At a time when the discount on the pump price will be removed, this is good news for many motorists. A barrel of North Sea Brent for February delivery was down 1.53% to $82.04 by 12:30 on Thursday its US equivalent, a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) with delivered the same month, it lost 1.72% to $77.60.
The drop in crude oil prices can be attributed to “thepost-reopening Covid wave we see in China says Derren Nathan, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown. ” Concerns about the blow to international mobility as several countries now require negative tests for travelers from China and more broadly, economic weakness offsets supply concerns created by Russia.
Russia, one of the world’s largest hydrocarbon producers, announced earlier this week that it will ban the sale of its oil to countries participating in the price cap, set at $60 a barrel by the European Union, the G7 and the ‘Australia. An announcement that didn’t have any consequences on the prices that on Tuesday were drowning little by reacting to Moscow’s announcement.
Gas prices remain high compared to their historical average
As for natural gas, the European benchmark, the Dutch TTF contract for next month delivery, rose 5.96% to 86.20 euros per megawatt hour. The day before, it had fallen to 76.18 euros, a level not seen since the end of February 2022 and the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. ” Faced with declining Russian exports, it appears that Europe has managed to store enough gas to at least survive the winter. says Michael Rae, analyst at M&G Investments. The relatively mild weather has allowed prices to fall, but the analyst reminds us that prices remain high compared to their historical average.
In France, the increase in regulated prices for the sale of natural gas will be limited to 15% thanks to a tariff shield applicable to residential subscribers (consuming less than 30 MWh/year) as well as co-ownerships with an individual natural gas supply contract .
10.8% reduction in gas consumption
However, a high price combined with the fear of running out of energy at the end of winter has prompted the French to consume less. LFrench pipeline operator GRTgaz estimated on Wednesday that France consumed 10.8% less gas than in 2018 between August 1 and December 25. “ This decrease is the result of a significant reduction in consumption by public distribution and large industrialists “, ” andIt is partly offset by an increased demand for gas-fired power plants to ensure the balance of the electricity system », indicates a note from GRTgaz accompanying the table.
Difficult to know if this drop is related to the price or to a sobriety effort. However, the spectacular drop in gas consumption by large French industrialists (-22%) demonstrates that the increase in prices actually forces customers to reduce their consumption, since companies are not protected by the tariff shield. Another example: in a country like Belgium, where there is no limited gas price, the decline in household consumption reached -20% in November, compared to the 2019-2021 average, according to the Bruegel Institute. .
(with AFP)
