Trading volumes on EPEX SPOT power exchange hit new record high in 2021

(Corrects date in headline to 2021)

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Prompt electricity trading volumes on Europe's EPEX SPOT exchange hit a record high in 2021, up 1.1%, as the geographical area it serves expanded, it said in a statement.

Spot electricity trading for much of western Europe on the 12-year old exchange increased to 621.5 terawatt hours (TWh) last year from 614.8 TWh in 2020, Paris-based EPEX SPOT said in a statement.

Europe's biggest power market, Germany, last year saw 562 TWh of power usage.

Power markets last year were hit by unprecedented price rises, reflecting the need for investment in generating capacity, the bourse said.

The bourse last year launched a Polish day-ahead market and after-market products in Belgium and the Netherlands, and will in the second quarter add spot auctions for Guarantees of Origin (GOs) that certify renewable electricity production.

Germany, Luxembourg, France, Belgium, the Netherlands and Austria are the largest markets on the exchange, setting benchmarks in day-ahead trading.

The intraday market - for delivery within a day - is a smaller but much faster-growing area, supported by the spread of renewable energy capacity.

Day-ahead volumes were up 1.1% and intraday volumes rose by 10.9% in the twelve months.

EPEX SPOT said it has added 28 new members, bringing its total number to 308.

(This story corrects date in headline to 2021)

(Reporting by Vera Eckert; Editing by Jan Harvey)