RAAEY Investigates Electricity Price Fluctuations
The energy regulator RAAEY is currently looking into the significant daily fluctuations of electricity prices in the wholesale market. Officials from the watchdog have confirmed that they have requested a detailed report from the Energy Exchange regarding the hourly offers made by electricity producers in recent days.
The focus of the RAAEY investigation is not on the legality of the offers, as there is no upper limit set by the institutional framework. Instead, they are interested in identifying any potential cases of speculation. For example, if the operating cost of a unit is only 10 euros but the offer is between €400 and €500, that would be considered unjustified.
Additionally, the investigation is looking into how lignite units are entering the system. They are examining whether these units are going through the competitive bidding process or entering outside of the planning, which can lead to higher compensation costs and ultimately impact the price in the daily market.
Overall, the goal of the RAAEY investigation is to ensure transparency and fairness in the electricity market and to prevent any manipulation that could drive up prices for consumers.
The Volatile Energy Market
The energy market experienced a significant drop, with prices falling to €190.13 per megawatt-hour last Friday. The fluctuations between the minimum and maximum prices were drastic, reaching over €400 euros. For instance, the minimum rate at noon, when solar power production was at its peak, was €88, while the price surged to €550 at 9 p.m. during peak demand when solar power was no longer available. The day before, prices ranged from €75 to €500.
Challenges for Suppliers
Non-vertically integrated suppliers have reported losses amounting to hundreds of millions of euros due to high prices in the evening hours. These suppliers offer hourly rates for energy to meet customer demand. However, they struggle to predict the producers’ offers during peak hours, leading to energy shortages that they must then source from the secondary market.
Energy Minister Thodoros Skylakakis acknowledges the need for regulatory intervention in this volatile market to ensure stability and fair pricing.
Investigating High Energy Prices
The minister stated to Kathimerini that it is necessary for RAAEY to look into the high energy prices, although this does not automatically imply any wrongdoing. He believes that prices will start to decrease in the near future, as evidenced by the drop to €152/MWh on Friday.
Current Situation
July has seen an average MWh rate of €122.77, which is more than €22 higher than the prices in June. This increase will impact consumers, with higher rates for current consumption labeled as “yellow” and increased tariffs for August consumption labeled as “green.”
Reasons for High Prices
The minister attributed the high prices to external factors and expressed confidence that there will be a return to normalcy in the energy market in the coming days.
