Day-ahead electricity prices for delivery on 23 June rose sharply across parts of Southeast Europe, with Hungary, Romania, Slovenia and Croatia moving close to Central European levels. The repricing coincided with a steep evening residual-load ramp. In contrast, Serbia and Albania remained heavily discounted.
HUPX, OPCOM, BSP and CROPEX baseload levels
On HUPX, Hungarian day-ahead baseload settled at €173.04/MWh, up €47.6/MWh day on day. Romania’s OPCOM cleared at €172.88/MWh, rising €48.8/MWh. Slovenia’s BSP settled at €169.63/MWh and Croatia’s CROPEX at €170.37/MWh.
The northern Southeast Europe cluster moved close to Germany at €174.91/MWh and Austria at €169.46/MWh, while Italy was lower at €153.83/MWh.
Serbia and Albania remain discounted
The biggest divergence appeared further south, where Serbia’s SEEPEX cleared at €93.36/MWh, only €3.2/MWh above the previous session. Albania’s ALPEX stood at €93.48/MWh, down €0.5/MWh. Montenegro’s BELEN settled at €115.30/MWh, up €9.3/MWh, while North Macedonia’s MEMO fell €11.4/MWh to €105.96/MWh.
The Serbia-Hungary day-ahead spread widened to almost €80/MWh.
Consumption and generation changes
The price formation was not linked to an outright shortage in average supply. Regional consumption was forecast at 31,785 MW, up 840 MW day on day, while total generation also increased.
Hydro output rose to 6,324 MW and solar increased to 6,609 MW. Gas rose to 4,634 MW and coal to 4,549 MW, while wind reached 2,809 MW; nuclear remained stable at 5,033 MW.
Evening price peaks around hour 21–22
Hourly pricing showed the main trading pattern as maximum prices concentrated around hour 21–22 and minimum prices clustered near the midday solar window around hour 14. Hungary’s maximum hourly price reached €496.1/MWh and Germany’s was €545.5/MWh.
Romania recorded a maximum hourly price of €493.0/MWh, Slovenia €478.3/MWh, Croatia €481.8/MWh and Austria €488.7/MWh. Minimum prices were €62.4/MWh on HUPX, €62.6/MWh in Romania, €63.1/MWh in Slovenia, €63.0/MWh in Croatia and €62.9/MWh in Austria.
Cross-border flows and forward market reaction
Cross-border flows reflected a fragmented regional balance as the SEE-Hungary aggregate was close to flat with net import at -146 MW . CORE imports into the region fell sharply to 176 MW, down 604 MW day on day.
The HU-DE spread moved to -€1.87/MWh, indicating Hungary was not priced below Germany despite the steep regional rally . Greece appeared as a major exporter at around 1,405 MW, while Croatia, Romania and Serbia were net importers on the regional balance chart.
Forward markets did not fully track the day-ahead spike: Hungarian Week 27 power was unchanged at €135.50/MWh while Week 28 fell by €8/MWh to €112.50/MWh and July 2026 declined by €3.5/MWh to €119/MWh . Gas prices were firmer with CEGH at €43.85/MWh and Greek gas at €42/MWh; EU carbon rose to €81.57/tCO₂.
Coal forwards were broadly stable with API-2 July at $114.5/t and Q3 at $112.5/t . For Serbia’s daily structure, SEEPEX remained nearly €80/MWh below HUPX and OPCOM.
Bistrica pumped storage and grid upgrades
The SEEPEX discount created a theoretical export signal into higher-priced neighboring markets subject to available transmission capacity and nominated cross-border flows . The persistence of that gap pointed to incomplete price convergence even during high regional stress hours.
The same market structure aligned with Serbia’s planned 650 MW Bistrica pumped-storage hydropower project as it moved through financing talks with JICA. Montenegro’s transmission upgrade plans around Perućica and Pljevlja, with potential capacity for around 550 MW of new renewable connections, also fit the western Balkan grid development direction .
Temperature outlook for SEE and Hungary excluding Greece
Weather risk remained a short-term driver as forecast temperatures for SEE and Hungary excluding Greece were expected to rise from 24.5°C on 23 June to 26.3°C by 26 June . Serbia was expected to rise toward 27.0°C and Montenegro toward around 30°C.
This outlook kept cooling demand supportive while maintaining the evening ramp issue described in the pricing profile . The effect was particularly relevant if wind output weakened or if cross-border imports stayed limited.
