LONDON, March 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Day-ahead electricity prices in continental Europe continued their decline in February as mild weather tempered coal and natural gas usage and renewable energy generation escalated, according to data just released by Platts, a leading global energy, petrochemicals and metals information provider.

The Platts Continental Power Index* (CONTI) fell 5% in February to EUR38.28 per megawatt hour (/MWh) compared to the January level of EUR40.29/MWh. It was down nearly 16% from the December 2013 level.

Power price declines were most marked in Spain. Surging wind and hydro-electric power output resulted in day-ahead power prices averaging EUR16/MWh in over-the-counter trade for the month, less than half the equivalent average value in February 2013 of EUR44.79/MWh.

"A surge in renewable energy output was also seen in Germany, where wind and solar power continues to eat into conventional generation's market share," said Henry Edwardes-Evans, Platts associate editorial director of Platts Power in Europe.

Day-ahead peak power in Germany reached EUR50/MWh for just three days in February this year, compared to fifteen days in February a year ago, with solar generation exceeding 20 gigawatts (GW) February 24, a new record for this early in the year. German wind power output in February was 6.14 terawatt hours (TWh), 90% greater than a year ago, while solar power output at 1.63 TWh was up 167% versus February 2013.

"Given this data, it's no surprise that conventional generators are suffering, with German utility RWE reporting a net loss for 2013 for the first time in 60 years," added Edwardes-Evans.

In the natural gas market, the decline in U.K. day-ahead prices accelerated in February, with a 9.6% drop month over month following January's 6% drop from December.

"Mild, windy weather in February helped push average daily natural gas demand in the U.K. down by 17% year-over-year to 278 million cubic meters, the lowest level for the month since 2000," said Edwardes-Evans. "Platts' data shows U.K. wind output through February averaged 4.09 GW, exceeding the previous monthly record set in December 2013 by 7%."

At continental Europe's most liquid natural gas trading hub, the Dutch TTF, the average price of day-ahead natural gas was EUR23.80/MWh in February, down 9.2% from January.

"Following Russia's intervention in Crimea, U.K. and European prompt gas prices rose by as much as 10% in early March 3 trading, but over the following two days most of this 'Ukraine premium' was lost as underlying market fundamentals reasserted themselves," Edwardes-Evans noted.

    Platts Continental Europe and U.K. Day-Ahead Monthly Averages

                                                                  Feb-14       Jan-14       Feb-13

    CONTI (EUR/MWh)                                                      38.28        40.29        51.04

    TTF (EUR/MWh)                                                        23.80        26.24        26.38

    U.K. Power (BPS/MWh)                                                 45.14        47.26        49.03

    U.K. Gas (pence/therm)                                               58.88        65.11        68.86

    Source: Platts

NOTE: All figures are monthly averages of daily day-ahead contract prices as assessed by Platts.

*Platts Continental Power Index (CONTI) is a demand-weighted baseload average of day-ahead contracts assessed in Germany, Switzerland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. The Platts U.K. assessments reflect day-ahead contracts assessed for firm delivery of power on the high voltage network of England, Wales and Scotland, and at the National Balancing Point for gas. The Platts assessments reflect prices as determined between buyer and seller in the open physical markets.

For more information on electric power or the methodology used by Platts in its power assessments, visit the Platts website www.platts.com.

About Platts: Founded in 1909, Platts is a leading global provider of energy, petrochemicals, metals and agriculture information and a premier source of benchmark prices for the physical and futures markets. Platts' news, pricing, analytics, commentary and conferences help customers make better-informed trading and business decisions and help the markets operate with greater transparency and efficiency. Customers in more than 180 countries benefit from Platts' coverage of the biofuels, carbon emissions, coal, electricity, oil, natural gas, metals, nuclear power, petrochemical, shipping and sugar markets. A division of McGraw Hill Financial (NYSE: MHFI), Platts is headquartered in New York with approximately 900 employees in more than 15 offices worldwide. Additional information is available at http://www.platts.com.

About McGraw Hill Financial: McGraw Hill Financial (NYSE: MHFI), a financial intelligence company, is a leader in credit ratings, benchmarks and analytics for the global capital and commodity markets. Iconic brands include: Standard & Poor's Ratings Services, S&P Capital IQ, S&P Dow Jones Indices, Platts, CRISIL, J.D. Power and McGraw Hill Construction. The Company has approximately 17,000 employees in 27 countries. Additional information is available at www.mhfi.com.

SOURCE Platts

SOURCE: Platts