The “substantial” weather event may lead to drought in Australia and heavy snowfall in the UK, meteorologists say.

A significant rise in water temperature in the Pacific Ocean is likely to have a major impact on the world’s weather over the coming months, Australian experts have warned.

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology said the eastern Pacific is in the early stages of a “substantial” El Nino event, the first in five years.

The rising water temperature alters wind and rainfall patterns and is likely to lead to drought in Australia, drier conditions in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia, and floods ›

The UK’s power generation surplus is forecast to drop below 10GW for the first and only time this summer during week 24, according to the latest data from system operator National Grid. ›

The UK’s Labour Party is the most likely major political party to banish the country’s controversial carbon tax on power generators if its wins the forthcoming general election on 7 May, according to a leading UK energy policy expert. ›

After a period of relative stability in oil prices, a number of market participants are growing increasingly upbeat on a turnaround for the commodity, predicting a sustained rally in the near term. ›

The shale oil boom that pushed US crude production to the highest level in four decades is grinding to a halt. ›

Electricity demand on the UK’s grid is likely to peak at 37.5 gigawatts (GW) this summer, the lowest ever forecast, due to increased private use of solar installations. ›

Some UK coal-fired power stations are at risk of shutting for the summer after the doubling of a carbon emissions levy hurt the profitability of plants run by utilities from EON, SSE to Iberdrola SA. ›

Centrica Plc will limit natural gas storage at the UK’s biggest facility for six months to test wells at the site 9,000 feet below the North Sea, cutting the amount of stored fuel available next winter by more than 10 percent. ›

Centrica Storage Ltd said on Friday that it had identified a potential issue with well integrity that could affect all wells at Britain’s biggest gas storage site, Rough. ›

The rebalancing of the oil market triggered by the collapse in prices has yet to run its course and it would be a mistake to assume it will proceed smoothly, the International Energy Agency has warned. ›