Sunday 26 July 2026
Trading day 2026-07-26
Queensland price volatility contrasts with steady demand peaks across the NEM
Regional pricing showed significant divergence as South Australia and New South Wales averaged $103.70/MWh and $95.90/MWh respectively. In contrast, Queensland, Victoria, and Tasmania remained lower, with Victoria recording the minimum regional average of $65.30/MWh despite no negative price intervals.
Aggregate demand was driven by evening peaks, led by New South Wales at 10,531 MW and Queensland at 7,634 MW. Total system energy requirements were met primarily by black and brown coal, while combined solar and wind assets provided 25.9% of the mix.
Batteries discharged 17,312 MWh to the grid, though the fleet remained a net consumer with a total balance of -666 MWh. FCAS costs were dominated by the Raise Regulation service in New South Wales, which totaled $34,870 for the day.
Total emissions reached 375,226 tonnes of CO2, representing a 7.6% increase compared to the same day last week. Interconnector flows saw significant movement from Victoria into South Australia and from New South Wales into Queensland.
Today · Forecasts indicate a price peak of $319.04/MWh in Queensland at 19:30, while other regions expect maximums between $61.84/MWh and $145.00/MWh.
Why it matters · The daily average of $76.10/MWh sits 28.4% above the weekly mean, breaking a four-day trend of declining prices. This shift occurred as high emissions growth coincided with Queensland's frequent negative intervals, suggesting localized surplus during daylight hours despite rising aggregate costs.
Prices
Trading day · 04:00 → 04:00 AEST · 30-min average
| Region | Avg | VWAP | Min | Max | Neg | Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | $96 | $99 | $51 | $144 | 0 | 0 |
| QLD | $67 | $76 | -$5 | $175 | 98 | 0 |
| SA | $104 | $107 | $52 | $144 | 0 | 0 |
| VIC | $65 | $69 | $2 | $132 | 0 | 0 |
| TAS | $68 | $69 | $0 | $119 | 0 | 0 |
Min · Max are 5-minute dispatch extremes; the price chart plots 30-minute averages, so its peak reads lower.
Demand
FCAS
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $4,929 | 0 | $13 | 26 July, 21:00 |
| LOWERREG | $613 | 0 | $4 | 26 July, 04:35 |
| RAISE6SEC | $188 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:45 |
| RAISE60SEC | $135 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:40 |
| LOWER60SEC | $108 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:50 |
| LOWER5MIN | $97 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 14:50 |
| RAISE5MIN | $56 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 08:25 |
| LOWER6SEC | $39 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:55 |
| Total | $6,166 | |||
Cost = NSW RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $6,095 | 0 | $13 | 26 July, 21:00 |
| LOWERREG | $1,805 | 0 | $4 | 26 July, 04:35 |
| RAISE6SEC | $376 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:45 |
| RAISE60SEC | $209 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:40 |
| LOWER60SEC | $178 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:50 |
| LOWER5MIN | $59 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 14:50 |
| RAISE5MIN | $56 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 08:25 |
| LOWER6SEC | $45 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:55 |
| Total | $8,822 | |||
Cost = QLD RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $8,030 | 0 | $13 | 26 July, 21:00 |
| LOWERREG | $2,298 | 0 | $4 | 26 July, 04:35 |
| RAISE60SEC | $249 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:40 |
| RAISE6SEC | $248 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:45 |
| LOWER60SEC | $144 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:50 |
| RAISE5MIN | $81 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 08:25 |
| LOWER5MIN | $62 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 14:50 |
| LOWER6SEC | $32 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:55 |
| Total | $11,144 | |||
Cost = VIC RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $7,124 | 0 | $13 | 26 July, 21:00 |
| LOWERREG | $1,939 | 0 | $4 | 26 July, 04:35 |
| RAISE6SEC | $333 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:45 |
| RAISE60SEC | $242 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:40 |
| LOWER60SEC | $221 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:50 |
| LOWER5MIN | $149 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 14:50 |
| LOWER6SEC | $85 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:55 |
| RAISE5MIN | $81 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 08:25 |
| Total | $10,173 | |||
Cost = SA RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $8,692 | 0 | $5 | 26 July, 05:05 |
| LOWERREG | $2,048 | 0 | $3 | 26 July, 18:45 |
| LOWER60SEC | $3 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:50 |
| RAISE6SEC | $0 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:45 |
| RAISE60SEC | $0 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 17:40 |
| RAISE5MIN | $0 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 08:25 |
| LOWER6SEC | $0 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 13:55 |
| LOWER5MIN | $0 | 0 | $0 | 26 July, 14:50 |
| Total | $10,743 | |||
Cost = TAS RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
Battery dispatch
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 1,398 MW at 19:30 as NSW spot hit $130/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 1,464 MW at 18:30 as QLD spot hit $119/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 764 MW at 19:00 as VIC spot hit $114/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 347 MW at 19:00 as SA spot hit $116/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 3,722 MW at 19:00 as TAS spot hit $103/MWh.
