The story. Europe's solar fleet flexed last week — Germany produced 426 GWh of solar electricity on April 8, and France hit 136 GWh the next day, both records for any single day in April. The surge helped drag wholesale electricity prices down across most of the continent, with Germany's daily average touching just €3.04/MWh on April 6.

The bigger picture. To grasp how big those days were, consider the baseline. Germany generated 89.62 TWh of solar in 2025 (Ember), which works out to about 245 GWh on an average day — meaning the April 8 record was roughly 74% above typical output. Solar is now Germany's third-largest electricity source behind wind (136 TWh) and coal (103 TWh). France's solar fleet is far smaller at 31.82 TWh (Ember, 2025), since nuclear dominates at 392 TWh, but its record day still exceeded its daily average by more than half. The price effect matters: wholesale electricity markets rank power plants from cheapest to most expensive, and solar — which has no fuel cost — enters at the bottom. When enough of it floods the grid, it pushes gas and coal plants out of the running, pulling prices toward zero. Falling gas prices amplified the effect — TTF futures hit €43.64/MWh on April 10 (AleaSoft), the lowest since late February.

The tension. Record solar days slash daytime prices but intensify the swing — prices are expected to climb this week as demand rises and wind output falls. Cheap midday power means little if evening peaks remain expensive.