to be put on trial for treason. Arrest Merkel. No bail. Losing political office is nothing compared to the damage caused to Europeans by her criminal negligence. She was warned that Putin would do what he’s done but she went ahead and gave him the leverage he craved. Sadly, this an epic failure for the socialists, who claim to be champions of the poor.
I think that there’s an error in this post. Natural gas flow from Russia is currently 20% of normal, which means it has been reduced by 80%.