Italy's solar surge reshaped the country's power market in the summer of 2026 and helped soften price spikes when the sun was strongest, WSP Group wrote for PV Magazine.
But once solar output faded in the evening, gas generation went up and influenced power prices.
Here's what to know
From June through August, Italy produced 13.8 terawatt-hours of solar electricity, up 1.1 TWh from the same period in 2025, according to WSP Group. Over the same period, gas-fired generation rose by 6.4 TWh to 30.4 TWh, lifting its share of the country's power mix from 40.6% to 47.7%.
Italy's summer power squeeze came from rising demand and weaker output from other sources. Electricity use climbed by 5.2 TWh, but hydro and wind together generated 2.7 TWh less than they had in summer 2025.
Hydropower dropped as river levels in northern Italy slumped. The Po hit a record low in late July and flowed at less than one-third of its seasonal norm. WSP Group also stated that average summer temperatures across 12 Italian cities were 3.1 degrees Fahrenheit (1.7 degrees Celsius) higher than in 2025.
Those combined changes opened a 7.9 TWh gap in the power system.
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Across the three-month period, Italy's wholesale reference electricity price averaged €156.5 ($181.61) per megawatt-hour, €45 ($52.22) per MWh higher than in summer 2025.
More background
Solar's biggest effect showed up in the middle of the day. At midday, gas added only 1 gigawatt, compared with 3.7 GW during the evening peak and 4.2 GW overnight.
Instead of disappearing, the system's stress moved into later hours. Relative to summer 2025, prices rose by about €32 (about $37) per MWh at midday, versus roughly €57 (around $66) per MWh in the evening after sundown.
In southern Italy and Sardinia, midday solar output exceeded local demand in roughly one-quarter of those hours. Sometimes, it even drove prices down to zero.
Meanwhile, northern Italy — where more than half of the country's electricity demand is concentrated — remained far less saturated with solar generation.
What can be done?
Over the three months, Italian solar generation was 4.9% above the published day-ahead forecast and outperformed that benchmark on 83 of 91 days.
WSP also hopes its Electricity Market Outlook tool will help people better understand how to manage their solar assets.
Where can I learn more?
Solar's generally doing well at helping people take action to save money on utilities in other places too.
• Across northwest Europe, heat-driven solar surges briefly pushed wholesale electricity prices below zero.
• In the Philippines, soaring power bills sped rooftop solar adoption among cost-conscious households.
• In the United States, policy threats to tax credits sharpened utilities' rooftop-solar battle.
Though there's still a long way to go to make solar even more accessible to people, the clean energy transition might be going faster than you'd think.
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