Summer 2008-09 to date
Given that the holidays are now over (for most of us) and we're returning back to "normal" life, we thought it would be a good time to provide a brief overview of what's happened...
high regional demand
Record summer demand in NSW yesterday!
NSW experienced a record summer demand on Thursday 15th January, driven by high temperatures across the state. The extreme weather experienced in NSW followed the extreme weather that swept across South Australia and Victoria...
A hot day in SA yesterday, and prices soared!
Just as had been forecast, Tuesday 13th January 2009 saw hot, dry weather roll in across South Australia, and then into Victoria. The high temperatures caused demand to climb, but not to the level...
A hot day in QLD today!
High temperatures in Queensland drive demand up on New Year's Eve.
VOLL Pricing on 23rd July 2008
It appears that we spoke too soon when we mentioned on the 22nd July that winter 2008 had been relatively uneventful. Just over 24 hours from making these comments, we saw prices jump sky-high...
NSW winter peak demand forecasts
Our Managing Director spoke at the "Australian Energy & Utility Summit 08" in Sydney on Tuesday 22nd July 2008, touching on a number of issues including the nature of peak demand forecasts (for winter...
Volatility in the market over winter 2007
Our Managing Director spoke at the "Australian Energy & Utility Summit 08" in Sydney on Tuesday 22nd July 2008, touching on issues including the extremes of price volatility that were experienced over winter 2007.
Our review of the heat wave in South Australia
With demand soaring, and interconnectors constrained, generators in South Australia and Victoria took what opportunity they had to force the price high. So successful were the South Australian generators that the Cumulative Price Threshold...
March 2008 – Massive Heat-Wave hits SA & Victoria
In March 2008 (after summer had officially ended) South Australians were forced to endure a record 15 straight days of temperatures climbing above 35ºC. Victorians also experienced extreme heat for a number of days....
22nd and 23rd February 2008 – a rare hot spell in Queensland
In Queensland we experienced one of the mildest summers I can remember. As a result of this, demand levels were subdued for most of summer. However, for a couple of days in late February,...
8th December 2006 – high demand in South Australia
There was a temperature-driven spike in demand in South Australia on Friday 8th December 2006. However, demand also spiked on other days in the week, and on those occasions did not lead to the...
7th December 2005 – high demand in Queensland and NSW
For several days in early December, temperatures reaching 40 degrees in Queensland and New South Wales cause airconditioning load (and hence total demand) to soar in both regions. The high demands resulted in very...
21st November 2006 – demand spike in NSW
There was a temperature-driven spike in demand in NSW on Tuesday 21st November 2006. These sweltering temperatures combined with bushfires to cause localised blackouts in the Sydney city area, as reported in the Sydney...
Winter 2002 – Generator Market Power
From the start of the NEM through until 2001, the NEM was typified by a pricing dichotomy with sustained rock-bottom pricing in NSW, Snowy and Victoria and high and volatile pricing in the extremities...
26th January 2006 – high demand and price in Victoria and SA
There was a high level in demand in Victoria on Thursday 26th January 2006. This was especially remarkable, considering that it was an Australia Day public holiday - when commercial (though not industrial or...
2nd February 2006 – price spike in NSW and Queensland
This week saw a new record demand in NSW of 13,292MW on Thursday 2nd February. Correspondingly, average prices were above $100/MWh in both NSW and Queensland - but the price spikes did not transfer...
24th February 2006 – price spikes in Victoria
Demand in Victoria peaked again, bringing with it high prices in Victoria and (to a lesser extent) South Australia. Indeed, the demand experienced in Victoria (on Friday 24th February) exceeded the previous high level...
Weekly summary of events in Summer 2005-2006
Summer 2005-06 saw Australians sweltering in temperatures 40 degrees and above. In the National Electricity Market, this led to new peaks in demand and (given the tight supply/demand balance) delivered high (and volatile) spot...
30th December 2005 – huge NEM-wide demand on a holiday!
In a week which is traditionally very subdued in the market, the NEM sweltered in temperatures in excess of 40 degrees and an exceptional NEM-wide demand (about 30,000MW) was recorded. What made this demand...