At a macro perspective, the following snapshot from NEM-Watch(beta of version 9) clearly shows a significant drop in electricity from brown coal power stations in Victoria and South Australia, compared to what would typically be the case.
Thankfully the temperatures have dropped, also, and so demand in Victoria is considerable lower than the levels seen late last week – otherwise the tight supply/demand conditions of a few weeks ago could have been repeated.
Paul was one of the founders of Global-Roam in February 2000. He is currently the CEO of the company and the principal author of WattClarity. Writing for WattClarity has become a natural extension of his work in understanding the electricity market, enabling him to lead the team in developing better software for clients.
Before co-founding the company, Paul worked as a Mechanical Engineer for the Queensland Electricity Commission in the early 1990s. He also gained international experience in Japan, the United States, Canada, the UK, and Argentina as part of his ES Cornwall Memorial Scholarship.
We noted yesterday, in the midst of the excitement, that the previous NEM-wide demand record had been beaten, by virtue of the heatwave assaulting VIC and SA over the day. We spoke too soon, however, as demand continued to climb through the afternoon.
Here’s an animated view of how price volatility emerged in the Queensland region of the National Electricity Market emerged on 20th December 2012 – and the range of factors that contributed.
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