Heatwave and Low Winds Push Dutch Power Prices Higher

Dutch power prices rose this week to 81.61 €/MWh, up 40% from last week . Strong solar generation — in line with the climate average for the Netherlands and above climate average in Germany — was not enough to offset weak wind output and high temperatures across Western Europe. Heat levels reached 30–33 °C in the Netherlands and Germany, lifting cooling demand, while parts of France saw temperatures reaching above 40 °C, forcing nuclear reactor curtailments at sites (like Tricastin 3+, St. Laurent 1+ and many more ) due to overheated river water. Additionally, Gravelines 2, 3,4 and 6 also had an unexpected outage after the filter drums of their pumping stations became packed with a massive and unpredictable swarm of jellyfish. The resulting market tightness pushed evening peak prices above 200 €/MWh on two consecutive days for Netherlands, with a peak of 275 €/MWh at hour 20 on 14 August, 2025. Despite conditions resembling early July, when Dutch prices spiked to 517.57 €/MWh, the latest surge was capped by fewer outages and lower demand due to the August holiday period.