KEY POINTS:
Spot power prices in New Zealand rose over the past week as inflows into hydro lakes continued to decline.
Prices at the North Island reference point of Haywards rose 12.8 per cent to an average NZ$50.03 per megawatt hour (MWh) ($35), while at the South Island reference point of Benmore they gained 13.2 per cent to an average NZ$47.75 per MWh.
National demand was fractionally lower 102,944 MWh.
"We're starting to see some of the peak prices creep up over NZ$100 a megawatt hour, there has been a sustained increase in prices," said a market analyst.
Market operator M-Co said New Zealand's stored energy over the past seven days was at 95 per cent of average, down 5 percentage points from a week ago.
A late-summer dry spell has resulted in a sharp reduction of inflows in catchments in the South Island, where all electricity is produced by hydro power stations. National inflows were 53 per cent of average over the week to Tuesday, compared with 48 per cent in the previous week.
"Water is already being conserved and you can see in the flows in offpeak periods that power is heading southward," the analyst said.
Around 60 per cent of New Zealand's electricity is produced by hydro power stations.
- REUTERS
