In its preliminary report, ACER proposes to use eleven market indicators in its final effects report due on 1 March 2023. These indicators cover across three areas: prices, flows and trades.

ACER welcomes stakeholder feedback on these indicators, and in particular on the following questions:

• Are there any potential effects that could be triggered by the MCM, and early warning signs that should be monitored, that have not been identified in this ACER report?
• Are there any indicators that you consider relevant for assessing the effects of the MCM that have not been discussed in this ACER report?
• Are there any other points which you consider relevant to improve the ACER report on the effects assessment of the MCM that is due on 1 March?

Interested parties should send their feedback on the indicators by Monday, 6 February 2023, to MCM_effects@acer.europa.eu.

See the ACER preliminary MCM report. 

Among the main trends identified in 2022 and the first half of 2023:

• The extreme wholesale gas price rises during 2022 can be primarily attributed to the Russian supply shock. However, it was the resilient demand for gas, driven upwards by above-average storage injections, that caused prices to clear at record-high levels;
• Since the end of 2022, the demand-supply balance in the gas market has improved due to a combination of rising liquified natural gas (LNG) imports and a decrease in demand, effectively compensating for the loss in Russian pipeline flows;
• This improved balance has resulted in a reduction in gas prices, which are now approaching pre-crisis levels. However, supply is overall still tight exposing prices to unexpected developments. China’s LNG demand remains an important factor for EU gas prices going forward;
• The significant price spreads between Northwest European (NWE) and South European hubs during the summer of 2022, caused by limited access to NWE, have returned to normal levels, due to increased LNG import capacity;
• Gas trading activity has increased in recent weeks due to more favourable prices and reduced margin requirements.

Access the Key developments in EU gas wholesale markets – 2023 Market Monitoring Report.

See the underlying dataset.

Dive into our interactive dashboard and explore the evolution of price and demand supply metrics for the period 2015 to 2023.

• The EU's integrated gas system showed a certain resilience against the energy crisis. Yet, the severe supply shock led to highly congested access to LNG terminals and pipelines, causing price surges, hub price disparities and trading disruptions.
• After the 2022 shock, the European gas market supply and demand balance improved thanks to consistent imports of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) and a significant decreased gas demand. This resulted in gas prices to trend closer to pre-crisis levels.
• Global gas supply overall is still tight, exposing prices to unexpected developments. China’s LNG demand recovery remains an important influencing factor on EU gas prices going forward.
• The report highlights the lasting impact of the Russian supply shock on the EU energy market and the steps done to overcome the supply dependence. It draws some lessons for the future around the EU gas markets’ future resilience factors: increased EU reliance on LNG; reducing gas demand; revenue redistribution; and the enhanced security of supply role of underground storages.
  • European gas prices will be more exposed to global competition and hence will be more volatile.
  • The reduction in conventional gas demand shall assist the EU’s decarbonisation goals. Yet, it needs to be done smoothly in order to preserve the economic activity and the security of supply that gas offers to the EU’s energy system.

Access the ACER-CEER European gas market trends and price drivers report.

Dive into ACER’s interactive dashboard and explore the evolution of price and demand supply metrics for the period 2015 to 2023.

Missed our webinar? Check out the slides and watch the recording.

The report also provides a series of recommendations, including:

• A list of possible targeted support measures that Member States could opt for in the future.
• The need to enhance monitoring and simplify access to information, so consumers can be more engaged, even in rapidly evolving market situations.
• The requirement for comparison tools covering the entire market to meet the standards set by EU law. It is key that consumers are able to understand their bills and are in a position to take informed decisions about their energy consumptions.

Access the 2023 energy retail and consumer protection MMR.

See the corrigendum.

Access the report's infographic.

Missed our webinar? See the slides and watch the recording.

What are the main findings?

• Current production of renewable and low carbon gases is modest relative to future policy expectations;
• Production goals have been accelerated as a result of the supply diversification efforts due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022;
• Numerous challenges are being identified that may hinder the expansion of decarbonised gases and hydrogen production, including the need for:
  • improving infrastructure interconnections,
  • developing greater end-use demand,
  • new infrastructure investments; and
• Energy regulators see the need to clarify the regulatory, financial and technical aspects in time to ensure gas sector decarbonisation and clean hydrogen sector development.

Key recommendations

The Report includes a set of recommendations on how to facilitate the access of decarbonised gases to the market and how to strike a balance between enabling a decarbonised gases market and ensuring regulatory certainty. 

The main regulatory recommendations can be grouped into six areas:

• Technical rules – quality of gas must be defined;
• Market rules – access to networks should be facilitated;
• Access conditions – appropriate tariffing arrangements needed;
• Participation – identification of the appropriate bodies to undertake new roles needed;
• New investments – frameworks must be defined;
• Support – early phase technologies need to be identified.

Access the Decarbonised Gases Volume.

The report looks at:

• gas market developments and the drivers of the unprecedented gas price rise,
• the level of competition and gas market functioning using mainly the metrics in the ACER Gas Target Model,
• the positive effects on markets of the implementation of the gas Network Codes.

