How much does a solar park earn on the frequency markets? Real numbers from 10 MW

How much does a solar park really earn on the frequency markets? Take an example from Volton's own portfolio: ten solar parks, one megawatt each, 10 MW in total. In spring 2026 they earned about €46,700 in two and a half months. What matters more than the total is where the money comes from.

Nearly 77% of the income — €35,900 — came not from selling energy but from the capacity market. There Elering pays the park to be ready each hour to change its output if needed, even when it is never actually called. Per MW that was over €20,000 a year, from an existing grid connection and without adding any new panels.

The remaining 23% came from selling energy and varied a lot — near zero on most days, €6,700 on the best. One Estonian rule affects this directly: renewable support is not paid in hours when the spot price is negative. The park then has no reason to produce and reduces its output. That controllable reduction is the flexibility sold on the mFRR market.

To reach the market a park needs Elering prequalification, at least about 1 MW, and daily bids on the mFRR market. A single park usually does not do this itself. Volton pools parks into one reserve group, handles qualification, and submits bids every day. The park never becomes a balance service provider (BSP); Volton takes an agreed cut of the revenue (typically 10%) and the rest goes to the owner.