Trading takes place on two complementary markets – Elspot for day-ahead trading and Elbas for intraday trading. Together they play an essential role in providing a wellfunctioning power market in Northern Europe.

Elspot and Elbas working together

In 2010, 307 TWh was traded through Nord Pool Spot, representing a value of EUR 18 billion. 98-99 percent of this volume was traded on Elspot, the day-ahead market. Still Elbas, the intraday market, plays an essential role in creating the necessary balance between supply and demand. Elspot works as an auction, where prices are set and volumes agreed at 12:00 CET for delivery the next day. However, incidents may take place between these points in time that offset the balance. A power plant may stop operating in Norway, or strong winds may cause higher power generation than planned at wind turbine plants in Denmark. At Elbas, buyers and sellers can trade volumes close to real time to bring the market back in balance, while reducing risk and potentially improve profits for members.

High participation secures a liquid market

Today, there are 350 members at Nord Pool Spot. 100 of these also trade on Elbas. They include the major energy companies in the region, and a number of smaller and local players. This ensures a highly liquid market and good conditions for correct price-setting. The number of members is steadily growing.

See menu at left for information on how to trade and other services provided by Nord Pool Spot.