It has a set of recommendations:

• to speed up a single Internal Gas Market in Europe,
• to secure gas supplies for Winter 2022 and hedge price exposure amid the challenging market circumstances.

The main findings of the 2021 Gas MMR are:

1. Record high EU LNG imports (mostly from the US) and falling gas demand are (so far) offsetting the lower Russian pipeline flows in 2022.

2. Markets expect gas prices to remain high in the coming months driven by concerns regarding supply.

3. The EU gas market delivers benefits in terms of trade, innovation signals and security of supply. The focus is on finding policy responses to secure supply (e.g. filling storage, diversification of supply etc.).

Access the report.

Missed our webinar? See the presentation and the recording.

Some main findings:

1. Retail energy prices started an upward trend at the end of 2021, these price increases to continue during 2022 and into 2023.
2. Electricity and gas price increases will put a greater number of consumers at risk of energy poverty.
3. Supplier bankruptcies have resulted in less choice in the market for energy consumers.
4. Consumers have demonstrated a preference for fixed price contracts. However, suppliers will struggle to offer such contracts at competitive prices in 2022 and likely into 2023.

See the report.

Missed our webinar? Watch the recording here!

Overall, there is considerable scope for grid operators to reduce market entry barriers to new and small market participants, including small-scale demand response, in providing balancing services.

• Electricity balancing prequalification approaches differ significantly across Member States (MSs) and across balancing products.
• Only a few TSOs apply a simplified approach to product prequalification for some balancing products on a general basis.
• Prequalification of groups of units is still not possible in some MSs. Moreover, where it is possible, some TSOs do not allow generation and consumer/demand units to be aggregated in the same group. This may represent an entry barrier for new market participants that aggregate multiple types of units (e.g. EVs, solar PV panels, household consumers, etc.).
• In the first-time prequalification of groups comprising small units (e.g. EVs, solar PV panels, household consumers, etc.), a few TSOs still require each individual unit to prequalify separately. On the contrary, some TSOs make simplifications or exceptions to simplify and speed-up the prequalification of these groups.
• There is considerable room for TSOs to simplify the re-prequalification of groups when they are subject to changes in units such as add-ons and removals. Some TSOs limit the need for this re-prequalification to only significant changes.

The ACER study showcases some practices that could be considered by TSOs to improve and simplify the product prequalification process for new and small market participants, including demand response:

• Setting a product prequalification for groups aggregating any type of technology;
• Setting a threshold for re-prequalification only after significant changes in prequalified units or groups;
• Using type-approval for small units;
• Verifying the compliance of assets to technical requirements during the service delivery rather than before.

Access the ACER Study.

Check out the interactive charts (filter by country or balancing service).

ACER finds progress in short-term electricity market integration but forward market liquidity remains modest. The main wholesale electricity market integration trends identified in 2021:

• Moderate increases in levels of cross-zonal capacity where Net Transfer Capacity calculations apply, consistent with ACER's 70% monitoring report;
• Progress in the integration of EU markets in day-ahead, intraday (instrumental for the large scale integration of renewable energy resources) and in particular balancing markets;
• A European platform for operating the imbalance netting process was achieved (24 June 2021). The platform coordinates ‘imbalance netting’, a process optimising the use of frequency restoration reserves among Transmission System Operators (TSOs);
• Although forward market liquidity generally decreased in 2021, liquidity remained stable in day-ahead markets, and continued increasing in intraday markets. Overall, intraday liquidity has been increasing steadily since 2019; and
• TSOs need to make a further 40% of cross-zonal capacity on electricity interconnectors available to meet the minimum 70% target.

Access the ACER progress report on European wholesale electricity market integration.

What were the main monitoring trends in wholesale electricity markets in 2021?

• Recovery of the electricity demand was driven by the economic recovery. This led to a series of changes in generation technologies. Coal was more used compared to 2020 to meet increased demand. As a result, generation from fossil fuels did not decrease in 2021. Generation from renewables was above fossil fuels for the second year in a row and new renewables installed capacity kept on increasing, contributing to the energy transition.

• A sharp increase in coal generation took place due to the economic recovery driving demand and high gas prices, partially hampering renewables generation growth.

• The well-known sharp increase of electricity wholesale prices in all countries contributed to reinforce coal usage and fostered a debate on consumer protection and empowerment. To different degrees, all European countries have been affected, especially those dependent on gas for a large portion of their electricity generation.

• A constant increase of negative Day Ahead electricity prices compared to pre-pandemic values brings into focus the need for storage and demand side response, and on the importance of consumer empowerment.

Access the report.

Generation from renewables was above fossil fuels for the second year in a row and new renewables installed capacity kept on increasing, contributing to the energy transition.

Check the evolution of generation from renewable energy sources compared to fossil fuels by selecting the years 2020 and 2021.

Select the years 2016 - 2021, and see how the installed capacity from renewable and conventional generation technologies has changed over the years.

Access the dashboard.