Daily guide · ES · 2026-07-17
What solar actually earned per MWh in Spain this week
All numbers computed from the week's published auction results at publication and frozen — this article is an honest snapshot, not a page that rewrites itself. Reproduce via the API.
Solar in Spain captured an average of 72,62 EUR/MWh this week against a baseload of 114,23 EUR/MWh, a capture rate of 0,59. That single number hides an unusually wide spread. The week split cleanly in two: a weekend trough on 11 and 12 July, when capture fell to 27,33 and then 16,22 EUR/MWh at rates of 0,31 and 0,23, followed by a strong recovery that peaked at 107,73 EUR/MWh on 15 July, a rate of 0,78.
What stands out is that the weakest capture came with the highest output. Peak solar reached 26,8 GW on 10 July and 24,3 GW on 11 July, yet the 12th, with 19,5 GW, delivered the lowest capture of the week. More midday supply pushed prices down faster than volume could compensate, the familiar cannibalisation pattern.
The takeaway for the reader: this week, capture was driven by demand and baseload strength, not by how much solar was on the system. When baseload held above 124 EUR/MWh from 13 July onward, capture rates stayed at or above 0,71 regardless of the gigawatts produced.
Solar has a pricing problem it created itself: every panel in ES produces at the same hours, so the more the fleet generates, the lower the price each MWh fetches. The number that captures this is the capture price — the generation-weighted price solar actually earned — and the capture rate, that price as a share of the plain average. Brochures quote the average; revenue arrives at the capture price. This week, measured on real generation and auction data:
72.62
€/MWh solar capture price this week (generation-weighted)
114.23
€/MWh baseload average — the number the brochure quotes
59%
capture rate — what solar keeps of the average price
Day by day
| Day | Capture €/MWh | Baseload €/MWh | Capture rate | Peak solar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-10 | 79.2 | 117.85 | 67% | 26.8 GW |
| 2026-07-11 | 27.33 | 87.32 | 31% | 24.3 GW |
| 2026-07-12 | 16.22 | 72 | 23% | 19.5 GW |
| 2026-07-13 | 88.36 | 124.96 | 71% | 26.5 GW |
| 2026-07-14 | 88.88 | 124.08 | 72% | 25.8 GW |
| 2026-07-15 | 107.73 | 138.11 | 78% | 22.3 GW |
| 2026-07-16 | 100.59 | 135.27 | 74% | 23.6 GW |
Capture = Σ(hourly price × solar MW) / Σ(solar MW), from realized generation (ENTSO-E A75) and published auction results. Sunny days push the rate DOWN — that's the cannibalization.
Why this number runs businesses
If you're valuing a PPA, sizing a solar+storage project, or hedging merchant exposure, the capture
rate — not the average price — is your revenue line. One week is weather noise; the trend is the
signal: GET /v1/capture/ES?technology=solar&months=24
returns two years of monthly capture prices and rates, and
POST /v1/ppa/value backcasts a pay-as-produced PPA at your strike.
Both are on the Scale tier (Pro gets a teaser);
battery owners can flip the same effect into revenue — see the
battery arbitrage guide for what the storage side earned this week.
Method & citation. Prices are hourly means of published day-ahead auction results (native 15-minute periods averaged; ENTSO-E/SMARD, attributed). Wholesale-price component only — grid fees and taxes come on top and vary by supplier. Cite as "Voltcast Research, voltcast.com/guides/solar-capture-es-2026-07-17".
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