| © ICIS HEREN - Romanian nuclear group sells Cal`1, but future sales stalled |
| 2010-09-30 |
| Romanian nuclear operator Nuclearelectrica auctioned 20MW of nuclear power at below New Lei 170.00/MWh (€38.40/MWh) on Thursday (30th September), in line with trader expectations. However, the company is constrained from offering more to the market by Romania`s restructuring of its energy sector. Romanian trader and supplier Energy Holding won both lots of 10MW, paying New Lei 168.54/MWh for the first, and New Lei 169.08/MWh for the second. However, the government`s plan to restructure Romania`s energy markets is preventing more power being sold in advance. The plan was to merge the existing state-owned power companies into two state-owned monopolies - Hidroenergetica and Electra (see EDEM 29 January 2010). But in August the country`s competition council postponed the creation of the two companies until March, following a string of legal cases opposing the two monopolies (see EDEM 6 August 2010). "[Nuclearelectrica is] waiting to see what happens with the two large companies - the other producers offer power, but without success. They`ve held a lot of tenders, but with no participation. Nuclearelectrica has more power to offer, but for the moment, they don`t know what the Electra policy will be," said one source close to the company. OPCOM`s centralised market for bilateral contracts shows that power plant complex Rovinari has held 12 auctions this year, with only four successful, while Turceni has held seven auctions with one product sold. Thursday`s auction was the first held by Nuclearelectrica since three unsuccessful auctions in January, but no additional sales have been scheduled. Pressure on 2011 prices Traders are concerned that the power remaining unsold on the regulated OPCOM forum could cause additional pressure on prices into delivery next year. "This is what everyone is wondering - it could certainly put some pressure on prices," said one. Traders had hoped that the tender would bring some movement to the Calendar Year 2011 Baseload contract, although pessimism over the economic recovery in Romania led most to call New Lei 170.00/MWh a fair price before the auctions took place. The contracts are slightly different to the over-the-counter standard. Payment is a month in advance; there is up to 15 days` non-delivery in the event of an outage; and the grid injection fee is subject to regulatory change going forward, rather than fixed as for OTC, so traders felt the discount to the New Lei 170/MWh level was justified. The OTC contract has shed New Lei 11/MWh from its New Lei 181.00/MWh close on 11 June, according to ICIS Heren data, and has been in a New Lei 170.00-172.50/MWh range since mid-August, closing below New Lei 170.00/MWh just once, at New Lei 169.75/MWh. (THE ICIS HEREN REPORTS - EDEM 14.189 / 30 September 2010) |
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