Electricity prices jump in Europe as demands soars in the heatwave

The heatwave has prompted a sharp rise in electricity prices across European markets as millions turn to air conditioners and electric fans to battle record high temperatures, which have also caused string of power plant outages across the continent. Great Britain imported electricity from Europe at more than six times the normal price on Tuesday as the high pressure heat dome has slowed wind speeds, hitting renewable energy generation, and caused outages at multiple gas plants across the country. The heatwave has caused windfarms on the continent to slow, and led to lower output at some nuclear plants in France, where high riverwater temperatures are making it more difficult to cool the reactors. The combination of rising electricity demand and falling generation across Europe has caused market prices to climb to multi-year highs. Great Britain’s energy system operator has resorted to paying about £470 per megawatt-hour to secure electricity imports from the continent between 5pm and 7pm on Tuesday evening to help meet the country’s peak electricity demand. These prices are more than six times the electricity market price in June last year, which averaged about £71/MWh, and more than three times the market price of £123/MWh on Monday. In Germany, Europe’s biggest electricity market, power market prices were forecast to reach highs of more than €545 per megawatt-hour on Tuesday evening, the highest since June 2024, according to the Epex Spot exchange. …