In Finland and across Europe, the electricity market moved to 15-minute settlement periods on October 1, 2025. After the change, the market price of electricity varies every 15 minutes instead of hourly. On this page, we clearly explain what quarter-hourly pricing means in practice and how it may affect your electricity contract.
What changed and why?
In Finland and across Europe, the electricity market moved to 15-minute settlement periods on October 1, 2025. After the change, the market price of electricity varies every 15 minutes instead of hourly. The change is driven by EU regulation and the need to better align the electricity market with the current production structure, where variable generation such as wind and solar power plays a greater role than before.
Quarter-hourly pricing makes the electricity market more precise and helps balance electricity production and consumption more efficiently. At the same time, electricity consumption monitoring can become more accurate, down to 15-minute intervals.
How does quarter-hourly pricing work?
The market price of electricity is published in 15-minute intervals. If the price is viewed on an hourly basis, the hourly price is calculated as the average of the four quarter-hour prices within that hour. On a monthly basis, the monthly price is calculated as the average of all quarter-hour prices during the month.
In practice, this means that fluctuations in electricity prices may be reflected more precisely throughout the day than before. However, instead of focusing on a single 15-minute period, it is usually still better to look at longer, lower-cost time periods.
Will this affect my electricity contract?
All of Hehku’s exchange-based electricity contracts will move to quarter-hourly pricing starting June 1, 2026. The change applies to all customer groups (consumers, businesses, and production sites), regardless of the metering method. Going forward, the price of electricity will be determined in 15-minute periods instead of hourly periods. The change does not affect the contract margin or the fixed monthly fee. It will take effect automatically and does not require any action from the customer.
My meter does not support 15-minute readings. Do I need a new electricity meter?
You do not order the meter yourself. If you need information about your electricity meter or want to confirm your meter’s upgrade schedule, please contact your electricity network company directly. There is a transition period for meter upgrades until the end of 2028. Current hourly meters will continue to operate normally on an hourly basis despite the move to 15-minute metering. You will continue to receive electricity as usual, and pricing will in practice be based on the average price for the hour.
To fully benefit from quarter-hourly pricing, the metering point must have an electricity meter that supports 15-minute readings. If the metering point has a meter suitable for 15-minute metering, consumption can be monitored at 15-minute intervals and billing can be based on actual quarter-hourly consumption.
Do I need to do anything as a customer?
No. The move to quarter-hourly pricing does not require any action from customers. Your electricity contract will continue as normal, and any product-specific changes will be communicated separately.
If you need information about your electricity meter or want to confirm your meter’s upgrade schedule, please contact your electricity network company directly.
How should I monitor my electricity consumption going forward?
Quarter-hourly pricing brings more data points to electricity price fluctuations than before: during one day, there are 96 prices instead of the previous 24. This can provide additional benefits հատկապես to those who use automation or actively schedule their consumption. In practice, however, it is still advisable to monitor longer low-cost periods rather than individual 15-minute intervals.