Elektroprivreda Srbije used the period of negative electricity prices for
portfolio optimization – said Davor Pupovac, EPS Director of Market Analysis
and Risk Management in Electricity Trading, at RES Serbia 2026 Conference “The
New Electricity Market Architecture – from Generation to System Flexibility” Panel.
When prices are negative, everything depends on the portfolio
position. A significant volume of energy was purchased at negative prices,
which was particularly common during April and May. Later on, negative prices also
appeared on SEEPEX – said Pupovac.
He highlighted that the period of extremely low, and
even negative, prices was the result of specific market conditions in the first
quarter, including favourable hydrology and energy surplus in the region
created due to CBAM. According to him, it was precisely that surplus that led
to further decline in prices during the first quarter.
Pupovac highlighted that EPS strived to take advantage
of market conditions to optimize its portfolio management, including procuring electricity
during the periods of very low prices.
Speaking about trading and optimization opportunities,
he stressed the impact of CBAM on the regional market.
We would prefer CBAM not to exist, as it would allow
us to optimize our position across several markets. Sometimes we optimize our position,
sometimes we need to buy. CBAM has created a situation in which market
liquidity is no longer what it used to be, and price differences between
markets are no longer as significant, reducing opportunities to buy at low
prices and sell at high prices – said Pupovac and added that such situation further
demonstrated how important flexibility and ability to manage different energy
sources were.
He pointed out that market coupling is important for
future portfolio balancing, particularly bearing in mind the growing share of
variable renewable energy sources.
We hoped for market coupling, the integration of
regional markets, as we would be able to integrate an even greater share of
variable renewable energy sources into our portfolio – said Pupovac.
He concluded that current market conditions were
complex and that long-term price trends were difficult to predict, but that EPS
wished to maintain an active role at the market and continue developing portfolio
capable of meeting the growing demands for system flexibility.
