Plunge in Wind Power Is Next Big Test for European Power Market

  • Short-term electricity prices rise as risks are priced in
  • UK and French grids may call for energy saving to ease strain

Wind turbines near Barnstorf, Lower Saxony, Germany.

Photographer: Krisztian Bocsi/Bloomberg
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After this week’s cold snap in Europe, electricity traders on the continent and in the UK are bracing for what a slump in wind power over the next few days will do to prices.

Following an autumn that was milder than normal, a December freeze has sent prices soaring. Warnings of power shortages have become more likely and a dearth in supplies from UK, German and Nordic wind parks is set to test grids further.