RO, HU or SK can act as a neighboring benchmark; PL carries separate friction/blocker context.
Tutorial · cross-border basis
Cross-border basis shows whether the border is squeezing the market, not guaranteed arbitrage.
Basis is the gap between the Ukrainian hourly price and a neighboring EU benchmark. Alvo adds flow direction, JAO capacity and coupling context so a trader sees the corridor constraint, not one tempting price gap.
UA-EU basisJAO capacityA11 flows
Tutorial · cross-border basis
What basis means
UA price minus gateway benchmark. The sign shows pressure, not an executable trade by itself.
ENTSO-E A11 shows what physically moved across the border; it is not the same as available capacity.
The auction layer shows offered/allocated MW and capacity price: corridor scarcity, not energy price.
How to read a corridor
1. Pick the gateway
RO is the primary/open context; HU is frictional; SK is open; PL needs a blocker caveat.
2. Decompose basis
Compare UA price with the gateway benchmark, but keep FX, delivery hour and licence notes beside it.
3. Add flow and capacity
Flow shows physical movement; JAO shows offered and allocated capacity plus scarcity.
4. Finish with guardrails
Coupling timeline, CBAM/carbon wedge and human approval belong before any decision brief.
What not to claim
No guaranteed arbitrage
Even a wide spread does not guarantee capacity, execution, settlement or profit.
No licence leak
NEMO/gateway prices may be internal model inputs; public UI should show only licence-clean or derived signals.
No coupling date promise
The coupling path is legally open, but go-live depends on secondary rules, readiness and operator mechanics.
Tutorial · cross-border basis
Checklist
Corridor read
Minimal sequence before a cross-border conclusion.
1. Pick the corridor: RO, HU, SK or PL. 2. Compare UA DAM with the gateway benchmark. 3. Read A11 flows: what actually moved. 4. Read JAO capacity: what was offered, allocated and scarce. 5. Treat basis as a constraint signal, not a trade instruction.
Fields to inspect
Fields that must not collapse into one spread number.
border.read = {
basis: uaPrice - gatewayBenchmark,
flowDirection: import | export | balanced,
allocatedMw: auction capacity that cleared,
headroomMw: capacity left after scheduled flow,
auctionCost: capacity reservation cost, not energy price
}
decision.guardrails = [
"licence-clean display only",
"human approval",
"no guaranteed arbitrage"
]Tutorial · cross-border basis
Cross-border basis FAQ
Is basis a ready trade?
No. Basis shows pressure between UA and the gateway, but the decision depends on capacity, rights, costs, risk limits and human approval.
How is JAO different from flows?
Flows show what physically moved. JAO capacity shows what was offered/allocated and how scarcity was priced in the auction layer.
Why is Alvo careful with EU prices?
Many NEMO prices carry redistribution limits, so Alvo separates internal model inputs from licence-clean public display.
Want the border next to the forecast?
The workspace combines DAM/IDM, forecast band, cross-border regime and a deterministic decision brief without automatic order submission.