UK wholesale electricity and gas prices have reached prices not seen since 2008 when oil prices famously reached >$145/barrel. Customers who haven’t secured their contract already and need to sign a new contract before 1 October 2021 are asked: “why are prices so high?”, “what is going to happen next?” and “what are my options?”

• During Apr/May-20, electricity and gas wholesale prices crashed to 13-year lows due to suppressed global energy demand caused by Covid-19 lockdowns.
• Since then wholesale prices have risen significantly, and the markets are still rising. The increase has been driven by:
  1. Colder winter temperatures across the UK and Europe during the first half of the year boosting heating
  2. Hot temperatures over the last couple of months taking Europe to the other extreme of increased air condition demand
  3. Increased demand from greater business activity as lockdown restriction are loosened
  4. Carbon pricing rising to an all-time highs
  5. Prices are being supported by high levels of tender activity in the run up to the 1 Oct renewal date. Q3 is usually the busiest in the industry, meaning any clients who haven’t yet secured their new contracts will all be asking suppliers for prices at the same time, supporting high prices.

With prices so high it’s easy to think that it’s only a matter of time before they drop. However, the reality is that prices are more likely to rise further over the next couple of months.

• The end of lockdown restrictions means business activity in the UK and Europe is growing, boosting energy demand.
• European gas in storage is extremely low for this time of year. When combined with unplanned outages to gas pipelines, nuclear plants and a lack of LNG deliveries, we’re likely to enter the upcoming winter with serious speculation about whether we have sufficient gas to last the winter.
• During the current summer months, gas demand is relatively low. But this will likely increase as we enter winter months, temperatures drop and heating demand rises.
• Lastly, since energy prices are already high huge numbers of clients have held off from locking in their contracts. But with 1 Oct just round the corner (this is the most common renewal date in the energy industry) many businesses are now going to be forced to lock their energy contracts in, otherwise they will be going out of contract. This increased tender activity boosted demand resulting in higher prices.

So in the short to medium term, high prices are here to stay. So if your renewal is coming up soon, it’s probably a good idea to get it locked away before prices go even higher.

However, once we get half-way through the winter period if there hasn’t been any major supply disruption we could see prices start to fall. But we don’t expect this to happen in any significant way until it’s too late for customers with 2021 renewals.

At some point in early 2022 we fully expect prices to drop significantly from the current highs. So clients with late 2022 renewals may be able to benefit from slightly lower prices next summer.

With prices having risen so high, it’s difficult for clients to know what they should be doing with their energy contract renewals. But Beond’s market outlook can help:

1 Oct 2021 and 1 January 2022 Renewals

• Beond recommends locking in your contracts urgently. Do not wait.
• With temperatures getting colder and lots of businesses still to renew, we could see even higher prices.
• It is unlikely prices will fall significantly as go into the cold winter period

1 Apr 2022 Renewal

• Risk averse clients should lock in immediately, while other clients may be willing to risk waiting to lock in during Feb/March.
• Feb/March is the tail-end of winter so prices haven’t usually fallen much by this time. But with prices peaking so early we could find they have fallen by Feb/March. Waiting is a big risk but some clients may consider it.

1 Oct 2022 Renewal (or later)

• Beond recommends waiting until next year. Once Spring has arrived the winter risks should have subsided so the market is likely to slide.
• Aim to lock your contracts in approximately March-July.

The above recommendations are indicative. Exact timing will depend on how the market evolves over coming months. Please speak to your account manager for an up-to-date recommendation.

If you would like to discuss the above further please do get in touch with Beond on 020 8634 7533 and ask for the strategic clients team.

The above information is supplied without any assumption of liability and you accept, by accepting the information, that we are not liable to you for your use of the information. While reasonable endeavours are taken to ensure that the information in this report is obtained from reliable sources, it is not guaranteed for accuracy. The views set forth are solely of those of the authors and not intended to provide advice or recommendations as the customer is solely responsible for its market decisions. Views expressed are subject to change without notice. The information must not be copied, distributed or published without our express permission.