Fleet net dispatch · spot-price overlay · 30-min average
Regional dispatch ranking
| Region | Discharged | Net |
|---|---|---|
#1NSW | 7,429MWh | +357 |
#2QLD | 5,350MWh | -917 |
#3VIC | 2,921MWh | -689 |
#4SA | 1,611MWh | +584 |
Generation Mix
- Coal68.0% · 141.3 GWh
- Gas0.6% · 1.2 GWh
- Hydro3.7% · 7.7 GWh
- Wind3.9% · 8.2 GWh
- Solar (utility)8.9% · 18.5 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)10.7% · 22.2 GWh
- Battery3.6% · 7.4 GWh
- Other0.6% · 1.3 GWh
- Coal60.6% · 118.5 GWh
- Gas4.2% · 8.2 GWh
- Hydro2.5% · 4.8 GWh
- Wind3.7% · 7.2 GWh
- Solar (utility)12.3% · 24.0 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)14.0% · 27.3 GWh
- Battery2.7% · 5.3 GWh
- Coal69.2% · 112.0 GWh
- Gas1.1% · 1.8 GWh
- Hydro5.4% · 8.7 GWh
- Wind13.9% · 22.4 GWh
- Solar (utility)2.9% · 4.7 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)5.8% · 9.3 GWh
- Battery1.8% · 2.9 GWh
- Gas52.4% · 15.0 GWh
- Wind13.4% · 3.9 GWh
- Solar (utility)7.0% · 2.0 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)19.6% · 5.6 GWh
- Battery5.6% · 1.6 GWh
- Other2.0% · 0.6 GWh
- Gas8.2% · 3.4 GWh
- Hydro69.5% · 28.6 GWh
- Wind20.8% · 8.6 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)1.4% · 0.6 GWh
Renewables
- NSW 27.1%
- VIC 31.6%
- QLD 39.1%
- SA 33.6%
- TAS 120.8%
Interconnectors
| Region (proxy) | Net flow | Direction changes | Hours at limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| N-Q-MNSP1 | +32.6 GWh | 6 | — |
| NSW1-QLD1 | −44.1 GWh | 6 | — |
| VIC1-NSW1 | +19.6 GWh | 10 | — |
| V-SA | −22.4 GWh | 6 | — |
| T-V-MNSP1 | +20.1 GWh | 0 | — |
Per-region net of NETINTERCHANGE proxied to a representative interconnector. Full per-interconnector decomposition + hours-at-limit needs DINTERCONNECTOR parsing (follow-up).
Emissions
| NSW | 123.8k tCO₂ | 0.586 tCO₂/MWh |
| QLD | 108.0k tCO₂ | 0.545 tCO₂/MWh |
| SA | 7.4k tCO₂ | 0.253 tCO₂/MWh |
| VIC | 134.0k tCO₂ | 0.830 tCO₂/MWh |
| TAS | 2.0k tCO₂ | 0.050 tCO₂/MWh |