In Germany, the cost of electricity has fallen below zero. The wind helped

According to EnergoBusiness, the phenomenal decline in electricity prices to negative values is becoming more and more common in Europe. The reason is developed wind power and strong winds, which leads to overproduction of wind farms.

This time, prices fell below zero in Germany. It happened on the first trading day of the year. This is a temporary phenomenon – prices were negative for four hours at night, when wind energy production reached 40 GW, which far exceeded demand.

The publication notes that in 2023, a record number of hours with negative prices were recorded in Europe: in Germany – 468 hours (60% more than in the previous year), in France – 356 hours (twice as many), while Spain experienced negative prices for the first time (247 hours).

And this creates certain problems for manufacturers. In particular, some politicians are calling for a limit on subsidies, as governments must guarantee producers a minimum payment even when energy is not needed.

In addition, the strong dependence of renewable energy production on weather conditions strongly leads to significant fluctuations in the market. In December 2024, for example, a long period of calm stopped the turbines, but then there was a sharp increase in wind and, accordingly, generation.

It should be added that the share of electricity generated from renewable sources in Germany reached 58% of all types of generation in the first half of 2024. Of these, 24% was generated from wind energy, 14% from photovoltaic systems, 9% from biomass, 5% from offshore wind energy, and 1% from energy from household waste.