Climate Changed
Record Cold Nights Cause Spring Pinch for Nordic Power
- Electricity prices on Nord Pool up by 34% y/y this month
- Hydro reservoirs at lowest level since 2013 last week
Snow covers an outdoor cafe in Holmenkollen, Oslo, Norway, on May 11, 2017.
Photographer: Berit Roald/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Nordic power prices soared as record cold weather in parts of the region delayed the seasonal melting of snow into water needed to generate electricity.
The coldest night on record dating back to 1859 this week helped electricity prices on Wednesday jump 34 percent so far in May from a year earlier and they are headed for the highest average level for the month since 2013 on the Nord Pool AS exchange in Oslo. The unseasonably cold weather is also driving up demand for the commodity.