Electrical substation in a photovoltaic plant in Trujillo, Cáceres. Photo: Paco Ponts / El País.
The price of electricity in the wholesale market stands at an average of 141.71 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) for this Wednesday compared to 135.65 euros the day before. This is a new absolute record, which exceeds 140.23 euros on September 2. The maximum peak, which will occur in the section from 21.00 to 22.00, will also be a record with 155.62 euros, while the minimum is set at 120.92 euros at five in the morning.
In the midst of this tidal wave, companies in the energy sector have agreed to demand urgent solutions from the government and the European Commission to stop the price of electricity.
The rise is driven by several factors, but it is mainly international markets that have led to this steady increase over the summer. The case of Spain, in fact, is not unique because as explained by Andreu García, consultant in the area of Economic Analysis and Markets in AFI, the rise in the price of electricity also affects other countries in the European union.
The factors that have led to the light going from almost € 30 / MWh in one year to € 140.38 per megawatt hour, according to data from the Iberian Energy Market Operator (OMIE), as García explains, are mainly two. The price of CO₂ emission rights in the European market and also the price of gas internationally has also increased.
“Companies pay to be able to emit CO₂; currently the rights are at record highs and have been rising since the last six months and then it has caused a translation to the cost of electricity,” explains the AFI adviser.
Garcia details that “we also have the effect of gas prices, which currently also lead to a rise in international markets due to various factors such as more powerful activity than expected, probably a lack of investment, which is preventing a little bit that the gas supply is expanding and that’s why we’re having higher prices. ”
It is these two factors “of gas and the rights of the CO₂, which have driven the costs of electricity” detailed Andreu García. In fact, the price of light in Spain when renewable energies begin to produce energy.
Average daily electricity prices in the wholesale market in Spain
The operation of the wholesale market in Spain
The reason is because the wholesale market in Spain, known as swimming pool, The price is marked following a scheme shared by all countries of the union. It stipulates the purchase needs, per hour, of all electricity generating companies. Then when having the offers of sale these are ordered according to the cost to produce the electricity, the cheapest are the renewable ones and the nuclear ones.
If with these two there is not enough energy to cover all the hours, other technologies are added, such as combined cycles or coal which are more expensive to produce. It is these technologies that mark the final price of each hour even though renewable and nuclear electricity has a much cheaper cost.
(With information from Euronews and El País)