Wholesale power market liquidity: Annual report 2015
Reports, plans and updates
Publication date
Industry sector
Generation and Wholesale Market
This is our first annual report on liquidity in the wholesale electricity market since our new licence obligations to promote liquidity came into effect in March 2014. This follows an interim report published in December 2014.
We introduced new licence obligations because we were concerned that poor liquidity in the wholesale power market was preventing consumers from fully realising the benefits that competition can deliver. The new regulations aim to help improve independent suppliers’ access to the wholesale market and ensure that the market provides the products and price signals that all companies need to compete effectively.
We have been monitoring the effects of the reforms both to assess their impact and to make sure the obligated parties comply with them. This report shows the most recent results from the analysis and the feedback we have had. The results show a notable improvement in liquidity in the wholesale market over the first year, but a decline in the most recent quarter.
There are many factors that could have contributed to the results we are seeing so far, and it is difficult to draw definitive conclusions at this stage. We continue to monitor the effect of our reforms. We note that independent suppliers have told us that they are finding it easier to access the products they need.