- At 4:40pm (AEST) Saturday 12 November, South Australia disconnected (islanded) from the National Electricity Market (NEM).
- ElectraNet, South Australia’s transmission network owner, confirmed that a fallen transmission tower on the Tailem Bend - South East 275 kilovolt (kV) transmission line caused both circuits to trip, separating South Australia from the NEM. There was significant storm activity in the area at the time.
- ElectraNet is investigating the extent of the damage and will provide an estimated restoration time.
- AEMO can confirm that South Australia’s transmission network remains in a secure operating state, with no related impacts to consumers’ electricity supply from the fallen tower.
- Updates will be provided as additional information becomes available.
- In addition, with South Australia islanded from the NEM and high rooftop solar PV exports forecast, AEMO has issued a market notice declaring Distributed PV Contingency (DPVC) conditions in South Australia today.
- AEMO has taken action to maintain system security, such as recalling planned transmission maintenance outages, increasing electricity demand by directing scheduled load into service or curtailing large-scale generation.
- However, these measures have not been sufficient to manage the risk of major supply disruptions. Therefore, the curtailment of commercial, industrial and residential solar generation is required as a last resort to maintain grid stability.
- So far, these actions have maintained the South Australian transmission network in a reliable and secure operating state.
For further information, please read:
- AEMO Contingency and Minimum System Load fact sheet and Q&As
- South Australian Government Smarter Homes program