Prices for Norway gas are lower, and US-Iran hopes of peace have been raised.

Dutch and British wholesale gas prices fell?on the morning of Friday due to a re-invigorated hope for a peace agreement?between Iran and the U.S., some profit-taking and a rise in Norwegian supply.

Data from the Intercontinental Exchange showed that the benchmark Dutch front-month contract was 48.21 Euros per megawatt hour at the TTF Hub at 0802 GMT. This is a decrease of 1.20 euros.

The British front-month contracts fell by 2.82 pence, to 118.00 cents per therm.

In their morning report, analysts at Mind energy said that the first signals of Friday indicate a "somewhat bearish" opening following last night's optimism about US peace.

Engie EnergyScan analysts said that the decline was due to profit-taking. Pakistan continues to'mediate' a peace agreement between the U.S.A. and Iran. All?sides have reported some progress, but?key issues like Teheran’s uranium and control of Strait of Hormuz are still unresolved.

In a recent note, Arne Rasmussen said that we should expect yet another day of volatility, and the focus will be on the latest headlines.

He added that there was a possibility of a new attack or a deal for peace being made over the weekend.

Ulrich Weber, LSEG analyst, said that from a fundamental standpoint, the gradual return of Norwegian gas after a maintenance round is also helping?to ease prices.

He added that prices would trade in a slightly negative direction if geopolitics had little influence.

Gas Infrastructure Europe's data shows that EU gas storage facilities were 37% full at last, compared to 45% last year, and over 65% by 2023 and 2024. Equinor, a Norwegian gas producer, warned that stock levels could be critically low if the Strait of Hormuz is closed for another one to three months.

The benchmark contract on the European carbon markets was up 0.73 euros at 75.66 euro per metric ton. (Reporting and editing by NInaChestney; Nora Buli)

(source: Reuters)