The ongoing heatwave is driving electricity prices in Europe to unusual highs. On Wednesday evening, power was traded for nearly 750 euros per megawatt hour.
On the day-ahead market, the price for Wednesday at 8:45 p.m. reached nearly 750 euros per megawatt hour. This is the highest value since December 2024.
Scientist Leonhard Gandhi from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems confirmed that electricity prices above 700 euros in summer are unusual for Central Europe. Such peaks in summer last occurred in 2022 during the energy crisis triggered by the Ukraine war.
The cause of the current price increases is the change in the energy system, not a crisis. Many gas-fired power plants are not connected to the grid, while demand remains high in the evenings.
