In the European Union's electricity wholesale markets, energy is traded across large bidding zones, which, in most cases coincide with national borders: the so-called zonal markets. Within each market zone, energy flows are supposed to be free of transmission constraints. However, in some cases transmission constraints exist, implying an inefficient mismatch between demand and supply in different areas where the zonal market holds. Does transition to a more homogeneous multi-zonal market change equilibrium prices by facilitating a better balance between demand and supply when transmission constraints hold? We answer this question, by testing if the market re-configuration from one bidding zone to four zones, together with the commitment to not limit export with the neighboring countries, which took place in Sweden in November 2011, implied a change in prices. We perform a Regression Discontinuity in Time (RDiT) to compare change in prices in the four zones of Sweden. We find that, after November 2011, electricity prices increase across all zones with a stronger effect in southern Sweden.

中文翻译：

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招标区重新配置对电价的影响：来自瑞典的证据


在欧盟的电力批发市场中，能源在大型招标区之间进行交易，在大多数情况下，这些招标区与国界相吻合，即所谓的区域市场。在每个市场区域内，能量流动应该不受传输限制。然而，在某些情况下，存在输电限制，这意味着在区域市场所在的不同地区，供需之间的不匹配效率低下。在输电限制存在的情况下，过渡到更加同质的多区域市场是否会通过促进供需之间更好的平衡来改变均衡价格？我们通过测试市场从一个投标区重新配置到四个投标区，以及 2011 年 11 月在瑞典做出的不限制与邻国出口的承诺，是否意味着价格的变化来回答这个问题。我们执行时间不连续回归 （RDiT） 来比较瑞典四个区域的价格变化。我们发现，2011 年 11 月之后，所有区域的电价都上涨，瑞典南部的影响更大。