Electricity prices are rising to levels that were unthinkable last year.
(Photo: dpa)
Brussels, Berlin, Dusseldorf The situation is extreme: Anyone who wants to buy electricity for the coming year is currently paying 800 euros and more per megawatt hour on the Leipzig electricity exchange. At the end of last year it was 80 euros. From one day to the next, the price can fluctuate by more than 200 euros.
“The market situation is complete madness,” says Lion Hirth, professor of energy policy at the Hertie School. “There have never been such awards in history.” Here are answers to the most important questions.
What factors affect the price of electricity?
“The electricity prices that we are currently seeing can no longer be explained fundamentally,” says energy expert Tobias Federico from the market research company Energy Brainpool. The market is in panic mode.
The most important driver is the gas price, since gas-fired power plants often set prices according to the mechanisms in the electricity market. Prices for future electricity volumes are therefore derived from the price expectations for gas.
Top jobs of the day
Find the best jobs now and
be notified by email.
Read on now
Get access to this and every other article in the
Web and in our app free of charge for 4 weeks.
Continue
Read on now
Get access to this and every other article in the
Web and in our app free of charge for 4 weeks.
Continue