In the second week of October, average electricity prices in most major European markets declined compared to the previous week, with the notable exception of the N2EX market in the United Kingdom, which saw a 4.8% increase. The EPEX SPOT market in the Netherlands registered the smallest price decline at 0.9%, while the Nord Pool market in the Nordic countries experienced the largest drop at 33%. Other analyzed markets, according to AleaSoft Energy Forecasting, saw prices fall between 2.9% in the Belgian EPEX SPOT market and 25% in Portugal’s MIBEL market.
For the week of October 7, most European markets had weekly averages below €75/MWh, except for the British market and Italy’s IPEX market, which averaged €96.94/MWh and €106.96/MWh, respectively. The Nordic market recorded the lowest weekly average at €26.68/MWh, while prices in other markets ranged from €46.52/MWh in France to €73.37/MWh in the Netherlands.
On an hourly basis, negative prices were observed in the German, Belgian, British, French, and Dutch markets on Sunday, October 13, with the French market also experiencing negative prices on Thursday, October 10. The lowest hourly price of the second week, €15.69/MWh, occurred in Germany on Sunday from 14:00 to 15:00.
Despite the overall price declines, the Spanish and Portuguese markets recorded their highest prices since February 21, reaching €180.00/MWh on October 10 from 20:00 to 21:00. Additionally, the French and British markets hit their highest hourly prices since early December 2023, at €161.89/MWh and £199.98/MWh, respectively, on October 14 from 19:00 to 20:00.
The overall decrease in weekly averages can be attributed to an increase in wind energy production across most markets, which helped lower prices. A decline in the average price of CO2 emission allowances and an increase in solar energy production in Germany, coupled with decreased demand in the Iberian Peninsula, also contributed to the lower prices observed, AleaSoft reports.