In the week of December 9, solar photovoltaic energy production saw increases across the Iberian and Italian markets compared to the previous week. The Portuguese market led the growth with a notable 13% increase, marking its third consecutive week of upward trends. The Spanish market continued its growth for the fourth week, rising by 1.1%, while Italy experienced a 1.7% increase, reversing a three-week decline. In contrast, the French and German markets saw reductions in solar energy generation for the second consecutive week. Germany experienced the largest drop, at 48%, while France saw a 10% decrease, AleaSoft reports.
During this period, the Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian markets set new records for daily solar photovoltaic energy production in December. Spain achieved its highest daily production on December 10, with 90 GWh. Portugal set its record on December 9, with production of 12 GWh, followed by 12 GWh on December 10, surpassing the previous record of 11 GWh on December 8. Italy reached its second highest daily value for December on December 12, with 44 GWh of solar energy generation.
Looking ahead to the week of December 16, AleaSoft Energy Forecasting’s solar energy production forecasts predict increases in solar energy generation in the German, Italian, and Spanish markets compared to the previous week.
Wind energy production declined in major European electricity markets during the second week of December. The French market saw the largest decrease, with a 41% drop, followed by Spain at 31% and Portugal at 24%. After previous increases, wind energy generation in the German and Italian markets also declined for the third consecutive week, with drops of 20% and 22%, respectively. However, forecasts for the third week of December indicate a general increase in wind energy production across all major European markets.
Electricity demand increased in most European markets in the week of December 9. France and Spain saw the largest increases, both at 11%, while Germany had the smallest rise at just 0.1%. Other markets such as Belgium, the UK, the Netherlands, and Portugal also saw increases, ranging from 2.2% in Belgium to 8.1% in Portugal. The Italian market, however, experienced a 2.1% decrease in demand after five consecutive weeks of increases.
Average temperatures across the analyzed markets continued to decrease compared to the previous week. The Iberian Peninsula experienced the most significant temperature drops, with Portugal’s temperatures falling by 4.8°C and Spain’s by 4.7°C. Italy saw the smallest reduction, at 0.2°C, while Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, France, and Belgium registered decreases between 1.5°C in Germany and 3.3°C in Belgium.
For the third week of December, AleaSoft Energy Forecasting’s demand forecasts indicate a decrease in electricity demand in most European markets, except for Germany, where demand is expected to rise, AleaSoft reports.