Energy prices are relatively low again this week. Oil and gas prices came under pressure due to the talks between Trump and Putin. This also led to a drop in electricity prices.
Oil prices remained relatively stable this week. On Thursday, August 14, Brent crude traded at $66,84 per barrel. On August 20, Brent crude traded marginally lower at $66,40 per barrel. {{dataviewSnapshot(52_1755694475)}}
Looking further back, we see an oil market under significant pressure. Compared to the end of July, the oil price has fallen by 8,4%. This is partly due to structurally lower demand. Last week, the International Energy Agency (EEA) revised global oil demand growth downward. Furthermore, the meeting between Trump and Putin is fueling optimism regarding a resolution to the war in Ukraine. Markets are hopeful that a ceasefire will lead to sanctions relief on Russia, thus increasing supply.
The fact that prices are holding up is attributable to stronger demand in the United States. This week, commercial reserves fell by 2,4 million barrels, according to data from the American Petroleum Institute (API). This is a significantly sharper drop than expected. Reuters's leading weekly survey of industry experts had expected supply to fall by 1,2 million barrels. Last week, there was talk of an increase of 1,5 million barrels.
Diesel price rises marginally
The diesel price trend was slightly different, but the fuel price also remained relatively stable. On Thursday, August 14, diesel was trading at €117,75 per 100 liters. On Wednesday, August 20, the price rose slightly to €118,95 per 100 liters.
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Gas market is also low
Meanwhile, the gas market has reached its lowest price since May of last year. This happened on Monday, August 15th, when it reached €31,03 per megawatt-hour. On Wednesday, August 20th, the gas price had recovered slightly to €31,45. This is still 3,5% lower than the previous week.
A clear reason for the higher prices is reflected in the oil market. In the gas market, there is also hope that a resolution to the war in Ukraine will lead to greater availability. The Nord Stream pipeline is not expected to be restored immediately after the war. However, a resolution to the conflict could make Russian LNG deliveries less controversial. Imports of liquefied natural gas from the country are still growing. In the first half of 2025, the EU imported €4,48 billion worth of LNG. This represents a 29,1% increase compared to the same period last year. Should the war end, importing the commodity from Russia could become more acceptable.
Meanwhile, the EU continues to fully replenish its reserves. The average fill rate has now risen to 74%. In Germany, gas reserves are 67% full. In the Netherlands, storage levels are again lower, at 63,6%. In Southern Europe, stocks are considerably more robust. Italian reserves currently stand at 86%, while French reserves are at 82%.
Electricity price relatively normal
This week, electricity prices are back on the low side after last week's recovery. Saturday, August 16th, saw their lowest price, trading at €62,11 per megawatt-hour. The week's peak was also lower than usual, trading at €18 per megawatt-hour on Monday, August 87,23th.
Lower commodity prices are a key factor in the lower electricity price. Although prices for the majority of volumes are fixed for the long term, it naturally makes a difference if the remaining volumes can be purchased on the spot market at lower prices. Moreover, coal has become structurally profitable again. The price of coal is €111 per tonne, down about 26% from a year ago, when the price was around €150. This has certainly had an impact, as almost 6% of the energy generated last week was coal-fired.
Meanwhile, strong solar activity also significantly depressed electricity prices. A whopping 44% of all electricity was generated from solar energy. Add 10,9% from wind energy, and you arrive at 54,9% from renewable energy.