Five fixes for the NEM
Load shedding in South Australia on Wednesday 8 February and successive ‘close shaves’ in NSW and Queensland as the heatwave spread north have exposed serious weaknesses in the national electricity market (NEM).
guest author
Key Events Timeline – NSW Friday 10 Feb 2017
A summary timeline of how last Friday’s “white knuckle ride” in NSW evolved, highlighting key events on the day.
Examining why Pelican Point didn’t bid full capacity into the NEM on Wednesday 8 February
Some thoughts by our guest author, about possible reasons why Engie did not bid full output of Pelican Point power station into AEMO on Wednesday 8th February (i.e. the time at which load shedding eventuated).
Initial Analysis: SA Load Shedding Wed 8 Feb 2017
A look at the supply/demand fundamentals in South Australia and explaining why load shedding was initiated.
Southern NEM demand awakes from slumber
Hot weather in Adelaide and Melbourne driving an interesting outlook for Thursday
The ‘other’ factors driving price volatility in the NEM
One of the more recent developments we’ve observed in the NEM is the downward trend in gas powered generation, raising concerns as to whether there is more pain to come for east coast industrial consumers.
Overview: NSW & Qld Price Volatility, Monday 6 Feb 2017
Very high demands in NSW and “more of the same” in Queensland saw significant price volatility yesterday, with the two states behaving like one larger NEM region
Overview: Queensland volatility 1-2 Feb 2017
A volatile couple of days in Queensland, with demand response evident
Initial Review: NEM-wide Price Event, Monday 30 Jan 2017
Extremely hot weather in NSW and the NEM’s underappreciated “rail gauge mismatch” contributed to a sharp multi-state price spike during the afternoon peak
Quick Review: $13,800/MWh Queensland spike Mon Jan 30
Quick review of an isolated early morning spike in Queensland
Initial Review: $14,000/MWh Spike in Qld, Fri 27 Jan 2017
A look at last Friday’s short sharp price spike in Queensland and why it led to negative settlement residues on the interconnection with NSW
Review of the NEM in 2016
Electricity consumption in the National Electricity Market (NEM) increased by 0.8% in 2016, this is on top of a 1.1% increase in 2015. Queensland and NSW experienced increases in consumption with all other states experiencing a reduction.
Managing Energy Sector Disruption is Like Delivering a Joke’s Punchline… Timing is Everything
One of the most disruptive impacts on Australia’s electricity system over the past decade or so has been the rapid uptake of air conditioners – a consumer driven response to the introduction of inexpensive products from China.
The new energy ecosystem
Transformation in the electricity industry is occurring at an astounding rate. What’s more, it’s happening globally and Australia is pretty much ground zero. As a result, a new energy ecosystem is emerging. Accenture has recently released three reports which cover different aspects of this new ecosystem. These are the ‘New Energy Consumer’ report, ‘Digitally Enabled Grid’ report and the combined report for the ENA and CSIRO titled ‘Insights from Global Jurisdictions and Evolving Business Models’.
How have weather patterns influenced Victorian electricity demand so far this winter?
Our guest author, Rob Davis, provides insights on how weather patterns are contributing to electricity consumption this winter – particularly in Victoria.
The war for dispatch: Who will control distributed energy?
In today’s energy sector, it is rare to get electricity networks, retailers, generators and system controllers in the same room at the same time. In a deconstructed market about to be transformed by distributed energy, how will decisions be made around how it is dispatched?
Win, lose or draw: Three scenarios for the electricity system in 2030
Cast your mind back 15 years to 2016. You probably don’t remember this, but 15 years ago people still debated whether the growth of distributed energy would fundamentally transform the Australian electricity system.
Victoria’s demand response opportunities analysed
Our Guest Author, Mike Williams, has posted his final piece of an initial series of articles about the opportunities for end users in the mainland regions of the National Electricity Market.
Pool Pass-through and DSM Opportunity and Risks in New South Wales
Mike Williams, our guest author, has returned to post some more analysis on the specifically-focused demand response site about the opportunity and risks with pool price pass-through strategy and DSM in New South Wales.
Assessing the opportunity for Demand Response in Queensland
Our guest author, Mike Williams, has posted some analysis (over on the specially-focused Demand Response site) looking at the benefits of spot exposure and Demand Response in Queensland