European 2014 Coal Falls to Record as UBS Sees Solar Surge

European coal for 2014 delivery fell to a record as UBS AG said that solar generation’s share of the continent’s electricity use will grow, crowding out production from fossil-fuel plants.

Thermal coal for delivery next year to Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Antwerp declined as much as 0.4 percent to $99.75 a metric ton in London, according to broker data compiled by Bloomberg. That’s the contract’s lowest level since it started trading three years ago.

As much as 18 percent of electricity demand may be met by self-produced solar power in Germany, reducing demand for grid- supplied power by 6 percent to 10 percent by 2020, Per Lekander, a Paris-based analyst at UBS, said in an e-mailed research note.

“Batteries will increasingly shave the evening peak, which further eliminates production hours of thermal plants that used to be attractive,” the analyst said.

German power for delivery in 2014, a European benchmark, fell as much as 1.1 percent to 43.45 euros ($57.61) a megawatt- hour, the lowest level since the start of trading in January 2010.

Bloomberg tracks information from ICAP Plc, GFI Group Inc., Marex Spectron Group Ltd., Credit Suisse Group AG, IHS McCloskey, Tradition Financial Services and Tullett Prebon Plc.

To contact the reporter on this story: Marek Strzelecki in Warsaw at mstrzelecki1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Lars Paulsson at lpaulsson@bloomberg.net