Spot electricity prices in Hungary fell in the first half of September due to weak demand. Weekday baseload on the HUPX exchange fell from around 120 euros per MWh in the last day of August to around 100 euros per MWh in the first week of September. At the beginning of the second week of September, the spot price increased to 146 euros per MWh, before ending the week at 110 euros per MWh. Day-ahead prices closely tracked the German prices for most of the period.
The initial decline followed a drop in domestic demand. Lower natural gas and carbon allowance prices also supported the downward trend. The second week brought an uptick in demand as economic activity picked up after the summer break.
On the supply side, only smaller lignite and CCGT gas units were offline due to maintenance.
Higher net imports covered the increase in demand and also made up for a drop in solar generation.
On the HUDEX energy exchange, October futures fell below 100 euros per MWh early on and then rose to 104 euros per MWh. Q4 futures fell 3 euros per MWh to 124 euros per MWh. Cal 2024 hit a three-month low at 139 euros per MWh.
