Energy prices continue to climb: on the electricity exchange, prices for a megawatt hour are reaching new heights – within a year, the price of electricity has risen by 500 percent.
Alongside gas prices, electricity prices are also rising ever more sharply. On the Eropean Energy Exchange, the benchmark price for the megawatt-hour for delivery in a year climbed at times to 502 euros on Tuesday. Within a year, the price of electricity has risen 500 percent, mainly due to curbs on natural gas supplies from Russia.
Governments face the task of planning for possible power outages this winter in some European countries. Electricity production from French nuclear power plants, traditionally the backbone of Europe’s power system, is heading for its lowest level in decades. At the same time, energy production from hydroelectric plants in some countries is also at its lowest level in years.
Gas prices are also currently rising significantly after the very hot summer led to higher than usual demand across Europe. The reason is the falling water levels of rivers, which hinders transport, writes the news agency Bloomberg. The price for megawatt hour for delivery in Amsterdam reached 251 euros, which is about 25 percent above the peak from March.
