Sometimes the spot price is in the red, so what actually happens to the electricity you consume and produce? 🤔
Negative prices occur when there is too much electricity in the grid. Then there is a risk that the electricity grid will be overloaded with electricity and then the spot prices will be lowered. 📉
When the spot price is negative, you as a customer do not get paid for the electricity you consume. This is because you pay overhead costs for the electricity you use. So the electricity itself is free but the fees for your electricity use still need to be paid as these are not affected by negative spot prices.
The overheads you pay for your electricity use are:
Electricity certificate (at current market price)
Guarantees of origin (at current market price)
Balance responsibility and imbalance costs
Fees for eSett, NordPool and Svenska Kraftnät
Overhead costs for the purchase of electricity
Overhead costs are a cost that all electricity suppliers have. In addition to these costs, you also need to pay network charges to your network company.
When you, who have solar cells, produce electricity during hours with minus prices, you unfortunately have to pay the spot price for the hour that you sell electricity back to the grid. As the electricity grid has too much electricity during these hours, you will therefore be charged for the electricity you sell when there is no demand.