Market News

By Eamon Akil Farhat

(Bloomberg) -- A cold front is set to bring freezing temperatures to northern Europe next week, threatening snow and boosting heating demand.

Colder air will push into the UK over the weekend, according to the UK’s Met Office. Snow is expected over the hills of Scotland and possibly further south. 

Temperatures are set to drop below zero in London by the middle of next week, according to Weather Services International, while Edinburgh reaches lows of -5C (23F). The UK overall will see its coldest temperature since January, with levels 5C below seasonal averages as the cold front spreads south over much of England.

The cold weather will lift heating demand across northwest Europe to the highest level since February, according to WSI. Lower wind generation during the upcoming cold snap could put pressure on power grids, exposing the region’s increasing reliance on renewable energy.

Wind generation forecasts for the UK were downgraded by more than 70% for Nov. 20, with generation now set to average less than 4 gigawatts. Light winds last week sent power prices to their highest level this year, even as the weather remained mild. 

Europe’s Dark, Windless Days Show Risk of Renewables Rollout

In Oslo, temperatures are forecast by WSI to drop toward -10C by the end of next week, with the Nordic region also seeing a sharp jump in heating demand.

Overall forecasts are showing a milder winter overall, but forecasters from Atmospheric G2 say western Europe is likely to experience colder spells early in the season due to La Nina. Unlike the sharp warming trend in aggregate winter temperatures, “there is little or no trend in extreme cold spells,” the forecaster said in a recent briefing. Unusually warm periods will also be more frequent, it added.

(Updates with declining UK wind generation in fifth paragraph)