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EEX Group reports increased trading volumes across markets in H1

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EEX Group increased trading volumes across the majority of its markets in the first half of 2019, with volumes up significantly in the power, gas and freight markets.

Trading volumes in the Agricultural market also developed positively while the Group posted a decline in the market for emission allowances.

The Group’s power spot markets, operated by EPEX SPOT, achieved a volume of 302.9 TWh, representing a growth of 5 per cent compared to the previous year (H1 2018: 288.4 TWh). Trading in the day-ahead markets also rose 5 per cent to 259.2 TWh, while Intraday trading volumes increased from 40.9 TWh to 43.7 TWh, resulting in an increase of 7 per cent. In terms of absolute volume growth, the UK and French Intraday markets developed very positively, reaching a volume of 10.5 TWh and 3.3 TWh in the first half year respectively (H1 2018: 9.2 TWh and 2.6 TWh).

The European power derivatives markets of EEX increased significantly by 25 per cent compared to the previous year. This was largely led by the very positive development in trading in Phelix futures. Volumes in the German Phelix-DE contract rose to 1,274.6 TWh, increasing by 53 per cent compared to the first half of the previous year (H1 2018: 835.9 TWh). The volume in the Austrian Phelix-AT contract amounted to 5.6 TWh which is more than 20 times the volume in the same period of the previous year (H1 2018: 0.2 TWh). The Spanish (66.7 TWh, +47 per cent) and Italian (282.7 TWh, +7 per cent) power futures as well as the futures for Eastern and Central Europe (75.5 TWh, +105 per cent) also displayed record trading levels. The growth is further reflected in the market shares: In the first half of the year EEX held a market share of 41 per cent in Germany (H1 2018: 26 per cent), 42 per cent in France (H1 2018: – 33 per cent), 89 per cent in Italy (H1 2018: 82 per cent), 61 per cent in Spain (H1 2018: 54 per cent) and 10 per cent in the Netherlands (H1 2018: 9 per cent).

The North American electricity markets of Nodal Exchange also achieved major growth rates. In the first half of 2019, US power futures volumes increased by 90 per cent year-on-year to 924.8 TWh, increasing its market share of the US monthly futures market to 35 per cent (H1 2018: 20 per cent).

The natural gas markets on the PEGAS platform recorded an increase of 32 per cent in the first half of the year to 1,264.6 TWh (H1 2018: 959.2 TWh). The trading volume on the spot markets for natural gas rose by 33 per cent to 757.7 TWh (H1 2018: 569.5 TWh). The trading volume on the futures market for natural gas totalled 506.9 TWh (H1 2018: 389.7 TWh). Overall, the Dutch TTF hub was the main contributor to growth in the first half year with 317.2 TWh (+71 per cent) traded in the spot markets and 423.7 TWh (+35  per cent) in the derivatives markets.

In the markets for emission allowances, the total volume amounted to 541.8 million tonnes of CO2, which corresponds to a decrease of 64 per cent (H1 2018: 1,508.7 million tonnes of CO2). The volumes from the primary market auctions fell by 32 per cent to 293.0 million tonnes of CO2 due to the reduction in auction volumes from the market stability reserve (H1 2018: 433.5 million tonnes of CO2). In the secondary market, the volume fell by 77 per cent to 248.8 million tonnes of CO2 from 1,075.2 million tonnes of CO2. Lower option volumes were the main reason for the decline. In the North American emissions markets, which have been offered for trading since November 2018 by Nodal Exchange, 42,712 contracts were traded in the first half of the year.

In the agricultural markets, volumes increased by 5 per cent in the first half of the year to 26,062 contracts (H1 2018: 24,900 contracts). On the freight markets, following the launch of EEX Asia in late 2018, volumes more than doubled to 30,010 contracts in the first half of the year (H1 2018: 14,115 contracts).

Peter Reitz (pictured), CEO of EEX, says: “Our half year results confirm that we are on the right track for further growth. In addition to increases across the majority of our portfolio, we have also focused on the regional expansion of EEX Group’s product portfolio which included the addition of South Eastern European power derivatives and Spanish natural gas contracts as well as further steps to grow globally as a group.”

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