LONDON: British wholesale gas prices edged lower on Monday morning as strong imports from Norway led to healthy supply and forecasts of high output from the country's wind farms curbed demand.
Day-ahead gas price down 0.40 pence at 54.80 pence per therm at 0918 GMT.
Within-day gas price down 0.15 pence at 54.50 p/therm.
Traders said strong imports from Norway had left supply and demand in the British gas market fairly balanced, but there was a slight downwards pressure on prices.
Imports from Norway through the Langeled pipeline were close to capacity, at around 74 million cubic metres (mcm)/ day, National Grid data showed.
The system is fairly balanced with demand forecast at 349.9 mcm/day and flows at 350.7 mcm/day, National Grid data shows.
Analysts at Refinitiv, however, said expectations of lower send-out from Britain's liquefied natural gas terminals and stronger demand as temperatures dip could lead day-ahead prices to turn bullish.
"The near-term (today) is largely dominated by bullish drivers. Consumption is picking up and there is more weather-driven risk in the latest (models)," the analysts said in a daily research note.
Average temperatures in Britain were expected at 1.9 degrees Celsius, falling to 0.9 degrees on Tuesday, Eikon Refinitiv data shows.
Output from the country's wind farms, which was bearish for prices on Monday, was also expected to dip on Tuesday.
Peak wind power generation is forecast at 9.1 gigawatts (GW), falling to 4.7 GW on Tuesday, National Grid data showed.
The February contract was down 1.15 p at 54.75 p/therm.
"Although this week is colder, the back end of the forecast (Feb. 6 onwards) is warmer than the forecasts released on Friday," a gas trader said.
Day-ahead gas price at the Dutch TTF hub down 0.35 euro at 20.45 euros per megawatt hour.
Benchmark Dec-19 EU carbon contract down 0.93 euro at 23.00 euros per tonne.
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