Power/Energy Traders?

[Condi]

Any tips on applying for jobs trading power or energy? Anything I should read or know other than the obvious exchanges and contracts.

Im coming from a commodity trading background, but not traded power before.

Either that, or anyone working for Nat Grid/EDF/RWE etc want to give me a leg up and a good word to their HR departments?

[Condi]

So at the moment Im trading ag's, which involves a lot of execution and first hand origination, and not much 'technical' trading. Options arnt used much, and going forwards I dont see how the industry is going to progress. There is such little money in the job that in a few years I think the larger firms will be totally dominant, and the opportunities for the smaller/medium size merchant will be gone.

Added to that is the physical locations of the companies are all rural, and not in very exciting places to live. It would do me good to experience trading a different asset class, using more options and derivatives and less physical execution and origination. I can see more future in energy and the way the industry is changing will give more opportunities than agriculture.

[Condi]

kurt535 said:

seems a good move to me. Used to know a potato grower..name of geoff bolitho. he owned the other half of the west country hrh charles didn't. he ventured into ftse options and as far as i am aware, never went back to his tractor!!

there are some decent physical vs financial trades to do, along with arbing price diffs caused by seasonal variations. best one i did was taking power from newly liberated eastern bloc countries, swapping out with an eu country then wheeling it into spain mid summer to feed their air con power frenzy. not sure that are would still be there today but decent knowledge of the physical underlying is a big big advantage, including the uk interconnectors

The way I look at it is that I have a lot of the skills needed, and the S+D knowledge is much easier to learn than how an option works, or how to arb across countries.

Didnt get the job I applied for which is a bit frustrating, but have got a couple of applications out elsewhere so will wait and see.

Thanks for you input.

[Condi]

Further to this, does anyone have an opinion of sse? The location isn't ideal, but it's a pretty part of the world and I have friends up there so for a year or 2 it wouldn't be the end of the world.

[Condi]

kurt535 said:

going back 7 years had a pal who left them for a more corporate trading environment and he regretted it.

Regretted leaving, or regretting working there?