  The interconnected European Electricity Markets see considerable cross-border
trade between different countries. In conjunction with the structure and
technical characteristics of the power grid and its operating rules, the
corresponding commercial flows translate into actual physical flows on the
interconnection lines. From the interplay of different physical, technical, and
economic factors thus emerge complex spatiotemporal power flow patterns. Using
Principal Component Analysis, in this contribution hourly time-series of
cross-border physical flows between European countries in 2017 and 2018 are
analyzed. The most important patterns in the time series of imports/exports and
cross-border physical flows are identified. Their spatial and temporal
structure, as well as their contribution to the overall variance is described.
Additionally, we apply a tracing technique to the overall flow patterns, which
allows identifying the physical power transfers between European countries
through the common grid infrastructure.
