In the last week of June, electricity demand rose across major European power markets compared with the previous week. Italy posted the strongest increase at 10%, followed by France at 9.9% and Belgium at 7.3%. Portugal recorded a marginal rise of 0.1%. Spain, Great Britain, and Germany also reported weekly gains ranging from 3.1% in Spain to 6.0% in Germany.
Great Britain continued to see demand increase for a second consecutive week. Germany, France, Portugal, Italy, and Belgium extended their growth streaks to a third week. Spain recorded a sixth consecutive weekly rise in electricity demand.
Temperature increases supported higher consumption
Alongside the demand changes, average temperatures increased across all analyzed markets during the same period. Germany recorded the largest temperature rise at 5.2°C, while Portugal saw the smallest increase at 0.7°C. In Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, and Great Britain, temperature gains ranged from 1.1°C to 4.7°C. The UK experienced one of the stronger warmings within that range.
The temperature movement aligned with heatwave conditions across much of Europe. France, Italy, Belgium, and Germany were affected during the second half of June. Spain experienced a heatwave between June 21 and June 24. Great Britain faced an intense heat episode between June 24 and June 28, particularly in England and Wales.
In Portugal, persistently high temperatures supported electricity demand growth during the period covered by the data. The increase remained more moderate than in several other markets. This pattern reflected ongoing warm conditions rather than a larger temperature jump compared with Germany.
AleaSoft expects mixed demand direction into early July
For the first week of July, AleaSoft Energy Forecasting expects electricity demand to decline in Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Belgium, and Great Britain. Portugal is projected to continue seeing an increase in demand driven by ongoing high temperatures. AleaSoft reports .
The forecast therefore points to a shift away from the late-June weekly increases in most markets while maintaining upward momentum for Portugal into early July.
