PRESS: Power regulator expects wholesale prices to spike

MOSCOW, May 11 (PRIME) -- Russian power market regulator Sovet Rynka expects a significant increase of the wholesale power prices for industrial consumers in 2021–2022, Kommersant reported on Tuesday quoting the regulator’s forecast.

“Sovet Rynka has updated its wholesale power price forecast until 2025 on request of the Federal Antimonopoly Service and taking into account the fall of power consumption of the previous year. The issue is about a flat-rate wholesale price for industrial consumers that comprises payments for capacities and prices for power. The indicator does not include the grid tariffs and the sales margin, which accounts for about 50% of the end price,” Kommersant reported.

Prices in central Russia and in the Urals may rise by around 6% per year in 2021–2022, while in Siberia they may grow by more than 15% this year and by almost 7% next year. Demand for power in the European part and in the Urals should rise to the level of 2019 in 2021, while in Siberia it should recover only in 2022, the business daily reported quoting Sovet Rynka’s forecast.

The major reason for the price growth in Siberia is payment for the capacities of new thermal power plants built under capacity supply agreements and higher prices for competitive capacity outtakes. In the other regions the prices will grow mainly due to higher market markups to the power price for construction of new thermal power plants in the Kaliningrad Region, and for construction of nuclear power plants and plants that use renewable power sources, Kommersant reported.

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