Europe’s electricity industry is sounding the alarm over what it sees as counterproductive political interference in power markets. The Eurelectric Presidency has written directly to EU heads of state and government, urging them to stop reopening the marginal pricing debate and warning that regulatory uncertainty risks undermining the investment needed to deliver affordable, secure, and decarbonised power.
The intervention comes after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signaled that fresh options on electricity market design would be brought to the European Council. EU leaders had “intense discussions” on the electricity market design law at an informal gathering in Alden Biesen, particularly on the merit order system, which uses the most expensive resource as the price-setting mechanism. In 2025, renewables cost €24 per megawatt/h, nuclear €52 per megawatt/h, while gas sat at €100 per megawatt/h.
Industry groups say the solution isn’t market redesign. WindEurope warned that reviewing the electricity market design would freeze clean energy investments and only entrench Europe’s overreliance on expensive, volatile fossil fuel imports, pointing to 2022 as a precedent when politically driven market interventions ground wind energy investments to a halt.
The broader message from energy players is consistent: politicians should resist short-term temptation. Long-term investment signals, not emergency interventions, are what Europe’s energy system urgently needs.
