Electricity prices in Finland are climbing sharply this evening, marking the highest levels of the year. From 19:45 to 20:00, the spot price will reach about 71.8 cents per kilowatt hour, VAT included.
The increase comes after a sudden fall in wind power generation and a rise in demand as the weather turns colder. Market figures show that the price will stay above 70 cents for most of the evening, remaining high from 19:30 until just after 20:15.
The rise begins around 18:45 when rates climb to 53.5 cents per kilowatt hour. By 21:15, the price is expected to ease down to just above 31 cents.
The average daily rate will settle near 24.8 cents per kilowatt hour, a big jump from earlier this week. On Monday, the average was 7.6 cents, and on Sunday it was barely 0.14 cents. Until today, October’s average stayed close to 6.7 cents, roughly the same as in September.
The steep rise has one main cause. Wind power production, which on Monday supplied several thousand megawatts to the grid, has fallen sharply. On Tuesday evening, generation will drop to a few hundred megawatts.
At 20:00, output is expected to reach around 850 megawatts, which is about half the capacity of a single nuclear reactor at the Olkiluoto power plant.
One reason these price swings are more noticeable this month is the new 15-minute pricing system introduced across Finland and other parts of Europe at the start of October. Before the change, electricity prices were set by the hour. Now they are calculated every 15 minutes through a Europe-wide auction run by Nord Pool.
Each day, energy producers and buyers submit their bids before midday. The market’s algorithm sets prices based on supply, demand, and how much electricity can be transmitted across borders.
Some suppliers still make hourly bids, while others use 15-minute periods. This difference may be increasing volatility in short-term market prices.
The sharp evening price surge will mostly affect consumers on variable-rate contracts linked to the spot market. These customers pay directly according to the wholesale price set in real time. While the system helps balance supply and demand, it also exposes users to sudden increases when wind power drops or demand spikes.
Energy experts say such patterns could become more common during colder months, especially when wind production weakens across the Nordic region.
Finland’s power market continues to show how dependent it is on renewable output. The fall in wind power this week has quickly pushed spot prices to record highs. As the new quarter-hour pricing structure settles in, consumers and suppliers alike are adjusting to sharper, faster changes in cost throughout the day.
