The European Power Exchange EPEX SPOT operates physical electricity markets for the largest trading community in Europe, with over 400 companies connected to its platforms. Committed to innovation, EPEX SPOT delivers a full range of services across the value chain of electricity trading, with the highest standards of performance. During 2024, volume on the EPEX Day-Ahead reached 654 TWh and trading activity on the EPEX Intraday amounted to a total of 215 TWh. [1]
From electricity producers and suppliers to grid operators and industrial consumers, traders come together and place their orders on EPEX SPOT’s markets. The Exchange then matches the aggregated supply and demand, in Day-Ahead and Intraday auctions and continuously, from hourly to 15-minute products.
By doing so, EPEX SPOT creates price signals which trigger decisions on all levels of the power system and optimise electricity flows across Europe. Further, they contribute to the transformation and decarbonisation of the energy sector and to the EU Green Deal via markets and contracts that foster the increasing integration of renewables.
EPEX SPOT’s markets stretch across Central Western Europe (CWE), Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the Nordics and Poland. Staff from over 30 nations, based across 6 countries form a team where everyone can build on each other. The diversity is crucial, as EPEX SPOT’s markets run 365 days a year around the clock – even during the difficult times of the COVID-19 pandemic and the energy price crisis of 2021 and 2022.
EPEX SPOT’s teams share a common understanding of how to further improve as well as a crisp, clear idea of their mission. As an Exchange, EPEX SPOT does more than to match electricity supply and demand, they also contribute to security of supply for millions of people, increase social welfare and enable lower electricity prices – from industries to end consumers across Europe.
From Day-Ahead with physical fulfilment to Intraday trading, After-Market, Local Flexibility products, capacity trading and a spot auction for GOs – EPEX SPOT is a key partner in electricity trading, boosting innovation and providing a truly pan-European offer across the entire trading value chain.
[1] Please note that volumes are calculated by using the common industry standard in electricity and exchange business: For auction trading, the one-sided Market Clearing Volume is listed. For continuous trading, the aggregated sell & buy volume is divided by 2.
Day-Ahead markets: the reference
EPEX SPOT offers Day-Ahead trading in thirteen European countries. Day-Ahead markets are operated through a blind auction which takes place once a day, every day of the year. The traded electricity is delivered on the next day. Apart from Switzerland and Great Britain, all markets are part of the Multi-Regional Coupling (MRC) which stretches across 19 markets from Portugal to Finland and from The Netherlands to Italy. All auction markets of EPEX SPOT run on the ETS trading system, a robust and reliable trading platform.
Intraday markets: the performant industry leader
The Intraday market segment at EPEX SPOT offers both continuous and auction trading in thirteen European countries. All continuous Intraday markets of EPEX SPOT run on the M7 trading system, with the highest standards in terms of performance and reliability. These markets are by far the most liquid in Europe. EPEX’ Intraday market offer:
- Most liquid orderbook in Europe from opening to delivery time, running 24/7 to support the most advanced trading strategies
- Highest performing Intraday continuous trading system (M7) with more than 10,000,000 orders submitted every day
- Multiple contract types offering finer granularity and increased flexibility
- Versatile, performant and standardized API services for order submission and results retrieval
- Wide range of Intraday auctions allowing you to further optimise your Intraday portfolio while benefitting from a robust reference price
Intraday continuous
All our Intraday Continuous markets run on the M7 trading system powered by Deutsche Börse AG, used across Europe and recognized as the industry-standard in terms of performance and reliability, supporting the most advanced trading strategies.
Intraday auctions
EPEX SPOT offers a full suite of Intraday auctions in CWE, the Nordics, Poland, Great Britain and Switzerland. The Exchange has been a front-runner by launching in 2014 the very first Intraday auction in Europe for 15 minutes contracts, in Germany. Since then, we have expanded our Intraday auctions in 13 countries – with a total traded volume reaching more than 16 TWh in 2023.
In 2024, all EPEX European Intraday auctions were coupled in the SIDC pan-European framework. There are SIDC Intraday auctions in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Norway, Poland, and Sweden.
Innovation: After-Market, Localflex and multilateral GOs auctions
EPEX SPOT strives to constantly create, innovate and find new solutions for the emerging challenges of a transforming power sector. They decentralise, digitise and decarbonise the energy trading sector – to remain one of Europe’s preferred power exchanges.
With the increase of intermittent production from renewables, hourly contracts can only draw a rough picture of the actual production curve. This is why already in 2011, EPEX SPOT introduced 15-minute contracts on its continuous Intraday markets. In 2014, the first Intraday auction with quarterly contracts of the following day was launched. Due to its timeframe just at the start of the continuous market at 3 pm, this Intraday auction provides a reliable price signal with regards to the production of electricity from renewables.
After-market trading
The After-Market provides additional flexibility to market participants by allowing trading after delivery. Contracts are available for trading as of the physical delivery of the contracts until the next trading day through the unique EPEX SPOT M7 continuous trading system. It enables the adjustment of your physical positions in the ex-post timeframe, thus reducing costs related to imbalance settlement. In the Netherlands, After-Market allows market participant to further optimize in case of dual pricing for imbalance settlement.
Local Flexibility markets
To foster the integration of renewable energy sources and to enhance the engagement of consumers and producers in the power market, EPEX SPOT develops Local Flexibility markets. A neutral and transparent market platform pools local flexibility offers. Market participants gain new opportunities to value their flexible assets; system operators obtain new tools to manage congestions and optimise grid planning.
