Half of the Netherlands almost seems to be on holiday and that is reflected to a certain extent in the electricity market. The demand, and with it the price, is at a relatively low level if we compare it to the last few weeks. While summer only cautiously returns in the Netherlands this week, Southern Europe has already had several very warm weeks. This poses major challenges for the European energy grid.
The electricity market remains very volatile. Last Friday (August 4), the quotation on the Epex Spot rose to the highest level in more than fourteen days at €94,64 per MWh. Over the weekend the price dropped rapidly. However, the trough was not on Sunday as usual but on Monday at €34,63 per MWh. According to experts, a slightly higher supply of wind energy and a slightly lower demand due to the holidays contribute to the fact that the electricity price is relatively low for weekdays at the moment.
We are certainly not experiencing a heat wave, as last weekend was the coldest August 6 ever recorded, but that is different in Southern Europe. The mercury has already exceeded 40 degrees in Italy, Spain and Greece. The use of air conditioning caused large demand peaks on the European electricity market. However, these outliers could be dealt with fairly easily. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which started almost a year and a half ago, the price of natural gas in particular rose to extreme levels. This is one of the reasons why many additional solar panels have been installed in the Netherlands, but also in Spain and Greece. And those solar panels are an ideal combination with air conditioning. When the yield of the solar panels peaks, the energy demand of the cooling units is also at a high point. The significant expansion of the number of solar panels in Southern Europe will allow fluctuations in power demand to be better absorbed, according to some experts.
Cooling and heating
We can still make significant progress in Europe in the field of cooling and heating, experts believe. In the summer when it gets hot, energy-guzzling air conditioners are on and in the winter we heat houses and buildings with natural gas, propane, heating oil and in some parts of Europe the use of coal is also still common. Heat pumps can be an energy-efficient alternative for efficient heating and cooling.
Interest is increasing in the private market, although it is still a niche. 15 in 1.000 Dutch households will invest in a heat pump in 2022, according to the European trade association Ehpa. The heat pump is not only interesting for private individuals, switching can also be worthwhile for heating or cooling business premises. For example, consider heating a sorting area with residual heat from the refrigerator. In addition to direct savings on energy costs, there are also tax-favorable schemes and subsidies, whether or not in combination with a small wind turbine or solar panels.