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The European power sector is moving from hourly to 15-minute trading intervals.
Why? Because renewables like PV and wind can change dramatically in just a few minutes.
Reasons for the Change
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Integration of renewables
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Wind and solar output can change significantly within 15 minutes.
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A shorter MTU makes market signals more accurate, reducing imbalances and balancing costs.
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Cross-border trading harmonization
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With more interconnection in Europe, aligning MTUs helps cross-border capacity allocation and efficient trading.
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Better price signals
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15-minute prices show intraday volatility more clearly, rewarding flexibility (e.g., batteries, demand response, flexible generation).
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System balancing efficiency
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Transmission System Operators (TSOs) can manage imbalances closer to real-time, reducing the need for expensive balancing energy.
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Impacts on Market Participants
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Traders / Utilities:
Need more granular forecasting and trading strategies; systems must handle 96 intervals per day instead of 24. -
Renewable Generators:
Closer alignment of production schedules with actual output, reducing imbalance penalties. -
Consumers / Demand Response:
Flexible loads (industry, EV charging, storage) gain new opportunities to react to short-term price signals. -
IT & Data Management:
Market operators, aggregators, and utilities must upgrade platforms to process 4x the volume of bids, schedules, and settlements.
Current Status in Europe (2025)
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Germany: Already fully transitioned to 15-min intervals in day-ahead and intraday.
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Netherlands, Belgium, Austria: Early movers — already using 15-min MTUs.
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France, Spain, Italy: Transition underway but delayed; full adoption expected by 2026.
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Nordics: Moving gradually, aligned with Nordic balancing market reform.
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UK (outside EU): Still on 30-min settlement, though reforms (Market-wide Half Hourly Settlement, MHHS) are ongoing — separate trajectory.
👉 Monitoring is the foundation of flexibility and efficiency
At Electrex, we’ve been ready for years.
Our energy analyzers have long logged energy and power data every 15 minutes by default, and our Energy Brain / Energy Brain Cloud software already displays profiles with this granularity. It’s exciting to see that the market is now adopting the same standard that we pioneered.
🚀 Benefits for end users with internal monitoring systems (like Electrex solutions):
✅ Better alignment with utility bills: Monitor and verify consumption in the same intervals used by the market.
✅ Improved integration of on-site generation (PV, wind, CHP): Track variability and optimize self-consumption on a 15-min basis.
✅ More accurate energy efficiency analysis: Detect peaks, inefficiencies, or unnecessary standby loads that get hidden in hourly averages.
✅ Stronger demand-response opportunities: React to short-term price signals by shifting or reducing loads.
⚡ Why you need an Electrex system:
💡 The move to 15-minute intervals increases the need for granular, reliable, and scalable monitoring systems.
💡 Companies without such systems will struggle with the new complexity — while those with Electrex solutions can transform this challenge into savings and new revenue streams.
💡 Our devices and software already match the new standard, helping businesses stay ahead of regulation and future-proof their energy management strategies.
🔎 The energy market is changing fast. At Electrex, we believe that monitoring is the foundation of flexibility and efficiency — and the new 15-minute interval is another confirmation of our vision.
🤝 We’re looking to collaborate with partners across Europe who want to leverage this change — reach out to explore opportunities.
📩 Book a meeting here: https://lnkd.in/dNAcqunM
#EnergyTransition #ElectricityMarkets #Flexibility #EnergyMonitoring #Submetering #Electrex
Contact me to schedule a call! I will be glad to answer any questions you may have.
About us
Since 1993 Electrex designs, develops, manufactures and markets, Made in Italy, instruments and software for energy management and control.
The Electrex solutions are used in the Energy Efficiency and Energy Automation applications, for the industrial, commercial, public, civil, and renewable energy sectors allowing a rapid return on investment.
The solutions provided up to now allow the management of over 530,000 measuring points and more than 960,000 points are controlled via Energy Automation applications.
Electrex, one of the first companies to operate in these sectors, has acquired over the years a considerable experience and competence that few other companies can claim to have. With over 40% of the staff dedicated to R & D, we demonstrate our strong commitment to innovation and continuous improvement in order to anticipate the needs of our customers.
Image Attribution: Image by DC Studio on Freepik
