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The day-ahead spot index for power in Finland was registered at €243.73/MWh on 20 August (clambered from €102.25/MWh), which was significantly higher than the index recorded on March 6, i.e., at €150.51/MWh (the highest recorded in 2023 preceding the August 20 index). Finland has been swinging high on the prices of electricity, witnessing a notable hike on August 18 at €118.52/MWh again to surge on August 19 at €120.51/MWh.

Prices for the next-day hourly delivery reached highs of €549.95/MWh for Monday, while intra-day market transactions peaked at €999/MWh for delivery between 08:00-09:00. At the point this was written, intra-day prices surpassed next-day prices for most of the day.

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The recent surge in power prices is mainly due to reduced nuclear power output in Finland. Specifically, from 17 August to 21 August, nuclear generation decreased from 4.14GW to 2.76GW. There were two primary reasons that could be pinned down for the aforementioned. First, the 890MW Olkiluoto 2 reactor had an unexpected shutdown on 18 August, which is now expected to last until 28 August. Secondly, the 507MW Loviisa 2 nuclear reactor is scheduled for maintenance from 20 August to 6 September.

Compounding the situation, onshore wind energy also dropped significantly. It dipped to a mere 88MW on 20 August (its lowest in four days) but rose slightly to 217MW the following day. This is a steep drop from its output of 1.75GW between 16-17 August. However, gas-fired power generation stayed fairly stable. It even saw a slight rise from 169MW in the first 18 days of August to 183MW on 19-20 August. There was a hiccup with a gas turbine in Finland which might keep the gas production subdued on Monday, but it's anticipated to be fixed by day's end.

Interestingly, the combined output from coal and peat-fired plants surged to 570MW on 21 August, the highest since 6 April. This surge occurred as coal-fired plants started operating for the first time since 21 June. Hydroelectric power also saw an uptick, averaging around 2GW from 18-21 August, compared to 1.61GW from 14-17 August.

Furthermore, Finland's net power imports from Sweden averaged 1GW from 18-21 August, showing no power being sent from Finland to Sweden during 19-21 August. This is a significant increase from the 432MW average of net imports recorded from 14-17 August, even with some interconnector maintenance taking place.

Looking ahead, the power system in Finland might remain strained. The Olkiluoto 2 reactor will be offline, and there's limited import capacity from Sweden. Wind energy projections for 21-25 August are also modest, with forecasts between 201-428MW, indicating load factors of just 4-8%.

According to Procurement Resource, power prices in Finland have uprisen palpably, reaching €243.73/MWh on August 20 from a previous €102.25/MWh. Several factors contributed to this escalation: drop in nuclear power output; sharp decline in wind energy production; and increased reliance on coal and peat-fired plants. Additionally, Finland's reliance on electricity imports from Sweden has grown. With ongoing challenges, especially in nuclear and wind energy, the tight power situation is expected to persist.