Written by: Fatma Younis
Dr. Cansu Unal Ungoren, a board member of Regis Electricity, confirmed that the implementation of the hourly clearing system in the electricity sector could lead to a slowdown in the pace of investment in renewable energy projects intended for self-consumption.
The impact of the hourly clearing system on investors
Ungoren explained that the transition to calculating production and consumption on an hourly basis is part of the regulatory alignment process, noting that the old system relied on monthly settlement of production and consumption for solar, wind, and hydropower plants, whereas the new system requires evaluation for each hour separately.
She added that this change creates challenges for facilities whose consumption times do not match the peak production times, especially solar energy which is concentrated during the day, which raises new questions for investors in the unlicensed energy sector and directly affects their economic decisions.
Price expectations and consumption support
Regarding future trends, she pointed to the possibility of reducing electricity consumption support limits in the coming period, which may drive consumers towards more rationalization, while ruling out new increases in electricity prices due to the diversity of energy sources and the level of natural gas storage filling.
On the European front, she expected the upward trend in natural gas prices in European markets to continue, amid indicators of renewable electricity production growth at annual rates ranging between three and five percent despite the regulatory challenges facing investors in this vital sector.
