Solar Energy Solutions for Producers

Solar's role is growing. Its market position is changing too

Solar has become an increasingly important part of Europe's electricity mix. That growth changes the commercial environment in which solar assets operate.

Your production is concentrated in daylight hours and strongly correlated with other solar assets. As installed capacity grows, high solar output can increasingly coincide with low or negative wholesale prices. The commercial question therefore shifts from simply maximising production towards protecting the value of each generated MWh.

Your contract determines how much market opportunity remains

A long-term fixed structure can create revenue predictability, while greater market exposure can preserve opportunities to respond to price movements.

The right balance depends on the asset, financing structure, subsidy position and appetite for market risk. There is no single route-to-market structure that is optimal under all market conditions.

Your production increasingly coincides with low prices

Solar parks naturally produce at similar times. As solar capacity increases, large volumes enter the market simultaneously and can push daytime prices down.

The consequence is that your realised price can develop differently from the average electricity price. Asset performance therefore depends increasingly on the value captured during your actual production hours.

Negative prices change the production decision

Periods of abundant renewable generation and limited demand can result in negative wholesale prices. The IEA reported that negative prices occurred during 8–9% of wholesale hours in the Netherlands and Germany in the first half of 2025.

For producers, continuing to generate is not automatically the most attractive commercial decision during every negative-price period. Contract structure, subsidies, imbalance exposure and flexibility options all influence the right response.

Grid congestion can restrict feed-in

A technically productive solar park can still face commercial restrictions when the local grid cannot accommodate all available generation.

This makes grid position increasingly relevant to asset strategy. Controlled curtailment and, where appropriate, storage can create alternatives to simply accepting an uncontrolled restriction.

Forecast deviations create imbalance exposure

Solar output can change quickly as weather conditions develop. Differences between forecast and actual production affect the volume that needs to be corrected or settled in the market.

Accurate forecasting and active imbalance management therefore matter alongside the price achieved for the electricity itself.

Your contract determines how much market opportunity remains

A long-term fixed structure can create revenue predictability, while greater market exposure can preserve opportunities to respond to price movements.

The right balance depends on the asset, financing structure, subsidy position and appetite for market risk. There is no single route-to-market structure that is optimal under all market conditions.

More solar makes capture price increasingly important

Solar continues to expand within the European electricity system. More simultaneous generation can deepen the difference between average market prices and prices realised during solar production hours.

What this means for you: assess your route-to-market strategy against the actual production profile of your asset, not only against baseload market prices.

Flexibility is becoming part of solar asset management

Negative prices and wider intraday price spreads make the ability to change production or shift energy in time more commercially relevant.

What this means for you: curtailment and storage should be evaluated as part of the commercial strategy around the asset rather than only as technical measures.

Solar and storage are moving closer together

A battery can separate the moment electricity is generated from the moment it reaches the market. This creates opportunities to respond to price spreads, grid constraints and flexibility markets.

What this means for you: for suitable projects, the economics of a solar park increasingly need to be considered together with the potential value of co-located flexibility.

Markets reward responsiveness, not only output

Day-ahead trading remains important, but changing forecasts and market conditions continue after the day-ahead position has been established.

What this means for you: forecasting, intraday decisions and flexibility can increasingly influence realised asset value.

Our take

“The best solar strategy is no longer simply to produce every available MWh

The value of solar is increasingly determined by when electricity reaches the market, what that electricity is worth at that moment and how the asset can respond when conditions change.

That requires an integrated approach. Route-to-market, forecasting, imbalance management, price strategy, curtailment and storage should not be assessed independently.

For solar producers, flexibility is becoming part of commercial asset management.”

Market access and asset optimisation come together

Offtake, balancing and flexibility can form part of one commercial strategy instead of being managed as isolated activities.

Scholt operates as a Balance Responsible Party

Scholt's PPA proposition includes its BRP role, forecasting and imbalance management, reducing the need for producers to build these market capabilities internally.

Flexible assets can connect to the VPP

Scholt's VPP connects renewable generation, batteries and other flexible assets and coordinates them against relevant market and grid signals.

In-house technology supports optimisation

Scholt Energy uses in-house algorithms to manage flexible assets and connect renewable generation, storage and other flexibility within its VPP approach.

What happens to my solar production during negative electricity prices?

