EU carbon prices edge down, following power

LONDON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Benchmark European carbon emissions futures were down 5 cents at 1200 GMT on the European Climate Exchange on Tuesday, following power markets lower.

EU Allowances (EUAs) for delivery in December CFI2Zc1 were trading at 13.82 euros ($20.70) a tonne. EUAs traded around a one-month low on Monday.

Carbon may continue to weaken as margins shrink on power price contracts, as usually happens towards the end of the calendar year contract, one trader said.

"The premium on power contracts is eroding," he said.

As a result, there was also a narrowing of clean dark spreads -- the profit from burning coal to produce electricity including the cost of buying carbon emissions permits. "So there's less incentive to buy carbon."

U.S. oil CLc1 fell on Tuesday to around $79 a barrel as a late-season hurricane subsided in the Gulf of Mexico and traders awaited key U.S. inventory data. [O/R]

German Calendar 2010 baseload power on the EEX F1BYc1 was down 7 cents at 46.45 euros per megawatt hour.

U.N.-backed certified emissions reductions (CERs) CEREZc1 fell 20 cents to 12.74 euros a tonne. The EUA-CER spread widened to 108 cents.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Tuesday she would go to Copenhagen to help agree a new global deal on climate change. [nLA632381]