Germany’s Electricity Market in Q1 2026: More Renewables, Lower Wholesale Prices – Net Exporter Again for the First Time Since 2023
Berlin (Germany) – In the first quarter of 2026, the German electricity market showed a clear shift: renewable energy accounted for more than half of electricity generation, while wholesale prices declined significantly. For the first time since the end of 2023, electricity exports once again exceeded imports. Germany thus became a net exporter again.
Germany’s electricity market Q1 2026: renewables expand, offshore wind reaches record level
Net electricity generation increased by 7.0 percent in the first quarter of 2026 to 126.0 TWh, marking the highest Q1 value since 2023 and the strongest growth since 2021. Renewable energy sources supplied 66.5 TWh and achieved a share of 52.8 percent, up from 49.4 percent in the same quarter of the previous year.
Onshore wind remained the most important single energy source with 33.1 TWh (+22.8 percent). Offshore wind reached a new quarterly record of 9.7 TWh (+45.4 percent). Solar power remained stable at 11.5 TWh and achieved the second-highest feed-in level ever recorded in a first quarter. Among conventional energy sources, only natural gas increased, rising to 22.5 TWh (+5.8 percent). Lignite fell to 20.1 TWh (-5.0 percent) and hard coal to 10.7 TWh (-3.0 percent).
Electricity consumption (grid load) rose by 1.9 percent to 127.2 TWh, reaching the highest level since the first quarter of 2022. At the same time, residual load declined by 8.5 percent to 72.9 TWh, as wind and solar covered a larger share of grid demand than in the previous year.
Germany’s electricity prices Q1 2026: wholesale prices below EU average, higher volatility in March
The average day-ahead wholesale price fell by 8.7 percent to €102.17/MWh, placing it below the average of neighboring European countries (€105.43/MWh). The main drivers were the high feed-in from renewable energy and lower gas prices during the first two months of the quarter.
Market volatility remained high, though its structure changed: the number of 15-minute intervals with prices above €300/MWh dropped from 60 to 12. The peak price reached €429.36/MWh on March 4. The number of negative-price 15-minute intervals remained nearly stable at 172.
From the end of February onward, the Iran conflict led to rising gas prices and stronger price volatility. Electricity generation from gas-fired power plants fell in March to 4.6 TWh, compared with 9.8 TWh in January and 8.0 TWh in February. At the same time, 8 of the 12 extreme price spikes above €300/MWh occurred in March.
Germany again a net exporter in electricity trade: foreign trade turns positive
In the first quarter of 2026, Germany exported 17.9 TWh of electricity (+23.5 percent), while imports fell to 15.3 TWh (-17.5 percent). This resulted in net exports of 2.6 TWh. Germany therefore exported more electricity than it imported for the first time since the fourth quarter of 2023.
A key factor was Germany’s more favorable price development compared with neighboring countries. This increased demand for German electricity abroad, while imports became less attractive for German utilities. Austria remained the largest customer with 4.1 TWh. Exports to Denmark (+113.4 percent) and Norway (+530.9 percent) grew particularly strongly, while France imported significantly less electricity from Germany (0.6 TWh).
The share of renewable energy in electricity exports rose to 57.1 percent, up from 54.7 percent in the same quarter of the previous year. Onshore wind accounted for the largest share of renewable export volumes. The share of renewable energy in imports also rose slightly year-on-year to 50.2 percent.
Source: IWR Online, May 05 2026