south australia

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Casualties of the energy transition highway – market effects of Torrens Island B retirement

    As part of Australia’s energy transition, investments are being made to ensure sufficient network capacity to host renewable energy generation, share them between regions, and maintain power system security and reliability. One of the interconnectors being built is Project EnergyConnect (PEC), which will provide 800 MW of transfer capacity between...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    Christmas comes early for South Australian battery owners

    The choice of Chart of the week was an easy one following Saturday’s storms that ‘reined’ down on South Australia. The state became isolated from the rest of the National Electricity Market after one of ElectraNet’s pylons, supporting the interconnector between SA and Victoria, was knocked down[1].   The consequence...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    State of Storage: Investigating battery profit for NEM states

    It has been an interesting year for Australian energy markets, facing unprecedentedly high energy prices, coal outages, and market suspension. In today’s Chart of the week, we will investigate the impact a BESS would have made during FY 2022. Using Cornwall Insight Australia’s battery simulation model, we simulated a stand-alone...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    A taste of freedom for renewables with syncons in South Australia

    Today wind capacity in South Australia stands at 2500MW, contributing to almost 40% of the energy generation in the state. This is in addition to utility-scale solar and rooftop PV, which contribute 4% and 15% of total generation in SA, respectively. With such a high level of variable renewable energy...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    State election day chills; SA hit $9,934/MWh on Saturday evening 19 March

    SA’s reliance on wind is getting to a point where there is not much to do except importing from VIC and generating with expensive fuel, such as diesel, when wind speed is not at its best shape. In this Chart of the week, we take a closer look at South...

  • Low carbon generation

    SA on cusp of 100% instantaneous renewables; gas unit directions remain

    AEMO’s goal of handling 100% instantaneous renewable penetration by 2025 is a significant challenge and fitting, given the pace the NEM is moving to support increasingly higher levels of instantaneous (and increasingly asynchronous) renewables regularly. While this challenge may not be as pressing for all NEM regions, the need to...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Back to the Future P-IV: Are P5 Forecasts reliable?

    Is there a correct way to be one step ahead of your competitors? Do you want to be able to know the price before settlement accurately? The P5 Reports supposedly provide this… or do they? Many participants use this data to determine optimal outcomes for their fleets. Still, there is...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Is the NEM going off schedule?

    Is the NEM getting harder to control with rising variable renewable generation and distributed photovoltaic growth? AEMO’s balancing of scheduled supply is critical to ensure the system remains stable and wholesale prices work efficiently. This Chart of the week briefly examines if the NEM is “on schedule” to meet this...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Round and round it goes, where the loop flow stops, nobody knows

    A by-product of how market boundaries are defined, loop flows are phenomena in electricity markets that manifest as flows going in one direction across parts of a network loop and goes the opposite way in other parts of the same network loop. Regardless of whether the market design is nodal...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    Duck, duck, goose: bigger bellies and longer necks

    The last few months have been littered with record low demand in the system, highlighting that the ducks of the NEM continue to arch their backs lower and lower.  In this Chart of the week, we zoom out on the changes to scheduled demand and in the variability of the lowest and...

  • Energy storage and flexibility

    How deep is your love? A look at the depth of negative prices in South Australia

    The recent rise in the frequency of negative wholesale energy prices in the NEM has captured the attention of many market observers. A less-discussed aspect is how deep these negative prices run. How much additional demand could be added to the system during the negative-priced dispatch intervals before the prices...

  • Commercial and market outlook

    I’m pickin’ up good vibrations

    We are just through the first two weeks of 5-minute settlement. While there has been much anticipation regarding the implementation and the potential for drastic swings in prices, we felt it was an excellent time to take a quick look at the pricing outcomes to see if any immediate trends...

  • Low carbon generation

    Australian Chart of the week | SA ducks in the news (again); what about the QLD duck?

    South Australia is back in the news again with the state achieving a world-first on Sunday, October 11, 2020. According to a recent update from the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), between 12-1PM, solar power provided 100% of South Australia’s energy demand - a first in Australia and for any...

  • Low carbon generation

    Australian chart of the week | SA shatters record: lets talk about the elephant in the room…

    As springtime rolls around in the NEM, those with interest in the market are always keeping an eye on South Australia to see just how low operational demand will go and when (not so much if) the record will be broken. This year has not disappointed. On 11 October 2020...

  • Low carbon generation

    Australian Chart of the week | Price-taker to price-setter: The emerging story of wind in SA?

    It is old news that the NEM is undergoing transformational changes in its generation mix. These changes to the fuel mix are having significant commercial impacts in price outcomes in the market. In the last few months, we have seen an unprecedented number of negative price intervals across the NEM....