The contribution of renewables to Australia’s largest electricity grid reached a new milestone during the September quarter, according to AEMO’s latest Quarterly Energy Dynamics report.
At the end of Q3 2024, 45.6 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity were progressing through the connection process from application to commissioning, a 36% increase compared to the same time last year.
This capacity included 14.6 GW of battery projects, an 87% increase on Q3 2023.
The third quarter of 2024 also saw a new peak renewable contribution record set on 9 September, when renewable sources supplied 72.2% of total National Electricity Market (NEM) generation.
In this interval rooftop solar led the way with 38.5% of total generation, with grid-scale solar contributing 18.3% and wind contributing 13.4%.
AEMO Executive General Manager Reform Delivery, Violette Mouchaileh, said: “It is promising to see Australia’s energy transition continue with more renewable generation capacity either coming online or progressing.”
A further 2.6 GW of new generation has reached application approval this quarter, with 3.5 GW registered and connected to the NEM and 1.3 GW progressing through commissioning to reach full output.
“AEMO is preparing the grid to run on 100% renewable generation at any one point in time, and this quarter saw total renewable generation available at over 100% of demand on two occasions,” Ms Mouchaileh said.
Ms Mouchaileh said the quarter did have some challenges, in part due to cold snaps in early July leading to demand increases across all NEM regions, with total demand up 3.4% compared to Q3 2023.
“Increased electricity uses during colder weather saw new winter maximum demand records set in Queensland and Victoria during July,” Ms Mouchaileh said.
“Then mild and sunny conditions in August and September, saw demand fall and contributed to new all-time minimum operational demand records in Queensland and New South Wales, along with a new Q3 minimum for Victoria in September.”
Drivers that set the prices last quarter continued in the three months to September. These included reduced hydro generation and network outages, leading to wholesale spot prices averaging $119 per megawatt hour across the NEM.
"Even though wholesale spot prices were lower than in the previous quarter, they were higher than this time last year.”
Colder weather in the early winter contributed to NEM wholesale prices averaging $163/MWh in July, $145/MWh in August before decreasing to $46/MWh in September.
By region, South Australia recorded the highest average quarterly price at $158/MWh followed by NSW ($121/MWh), Tasmania ($112/MWh), Victoria ($104/MWh) and QLD ($100/MWh).
Total east coast gas demand increased by 3% this quarter compared to Q3 2023, driven by higher demand for gas-fired generation (+7 petajoules), while demand for Queensland liquefied natural gas exports also increased (+5 petajoules), setting a Q3 demand record.
The quarter also saw the gas threat or risk notice issued in June, revoked on 23 August thanks to favourable weather conditions toward the end of winter and reduced gas generation demand allowing Iona to start refilling its storage capacity.
In Western Australia's Wholesale Electricity Market (WEM), a 78 MW rise in rooftop solar offset higher underlying demand, which rose 88 MW for the quarter.
Increased rooftop solar in WA, along with higher wind (+90 MW) and batteries (+9 MW) also drove a new Q3 average renewable contribution record of 35.2% for the period – exceeding the previous record of 29.6% in Q3 2022.
Contributing to the higher wind output was increased resource availability and the introduction of a 73.4 MW wind farm, which finalised commissioning in mid Q2.
Additionally, the increased battery contribution can be linked to the second big battery, Collie Battery, entering the WEM. Once fully operational, Collie Battery (stage one) will have a capacity of around 200 MW.
Combined injection from the batteries rose the most during the morning and evening demand peaks.
The batteries also helped keep the power system within its minimum demand threshold during Q3.
Higher rooftop solar contributions observed during the quarter would have led to a new minimum demand record of 538 MW on Sunday 22 September 2024, but battery withdrawals helped push operational demand to 680 MW.
“This highlights the importance of batteries in maintaining system security and reliability during periods of low demand,” Ms Mouchaileh said.
Meanwhile, average electricity prices (excluding frequency controlled essential system service costs fell 10% from $89.18/MWh in Q3 2023 to $80.15/MWh in Q3 2024.
In Western Australia’s domestic gas system, production rose 6% compared to Q3 2023, while consumption remained steady.
ENDS