- Discord seen as online home for renegades
- US forecasts severe solar storm starting Thursday
- Ratan Tata: Indian mogul who built a global powerhouse
- One dead as storm Kirk tears through Spain, Portugal, France
- Indian business titan Ratan Tata dead at 86
- Fed minutes highlight divisions over rate cut decision
- Steve McQueen debuts new WWII film at London festival
- Nobel winners hope protein work will spur 'incredible' breakthroughs
- What are proteins again? Nobel-winning chemistry explained
- AI steps into science limelight with Nobel wins
- Overshooting 1.5C risks 'irreversible' climate impact: study
- Demis Hassabis, from chess prodigy to Nobel-winning AI pioneer
- Global stocks diverge as Chinese shares tumble
- Time runs out in Florida to flee Hurricane Milton
- Chad issues warning ahead of more devastating floods
- Creator's death no bar to new 'Dragon Ball' products
- Chinese stocks tumble on lack of fresh stimulus
- Trio wins chemistry Nobel for protein design, prediction
- Braving war: Lebanon's 'badass' airline defies odds
- US weighs Google breakup in landmark trial
- Chinese stocks tumble on stimulus upset, Asia tracks Wall St higher
- 7-Eleven owner confirms new takeover offer from Couche-Tard
- A US climate scientist sees hurricane Helene's devastation firsthand
- Can carbon credits help close coal plants?
- Boeing suspends negotiations with striking workers
- 7-Eleven owner's shares spike on report of new buyout offer
- Your 'local everything': what 7-Eleven buyout battle means for Japan
- AI-aided research, new materials eyed for Nobel Chemistry Prize
- The US economy is solid: Why are voters gloomy?
- Scientists sound AI alarm after winning physics Nobel
- Nobel-winning physicist 'unnerved' by AI technology he helped create
- Trump secretly sent Covid tests to Putin: Bob Woodward book
- Neural networks, machine learning? Nobel-winning AI science explained
- Boeing delivers 27 MAX jets in September despite strike
- Stock markets diverge as Hong Kong sinks, oil prices fall
- US trade gap narrowest in five months as imports slip
- Stay and 'you are going to die': Florida braces for next hurricane
- Geoffrey Hinton, soft-spoken godfather of AI
- Duo wins Physics Nobel for 'foundational' AI breakthroughs
- German 'Maddie' suspect could be free in 2025 after cleared of separate sex crimes
- China slaps provisional tariffs on EU brandy imports
- Duo wins Physics Nobel for key breakthroughs in AI
- German 'Maddie' suspect could be free soon after cleared of separate sex crimes
- China says to take anti-dumping measures against EU brandy imports
- China stocks rally fizzles on stimulus worries amid Asia retreat
- China stocks rally peters out on stimulus worries amid Asia retreat
- Taiwan's Foxconn says building world's largest 'superchip' plant
- Nobel literature jury may go for non-Western writer
- From Bolivia to Indonesia, deforestation continues apace
- China holds off on fresh stimulus but 'confident' will hit growth target
Wholesale energy dives but bills remain sky high
Plunging wholesale gas prices have sparked speculation of an end to Europe's energy crisis -- but consumers' electricity and gas bills remain sky high, fuelling runaway inflation.
European benchmark Dutch TTF gas price has shed 18 percent since the start of this year as unusually warm winter weather depresses demand and encourages stockpiling.
The price has fallen by more than 82 percent since August, when it had spiked on fears over a lack of supplies from key producer Russia.
The Ukraine conflict highlighted Europe's dependence on Russian gas, prompting a rush for alternative resources and improved efficiency measures as leaders sought to avert a costly supply crunch.
- Replenishing reserves -
This approach, in tandem with mild winter temperatures, enabled European nations to replenish reserves.
"An unusually mild winter has helped reduce heating demand, while record liquid natural gas imports and increased renewable capacity have boosted supplies," said Mirabaud analyst John Plassard.
Europe's gas stocks are hovering at about 82 percent of capacity, up from 50 percent one year ago and "well above" the seasonal norm of 70 percent, he added.
TTF gas sank to a 16-month low this week and stood at 60 euros per megawatt hour on Wednesday, although this was still more than double its pre-pandemic level.
In contrast, TTF gas had rocketed last March to a record 345 euros after Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose nation is attempting to wean itself off Russian energy, declared Saturday that gas prices are now falling in Europe.
Yet that has thus far failed to translate into lower bills for businesses and individuals.
With Russia also slashing its gas deliveries to Europe over Ukraine tensions, Norway has become the continent's primary supplier.
- Re-wiring of energy system -
Anders Opedal, chief executive of Norwegian energy giant Equinor, told the BBC that there was "a kind of re-wiring of the whole energy system in Europe, particularly after the gas from Russia was taken away".
And he warned high electricity and gas bills were here to stay -- and cited the huge cost of investment in the transition to cleaner energy.
Those sentiments were echoed by Oanda analyst Edward Moya.
"Energy bills will not be returning to pre-pandemic levels because energy companies are facing surging expenses transitioning from fossil fuels to less alternative energy sources," Moya told AFP.
"It might take years for prices to go back to levels European consumers are more comfortable with."
Domestic energy providers also faced increased transport costs, rising taxation and labour shortages.
Those providers bet against volatile price swings by hedging, or taking a defensive markets position.
This means that the sector is not always boosted by short-term moves in spot, or current, prices.
"Just like there was a lag between gas prices and bills on the way up, there should be a lag on the way down," said RBC Capital Markets analyst Biraj Borkhataria.
Added to the picture, electricity prices are elevated due to a maintenance crisis at France's nuclear power plants.
The country's nuclear energy output is currently 25 percent lower than usual. Yet nuclear normally generates 70 percent of its electricity.
"France ... continues to suck up a lot of excess electricity production in the EU, and as a consequence power prices remain high," noted SEB analyst Ole Hvalbye.
X.Cheung--CPN