Press Release (Bucharest, March 19, 2025)

SIDC Nears 15-Minute Market Time Unit (MTU) Completion // Activation of Romanian Borders in Intraday Auctions

The successful rollout of the 15-Minute MTU across nearly all of Europe’s internal bidding zones and interconnectors marks a transformative achievement. Years of collaboration, planning and technical innovation, combined with a carefully coordinated go-live wave approach, has ensured a smooth transition to a near-complete pan-European implementation from 18 March 2025. The Greek borders will go-live in June, due to the Greek requirement that SDAC and SIDC go live on 15-Minute MTU, simultaneously.
This implementation is a testament to the dedication of all involved stakeholders, paving the way for a more dynamic, flexible and tailor-made matching of demand and supply. It strengthens Europe’s ability to meet evolving energy demands and supports a more sustainable future.
The rollout of the 15-Minute MTU in intraday continuous trading and intraday auctions across almost all of Europe significantly boosts market efficiency. Shorter trading periods enable better alignment of generation with consumption, reducing imbalances and improving grid reliability. This leads to improved pricing, better resource allocation and more efficient trading, benefiting market participants and reducing costs.
This transition also enhances market flexibility, allowing participants to respond dynamically within the Single Intraday Coupling. The 15-minute MTU is particularly valuable in accommodating fluctuations from renewable sources like wind and solar, reducing reliance on fossil fuels. Increased flexibility strengthens grid resilience and supports the integration of renewables into the market.
The 15-Minute MTU brings substantial economic benefits, including lower imbalance penalties and reduced adjustment costs. It fosters market liquidity and competition, attracting new participants and energizing market dynamics. Additionally, it aligns with EU objectives for greater harmonization and cross-border cooperation, supporting a more connected and sustainable energy market.
This achievement underscores the SIDC project partners’ commitment to enhancing cross-border collaboration, strengthening grid resilience and advancing the evolution of a flexible, sustainable energy landscape. Since 18 March 2025, a level playing field for all market participants in Europe has come closer to being realized, with the 15-Minute Time Unit now available in almost all European bidding zones and interconnectors.
For further information on SIDC, please visit the ENTSO-E and NEMO Committee websites.

About SIDC:

The Single Intraday Coupling (SIDC) is a market mechanism in the intraday timeframe defined in the CACM Regulation based on continuous trading and complemented by three intraday auctions (so called “IDAs”).
The SIDC continuous trading solution is based on a common IT system with one Shared Order Book, a Capacity Management Module and a Shipping Module. It allows for orders entered by market participants for continuous matching in one bidding zone to be matched by orders similarly submitted by market participants in any other bidding zone within the European Intraday Coupling as long as transmission capacity is available. The intraday solution supports both explicit allocation (where approved by the respective National Regulatory Authorities) and implicit continuous trading. It is in line with the EU Target model for an integrated intraday market.
In addition, SIDC IDAs allow for the pricing of cross-border capacity in the intraday timeframe. IDAs are implicit auctions where collected orders are matched, and cross-zonal capacity is allocated simultaneously for different bidding zones, determining clearing prices for each bidding zone.
European-wide intraday coupling is a key component for completing the European Internal Energy Market. With the rising share of intermittent generation in the European generation mix, connecting intraday markets through cross-border trading is an increasingly important tool for market parties to keep positions balanced. The purpose of the SIDC is to increase the overall efficiency of intraday trading.
For additional information on SIDC go to:
http://www.nemo-committee.eu/sidc
https://www.nemo-committee.eu/ida
https://www.entsoe.eu/network_codes/cacm/implementation/sidc/
https://www.entsoe.eu/network_codes/cacm/implementation/ida/