The landscape of electricity trading in South-East Europe has seen notable advancements over the past decade, driven by the maturation of regional power exchanges and enhanced cross-border market integration. However, as of early 2026, liquidity levels in these markets remain significantly lower than those found in Western and Central Europe. This disparity highlights both the achievements and ongoing challenges faced by power exchanges in the Balkans.
Power exchanges serve as critical platforms for transparent trading of electricity, facilitating day-ahead and intraday market activities. The effectiveness of these exchanges is often evaluated through their liquidity, which is determined by trading volumes and active participation from buyers and sellers. A high level of liquidity typically results in more accurate price reflection of market conditions, while low liquidity can lead to heightened price volatility due to the disproportionate impact of individual trades.
In February 2026, the Croatian power exchange reported a trading volume of approximately 905,983.6 MWh, with the day-ahead market contributing around 673,794.7 MWh and intraday trading accounting for about 232,188.9 MWh. These figures demonstrate a significant operational scale but also reveal that trading volumes are sensitive to broader market dynamics. Notably, February’s trading activity marked a decline of approximately 15.4 percent compared to the same month in the previous year, indicating a continued reliance on bilateral contracts among market participants.
The Serbian power exchange reflected similar trends with day-ahead market activity reaching approximately 414,520.1 MWh for February 2026, translating to an average daily volume of about 14,804.3 MWh. Although this represented a modest month-on-month increase of around 2.4 percent, it was still approximately 12.4 percent lower than the previous year’s figures. This underscores the persistent significance of bilateral agreements within Serbia’s electricity market structure.
Price trends within these exchanges further illustrate the complexities of regional electricity trading. In Croatia, the average day-ahead base price was approximately €107.49 per megawatt-hour during February 2026, with peak prices averaging €113.69 per megawatt-hour. Conversely, Serbia’s day-ahead market saw average base prices drop to about €68.61 per megawatt-hour—a decrease of roughly 41.9 percent from January—and peak prices fell by around 45.7 percent month-on-month to approximately €74.05 per megawatt-hour.
The relatively modest trading volumes across South-East European exchanges reflect broader structural characteristics within the regional electricity sector where state-owned utilities dominate generation and supply chains. These entities often favor internal trading mechanisms or long-term contracts over active participation in exchange-based markets, limiting overall liquidity on public platforms.
Transmission infrastructure also plays a pivotal role in determining liquidity levels within these markets. Limited interconnection capabilities can hinder cross-border trading opportunities and restrict access for potential market participants. As such, enhancing transmission capacity is crucial for fostering increased liquidity across regional exchanges.
Despite these challenges, there are signs of gradual integration with broader European electricity markets that may bolster exchange roles in South-East Europe. Market coupling initiatives have begun linking local exchanges with larger European platforms, facilitating automatic flows toward higher-priced markets and improving allocation efficiency across interconnected systems.
Moreover, increased participation from international trading firms has been observed as regional markets become more accessible. These global entities contribute significant liquidity by operating across multiple markets simultaneously and aligning price signals from Western Europe with opportunities in South-East European markets.
The growth of intraday trading is another noteworthy development within regional exchanges as renewable energy sources expand across Europe—bringing volatility due to their intermittent nature. In February 2026 alone, the Croatian exchange recorded approximately 232,188.9 MWh of intraday trading activity—a clear indication that traders are increasingly leveraging real-time mechanisms to manage supply-demand fluctuations.
The current state of electricity trading in South-East Europe reflects a transitional phase characterized by evolving regulatory frameworks and changing generation portfolios amidst broader European energy integration efforts. Although liquidity remains lower than that found in more mature European markets, increasing trading volumes suggest that local exchanges are progressively becoming more integral to price discovery and electricity allocation processes.
As integration continues across European electricity markets, it is anticipated that both depth and liquidity within South-East European exchanges will further improve over time—fostering greater transparency in pricing mechanisms while enhancing cross-border connections and supporting renewable generation expansion initiatives.
