Electricity prices in Serbia and Montenegro increased for Tuesday delivery, while Hungary and Romania saw declines. The change coincided with a higher southeastern Europe net import requirement despite stronger solar output. Regional price differentials also shifted, including a move in the Germany day-ahead benchmark.
Serbia’s SEEPEX day-ahead price rose by €26.8/MWh to €196.49/MWh. Montenegro’s BELEN increased by €22.1/MWh to €232.03/MWh. The two moves widened Montenegro’s premium over Serbia to €35.54/MWh.
On other benchmarks, Hungary’s HUPX fell by €7.9/MWh to €224.81/MWh. Romania’s OPCOM declined by €5.7/MWh to €222.73/MWh. Serbia traded €28.32/MWh below Hungary, while Montenegro was €7.22/MWh above it.
Germany-led shift and divergence across southern markets
The largest change in the regional benchmark relationship came from Germany, where the day-ahead price increased by €45.1/MWh to €201.70/MWh. Hungary’s premium over Germany narrowed by about €53/MWh to €23.11/MWh. The convergence reflected the German increase rather than a broad easing across southeastern Europe.
Southern market prices moved in different directions. Albania fell by €37.6/MWh to €239.50/MWh, remaining the most expensive market in the reported SEE group. North Macedonia rose by €36.9/MWh to €182.32/MWh, while Greece gained €17.9/MWh to €167.42/MWh and retained the lowest daily average.
The spread between Albania and Greece stood at €72.08/MWh. Differences of this size can create incentives for cross-border trading, although daily average spreads alone do not indicate whether transmission capacity was available or whether trades captured the full margin.
Bulgaria increased by €3.6/MWh to €207.38/MWh, while Slovenia and Croatia posted smaller gains to reach €220.09/MWh and €221.06/MWh, respectively. Italy rose by €23.2/MWh to €233.27/MWh, leaving Montenegro just €1.24/MWh below the Italian benchmark.
Import requirement rises despite higher solar output
The regional supply balance showed little change in demand but greater dependence on imports. Forecast consumption across the Hungary and SEE aggregate edged up 33 MW to 29,143 MW, while net imports increased by approximately 309 MW to 2,049 MW, equivalent to about 7% of demand.
Forecast solar generation rose by 857 MW to 6,719 MW, while wind output fell by 587 MW to 1,288 MW. The combined renewable increase of roughly 270 MW coincided with a higher import requirement, indicating that stronger solar output did not remove the need for additional external supply.
Average net inflows through the Austria and Slovakia corridor eased by 20 MW to 1,455 MW. Country balances showed Romania importing 1,514 MW, Croatia importing 1,091 MW and Serbia importing 773 MW, while Bulgaria exported 1,498 MW and Greece exported 655 MW.
Forward spreads and fuel costs
Forward prices pointed to a persistent Hungarian premium despite the narrowing spot spread. Hungarian week-42 power eased by €2/MWh to €201/MWh, but its premium over Germany widened by €11/MWh to €56.50/MWh.
The November Hungarian contract increased by €1/MWh to €209/MWh, with the corresponding German spread widening to €40/MWh. Gas prices remained elevated, with Austrian CEGH at €75.51/MWh and Greece at €67.50/MWh.
Carbon allowances were assessed at €83.87/t. For buyers in Serbia and Montenegro, procurement costs moved higher despite stable regional demand and improving solar output; Hungary’s falling benchmark offered limited relief as local prices rose, imports increased and forward spreads continued pricing a sizeable regional premium.