Europe's daily power prices swing sharply as solar output rises then falls

Europe's daily power-price swings are getting more severe as a flood of solar is quickly followed by a supply crunch, highlighting the challenge the region faces to get its electricity system to cope with the energy transition. Almost every day in the summer, prices plunge around midday as solar generation swamps the grid, but then spike higher in the evening as the sun sets and demand rises, especially when hot weather boosts cooling demand.

Price movements The phenomenon — called a duck curve because of the way it looks on a chart — causes wild swings within just a few hours that far eclipse other commodities. For example, on a late May day in Germany, Europe's top economy, prices jumped from below zero around noon to almost €400 megawatt-hour at 8 p.m.