Since 2017, EPEX SPOT has advanced its role in developing neutral and transparent flexibility markets to balance electricity demand and supply. Through pilot projects like Enflate, it gained expertise in managing local grid congestion and peak loads. Furthermore, Localflex fosters the integration of renewable energy sources and increases the engagement of consumers and producers in congested grid areas such as Great Britain, where EPEX SPOT has established a partnership with UK Power Networks, the leading electricity distributor in London, the South East and East of England. So far, more than 100,000 live assets have been connected to the Local Flexibility Market. This illustrates the scale of the potential that Local Flexibility markets bring to System Operators (SOs) based on a performant system solution.
Guarantees of Origin (GOs)
For more and more end consumers, it’s increasingly important to know where their electricity comes from, and if possible, to make a choice to switch to renewable energy completely. However, since one cannot distinguish the source of an electron once it is injected into the network, European legislation came up with a green label called Guarantees of Origin (GOs) to enable the tracking of the origin of renewable electricity. The GOs tracking system brings major benefits, the most important one being that GOs allow consumers to be certain that the energy they use stems from renewable energy sources.
To meet the market’s demand for more trading standards, increased transparency and robust price signals, on 28 September 2022, EPEX SPOT successfully launched the first monthly GOs spot auction. This new market facilitates safe and seamless GOs trading across Europe, while satisfying the variety of needs for specific or generic GOs. The innovative market design optimally pools a wide range of generic and specific needs of market participants – fostering market liquidity to enshrine the use of GOs and support the acceleration of the energy transition.
In February 2025, EPEX SPOT increased its pan-European Guarantees of Origin (GOs) auctions to two per month to meet market demand. In total, more than 300 GWh was traded by the 70 registered participants. Since the launch of the GOs market in September 2022, more than 10 TWh have been sold on the auction, becoming the biggest multilateral spot market for GOs trading in Europe.
Services to other Power exchanges
As part of their mission to create a pan-European electricity market, servicing other Power Exchanges is part of EPEX SPOT’s business model.
Market operation and coupling services in Eastern Europe
The Hungarian Power Exchange HUPX provides transparent and reliable reference prices for the Day-Ahead market in Hungary, serviced by EPEX SPOT. This cooperation contributes to the harmonisation of the trading and clearing systems in Europe, facilitating further regional integration of the Eastern European electricity market. The South East European Power Exchange SEEPEX currently offers Day-Ahead trading in Serbia. EPEX SPOT provides market operating services to SEEPEX. In December 2022, EPEX SPOT announced the go-live of the Alpine-Adriatic Danube Power Exchange – ADEX, the first regional power exchange for Central and South-Eastern Europe. Its founding members are ELES, EMS, and EPEX SPOT. ADEX was established in the way of corporate merging between BSP South Pool and SEEPEX, with the company’s headquarters in Ljubljana and main permanent offices in Ljubljana and Belgrade. The newly founded ADEX will offer harmonized one-stop-shop spot power trading services in Slovenia and Serbia, with the ambition to extend business to other countries in the Central and South-Eastern European (CSEE) region.
The first Day-Ahead market in Montenegro was launched on 26 April 2023 by the Montenegrin Power Exchange MEPX. EPEX SPOT provided a full suite of services to MEPX to achieve this go-live, followed by ongoing support in operating the auction.
A further project in the Balkan region has been the launch of a brand-new power market in North Macedonia on 10 May 2023. EPEX SPOT supported its partner Macedonia Electricity Market Operator (MEMO) through the full suite of system delivery, market and IT operations services. BSP South Pool, the Slovenian Power Exchange, provides clearing services to market participants in North Macedonia.
The geographical location of the country makes it a great candidate to connect with the pan-European Single Day-Ahead Coupling (SDAC). The rest of Europe would also benefit from such a connection, as a larger community of interconnected countries means higher resilience.
Servicing the integrated single Electricity market in Ireland
EPEX SPOT and ECC were chosen to support the Irish transmission system operators EirGrid and its affiliate SONI to set up the new local power exchange SEMOpx, which operates coupled Day-ahead and Intraday markets in Ireland since 30 September 2018. ECC performs clearing and settlement for all transactions concluded on SEMOpx.
Governance
EPEX SPOT is a European company (Societas Europaea) in corporate structure and staff, based in Paris with offices or affiliates in Amsterdam, Berlin, Bern, London and Vienna. As part of EEX Group, a group of companies serving international commodity markets, EPEX SPOT is committed to the creation of a pan-European power market. 49% of its equity is held by HGRT, a holding of transmission system operators.
Launch of Localflex market in the Netherlands
Launch of Intraday offer in Poland, launch of new weather indices in cooperation with Speedwell climate, successful start for pan-European spot auction for GOs
Launch of Day-Ahead market in Poland (now 13 countries in total), Intraday to follow soon; launch of After-Market in Belgium and the Netherlands
Launch of Day-Ahead & Intraday markets in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden (12 countries in total); Launch of 15- and 30-minute Intraday auctions across Central Western Europe
Launch of cross-border Intraday auctions in Switzerland, coupled with the Italian market; launch of pilot project for local flexibility markets in Northern Germany
Launch of the European Single Intraday Coupling, covering 14 countries; launch of services for Irish market
Launch of 30-minute contracts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
Launch of French capacity market
Merger with APX, EPEX SPOT covers also Belgium, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (8 countries in total)
Extension of Market Coupling to North Western Europe (Nordic and Baltic countries) and South Western Europe (Spain and Portugal); launch of the first 15-minute Intraday auction in Germany
Launch of Intraday market in Switzerland
Launch of Intraday market in Austria
Launch of the first 15-minute contracts on the German Intraday market
Launch of Market Coupling in Central Western Europe
Creation through merger of power spot activities from German EEX and French Powernext; covered markets: France (Day-Ahead & Intraday), Germany (Day-Ahead & Intraday), Austria (Day-Ahead) and Switzerland (Day-Ahead)
