Day-ahead electricity prices increased across much of Central and Southeast Europe for Thursday delivery. The move coincided with higher regional import needs and more expensive evening hours, despite slightly weaker consumption. Hungary’s HUPX base price rose by €42.7/MWh to €203.34/MWh. Romania reached €202.46/MWh, Slovenia €201.43/MWh and Croatia €201.38/MWh.
Serbia recorded the largest daily increase among the main regional markets, with SEEPEX up by €65.1/MWh to €174.39/MWh. Bulgaria climbed to €188.50/MWh and Greece to €183.60/MWh. In the southern Balkans, Montenegro fell to €154.67/MWh and North Macedonia dropped to €133.35/MWh.
Demand and supply shifts behind the regional price move
The price rally occurred even as demand softened slightly. Combined Hungary and Southeast European consumption was forecast at around 31.59 GW, about 227 MW below the previous day. On the supply side, regional generation fell to around 29.61 GW, widening the shortfall versus consumption.
Total net imports moved toward 1.98 GW, roughly 700 MW higher year on day. Imports from the Central European core increased to around 1.99 GW. The Hungary–Germany day-ahead spread narrowed to about €11.5/MWh from €17.5/MWh.
Hungary’s tighter balance lifts interconnected market prices
Hungary showed the clearest example of tightening fundamentals in the regional system. Consumption was broadly unchanged at around 4.75 GW, while domestic generation fell to roughly 3.37 GW from 4.14 GW. Hungary’s net import requirement more than doubled to around 1.38 GW, from 631 MW.
The deterioration in Hungary’s power balance contributed to higher prices across interconnected Central and Southeast European markets. HUPX remained a key reference point for Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Romania. The hourly pattern indicated that price pressure was concentrated around the evening ramp.
HUPX reached a maximum of about €425.7/MWh in hour 20, compared with a daily minimum of €124.8/MWh. Germany reached roughly €460.9/MWh, while Croatia and Austria also recorded maximum hourly prices above €400/MWh. The profile aligns with solar generation effects, where midday output suppresses prices but rapid photovoltaic declines toward sunset increase reliance on thermal generation, imports and flexible capacity.
Serbia’s SEEPEX jumps while physical flows stay steady
Serbia provided one of the clearest examples of intraday volatility in the region’s pricing data. SEEPEX rose to €174.39/MWh from €109.3/MWh, an increase of roughly 60% in a single day. The maximum hourly Serbian price reached €350/MWh.
Off-peak electricity in Serbia averaged about €188.2/MWh, higher than a nominal peak average of around €160.5/MWh. Despite the price surge, Serbia’s physical balance changed comparatively little, with consumption at around 3.55 GW, generation at approximately 3.04 GW, and average imports at about 516 MW. The increase therefore aligned with regional scarcity and cross-border price transmission rather than a sudden rise in Serbian demand.
Serbia still retained a substantial discount versus Hungary of almost €29/MWh. The gap indicates that Southeast European markets remain only partially converged, with local generation structures, interconnector capacity availability and congestion continuing to differentiate pricing across neighbouring exchanges.
Romania tightness contrasts with lower-price moves in Montenegro and North Macedonia
Romania remained structurally tight within the regional system as consumption stood at around 5.66 GW, compared with generation of about 5.19 GW. That left Romania dependent on approximately 472 MW of net imports. The absence of nuclear output was highlighted by Cernavoda being unavailable.
The country has therefore relied more on gas, coal, hydro, wind and cross-border electricity flows since Cernavoda’s unavailability was noted in the market data provided here. Romania imported heavily from Bulgaria while also receiving substantial electricity through Hungary during peak hours, supporting an OPCOM base price of €202.46/MWh, almost level with Hungary’s HUPX level.
Bulgaria remained a major exporter, with average net exports around 1.47 GW, although below roughly 1.77 GW on the previous day; its large nuclear fleet continued to support regional supply conditions.
BELEN, Montenegro’s base price fell to €154. 67/MWh, down about €16. 6/MWh as its supply balance improved; Montenegrin generation recovered to around 253 MW from 117 MW while average imports narrowed to roughly 147 MW from 296 MW.
Northern Balkan price divergence and gas-driven cost pressure
The southern market divergence extended into North Macedonia’s pricing outcome as its day-ahead price dropped to €133.35/MWh, around €70/MWh below Hungary’s level while generation increased to approximately 697 MW, up from 449 MW earlier referenced here.
The country shifted to an average export position of around 285 MW, compared with only 73 MW a day earlier, contributing to a fragmented regional market where base prices ranged from approximately €133/MWh in North Macedonia to above €203/MWh in Hungary while Italy remained higher still.
A more expensive fuel environment added another layer of pressure on power markets during the period covered by these figures. Austrian CEGH gas rose to around €80.80/MWh, while European gas markets were trading at their highest levels since late 2022.