REMIT breach: Estonian Competition Authority fines Futugrid for manipulating the electricity market

The Estonian Competition Authority, Konkurentsiamet, has fined Futugrid Technologies OÜ €16,000 for manipulating the balancing energy market by placing a non-genuine bid (i.e. a bid that was not intended to be executed), which sent misleading signals to the market. 

This is the Authority’s first decision on market manipulation under REMIT (Article 5) and remains subject to appeal.

The REMIT Regulation prohibits market manipulation, including sending false or misleading signals, to protect the integrity and transparency of the EU’s wholesale energy markets.

What happened?

On 31 March 2025, Futugrid offered its capacity on the Baltic balancing capacity market (where providers are paid to remain available for the subsequent balancing energy market), and its offer was accepted. This obliged it to submit a corresponding energy bid for delivery on 1 April 2025.

To fulfil this obligation, Futugrid submitted a bid for manual Frequency Restoration Reserve (mFRR), a reserve that grid operators activate to keep the system in balance. The bid was for 1 MW of downward balancing energy (used when there is a surplus of electricity on the grid), covering the market time unit from 12:00 to 12:15 on 1 April 2025. Futugrid set a very low price (-9,999 €/MWh), with the aim of avoiding activation. The bid was nonetheless activated and directly set the marginal balancing price for that period.

The Estonian Competition Authority found that the bid was not genuine, as Futugrid priced it to avoid activation while still meeting its obligation. The Authority concluded that the bid sent a misleading signal to the market and directly influenced price formation, constituting market manipulation in breach of REMIT.

For more information, access the Estonian Competition Authority’s press release (in Estonian).

See the latest table of REMIT breach sanction decisions adopted by national regulatory authorities.

Check the ACER REMIT Guidance (6.1^st edition) for more information on trading practices that could constitute market manipulation under REMIT.

Interested in further information on enforcement decisions under REMIT? Check out ACER’s REMIT Quarterly reports.