Weekly Market Snapshot — Belgium, 2026-w32

Belgium's electricity market recorded an elevated weekly average price of €119.81/MWh over the 7-day period to 3 August 2026, driven by a pronounced price inversion where off-peak hours averaged €146.87/MWh versus €96.92/MWh for peak hours—reflecting strong solar suppression of midday prices against tight evening demand. Renewables contributed 55.3% of generation on average, led by solar at 43.5% of the total mix, while the week saw high price volatility with a standard deviation of €64.63/MWh and a spike to €325.95/MWh at the weekly maximum. Belgium was a net energy importer throughout the period, drawing heavily from France and the Netherlands to meet residual demand above domestic renewable output.

Weekly Market Snapshot — Germany-Luxembourg, 2026-w32

The DE-LU bidding zone experienced a highly volatile week (27 July – 3 August 2026), with day-ahead prices averaging €119.31/MWh against a standard deviation of €67.61/MWh, driven by a pronounced solar-induced midday price collapse juxtaposed against sharp early-morning and evening scarcity spikes reaching €352.36/MWh. Renewable penetration averaged 64.2% across the week but ranged from 54.5% (31 July) to 74.3% (27 July), creating significant intra-week thermal dispatch variability. The zone maintained a net export position on most corridors while remaining structurally dependent on French and Dutch imports, reflecting a complex balancing role within the wider Central European market.

Weekly Market Snapshot — France, 2026-w32

France's electricity market recorded an exceptionally elevated weekly mean price of €108.72/MWh with extreme intraday volatility (standard deviation €66.90/MWh), driven by a pronounced duck-curve price structure where early-morning and evening hours reached up to €189.62/MWh while midday solar suppressed prices to near-zero or negative levels. Nuclear baseload dominated the generation mix at 72.0% of output (40,865 MW average), providing structural stability, while France maintained a strong net export position across all major interconnectors, particularly maximising the FR→IT corridor at 96.8% NTC utilisation. A sharp renewable collapse on 3 August to just 13.9% versus a weekly average of 22.6% signals an emerging supply tightness that warrants close monitoring into the following week.

Weekly Market Snapshot — Netherlands, 2026-w32

The NL bidding zone experienced extreme price volatility over the 7-day period from 27 July to 3 August 2026, with a weekly mean of €118.88/MWh, a peak of €339.01/MWh, and 8 hours of negative pricing, reflecting the interplay of solar-driven midday suppression and steep evening ramp events. A counterintuitive price inversion saw off-peak hours average €147.34/MWh versus €94.80/MWh for peak hours, driven by the solar generation profile compressing daytime prices while overnight and early-morning demand sustained elevated rates. Renewable penetration declined sharply mid-week from 43.4% on 27 July to 18.2% by 1 August before recovering to 36.2% on 2 August, forcing greater reliance on the fossil fleet and amplifying price spikes.