LONDON, March 26 (Reuters) - British wholesale gas prices
rose on Friday morning as delays in liquefied natural gas (LNG)
cargo arrivals were expected due to a blockage in the Suez
Canal.
* The day-ahead contract was up 0.65 pence at
46.25
pence per therm by 0921 GMT.
* The weekend price was 0.35 pence higher at
46.00
p/therm.
* LNG send-out to the UK is 5 million cubic metres (mcm)
lower.
Two tankers – Rasheeda and Corcovado LNG – are heading to South
Hook and Zeebrugge terminals but could be delayed as they are
waiting for a grounded container ship in the Suez Canal to be
removed, Refinitiv analysts said.
* The container ship may take weeks to free, the salvage
company
said.
* Dislodging the ship could delay delivery to Europe of
around 1
million tonnes of LNG on 10 vessels if the blockage lasts for
two weeks, consultancy Rystad Energy said.
* Meanwhile, lower UK Continental Shelf production is
expected due
to maintenance outages at the Gael and Cygnus gas fields.
* But Norwegian flows have increased and IUK pipeline
imports to
Britain have resumed.
* Strong wind power generation continues to curb
gas-for-power
demand and higher temperatures next week should curb demand for
heating.
* The system is oversupplied by around 18 million cubic
metres
(mcm), with demand forecast at 252 mcm and flows at 270 mcm/day,
National Grid data showed.
* In the Dutch gas market, the April price at the TTF
hub was 0.43 euro higher at 18.70 euros per megawatt
hour.
* The TTF summer curve continues to find support from a
rally in
European Union carbon allowances, triggering coal-to-gas
switching.
* "There is still some scope for EUA prices to go higher
than
their current levels, with the possibility of them reaching
45 euros/tonne over the coming weeks," said analysts at
consultancy Energy Aspects.
"This would add around 0.47 euro/MWh to the current parity
trigger and would add 3.09 euros/MWh compared to where EUAs were
trading last summer," they added.
* The benchmark Dec-21 EU carbon contract rose by
0.82
euro to 41.17 euros a tonne.
(Reporting by Nina Chestney)