RTE Consolidates FR-BE and FR-DE Annual Auctions into Single Flow-Based Auction for 2027

RTE announced that for delivery year 2027, annual transmission capacity on the France-Belgium and France-Germany borders will be allocated through a single unified annual auction, replacing the previous two-auction structure (a mid-year early auction and a year-end auction). This change is driven by the go-live of the Flow-Based long-term capacity calculation methodology across the Core Capacity Calculation Region.

The shift from a split two-auction annual allocation process to a single Core-wide unified auction represents a structural change in how forward cross-border capacity is allocated on two major French interconnectors, coordinated across all Core TSOs rather than bilaterally. This affects capacity holders' hedging strategies, timing of capacity acquisition, and liquidity distribution across the forward curve, while integrating these borders into the broader Flow-Based long-term capacity framework already used elsewhere in Core.

This event marks the extension of Flow-Based long-term capacity calculation to FR-BE and FR-DE borders, consolidating what were previously two separate annual auction events (mid-year and year-end) into one Core-wide auction scheduled for late 2026. Market participants who previously could split their annual hedging activity across two windows will now face a single allocation point, concentrating both counterparty competition and price discovery into one auction. Because the auction will be organized jointly by all Core TSOs rather than bilaterally by RTE and its neighboring TSOs, this also signals tighter multi-TSO coordination on long-term capacity products, likely harmonizing FR-BE/FR-DE allocation timing and rules with other Core Flow-Based borders. The lack of detail on auction modalities (to be published later) introduces near-term uncertainty for participants planning 2027 delivery-year hedges.

Core Capacity Calculation Region Flow-Based long-term capacity methodology (specific legal instrument, e.g. CACM-derived methodology, not detailed in source)

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