Electricity Prices: MWh Value Hits Zero for 8 Hours on Energy Exchange

Greek energy market hits record low as electricity prices drop to zero for eight straight hours, today. According to Energy Exchange data, from 09:00 to 14:00, March 24, the value of MWh (Megawatt-hour) remains stagnant at 0 euros/MWh.

According to market analysts, this phenomenon is also observed today in other European wholesale or exchange electricity markets.

The last time such an intra-day event occurred for so many hours in the Greek stock market was on May 28, 2023.

The reason for the zero value of electricity is related to the significant participation of inexpensive Renewable Energy Sources in the energy mix used for electricity generation.

Renewable Energy Sources (RES) claimed between 66.65% to 77.42% of the energy mix during the mentioned eight-hour period, maintaining dominance in hourly bids on the energy exchange. This outstrips other technologies like natural gas units and excludes lignite, as it’s not part of the system for March 24.

Solar and wind power surge electricity production, driven by favorable conditions. With their low costs and expanded capacity, RES effectively reduce electricity generation expenses to zero. Analysts foresee such occurrences becoming more common in the future.

As RES are further developed and integrated into the electricity generation system, electricity providers will buy energy at cheaper rates, leading to lower retail electricity prices.

Source: tovima.com