That depends on your contract, subsidy position and flexibility arrangements. Continued production is not always the most attractive option. Where technically and contractually possible, controlled curtailment can be considered against the value of continuing to generate.

Does a PPA protect me against all electricity price risk?

No. The risk allocation depends on the PPA structure. Price, volume, profile, imbalance and other risks need to be assessed separately. The appropriate structure depends on your asset and commercial objectives.

Can I combine a PPA with flexibility services?

Potentially, yes. Scholt's existing PPA proposition allows flexibility to be integrated where the producer grants the relevant rights and technical and market conditions permit it.

When does curtailment make commercial sense?

Curtailment can be relevant when the expected value of continued generation is lower than the value of reducing output, or when grid conditions require a response. The calculation depends on prices, subsidies, contract terms, imbalance and any available flexibility compensation.

How important is forecasting for a solar park?

Forecasting determines the expected market position of your production. Differences between forecast and actual output can create imbalance exposure, making forecasting and imbalance management important parts of route-to-market performance.

Can Scholt optimise a battery next to my solar park? Scholt supports energy storage and connects batteries to energy and balancing markets through its energy management and VPP capabilities. Whether a co-located configuration is commercially and technically suitable depends on the specific connection, battery and contractual structure.

Do I have to replace my existing commercial structure to use flexibility? Not necessarily. Compatibility depends on the rights and responsibilities in your current agreements. The existing offtake, balancing, subsidy and control arrangements need to be reviewed before flexibility can be integrated.

Take action

Discuss the changing value of your solar production

Your solar park has its own production profile, contract structure, grid position and flexibility potential. We can assess these together and identify where market access, offtake and active optimisation can strengthen your commercial approach.

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Protect the value
of your solar production

Bij Scholt staan diversiteit, gelijkheid en inclusie centraal. Verschillende perspectieven versterken onze cultuur en stimuleren innovatie. Zo creëren we een omgeving waarin iedereen zich welkom voelt en samen kan groeien.

Solar capacity is growing, but more generation does not automatically mean more value. When solar parks produce at the same time, prices can fall just when your output peaks. Scholt Energy helps you bring production to market and respond more intelligently to changing price and grid conditions.

Preferred energy partner of

Solar's role is growing. Its market position is changing too

What puts the value of your solar asset under pressure?

What is changing for solar producers?

Our take

“The best solar strategy is no longer simply to produce every available MWh

The value of solar is increasingly determined by when electricity reaches the market, what that electricity is worth at that moment and how the asset can respond when conditions change.

That requires an integrated approach. Route-to-market, forecasting, imbalance management, price strategy, curtailment and storage should not be assessed independently.

For solar producers, flexibility is becoming part of commercial asset management.”

How Scholt Energy helps

Why solar producers work with Scholt Energy

What others ask

Discuss the changing value of your solar production

Read about projects and energy
market developments here

Green gas blending obligation: what does this mean for your organization?

Scholt Energy welcomes new CEO Martijn van Lieshout

Power grid imbalance: what is it?

Protect the value of your solar production

Bij Scholt staan diversiteit, gelijkheid en inclusie centraal. Verschillende perspectieven versterken onze cultuur en stimuleren innovatie. Zo creëren we een omgeving waarin iedereen zich welkom voelt en samen kan groeien.

Solar capacity is growing, but more generation does not automatically mean more value. When solar parks produce at the same time, prices can fall just when your output peaks. Scholt Energy helps you bring production to market and respond more intelligently to changing price and grid conditions.

Preferred energy partner of

Solar's role is growing. Its market position is changing too

What puts the value of your solar asset under pressure?

What is changing for solar producers?

Our take

“The best solar strategy is no longer simply to produce every available MWh

The value of solar is increasingly determined by when electricity reaches the market, what that electricity is worth at that moment and how the asset can respond when conditions change.

That requires an integrated approach. Route-to-market, forecasting, imbalance management, price strategy, curtailment and storage should not be assessed independently.

For solar producers, flexibility is becoming part of commercial asset management.”

How Scholt Energy helps

Why solar producers work with Scholt Energy

What others ask

Discuss the changing value of your solar production

Read about projects and energy market developments here

Green gas blending obligation: what does this mean for your organization?

Scholt Energy welcomes new CEO Martijn van Lieshout

Power grid imbalance: what is it?

Protect the value
of your solar production

Read about projects and energy
market developments here