Monday 24 August 2026
Trading day 2026-08-24
NEM daily prices rise as coal contributes half of total generation
Regional average prices remained relatively tight between 55.2 dollars in Queensland and 68.2 dollars in South Australia. Queensland and New South Wales were the only regions to experience negative pricing, each recording six intervals during the day.
Demand across the NEM peaked during the evening period, with New South Wales reaching 9,437 megawatts at 18:05. South Australia and Queensland both saw their maximum demand levels at 18:30, contributing to a synchronized evening ramp across the mainland.
Renewable energy sources achieved an instantaneous peak of 70.3 per cent at 12:30, supported by a combined solar contribution of 20.3 per cent. Wind generation remained steady at 19.9 per cent, while batteries discharged 18,389 megawatt hours to support the grid.
Total emissions fell by 9.8 per cent compared to the same day last week, reaching 314,276 tonnes of carbon dioxide. FCAS costs were concentrated in Tasmania, where the Raise Regulation service peaked at 78 dollars per megawatt hour.
Today · Forward projections indicate a price peak of 319.04 dollars in Queensland at 19:30, with South Australia forecast to reach 145 dollars.
Why it matters · The daily average price of 62.1 dollars sits 23 per cent above the seven-day average, extending a four-day period of elevated pricing. This trend persists despite a high 70.3 per cent instantaneous renewable peak and a significant 9.8 per cent reduction in weekly emissions.
Prices
Trading day · 04:00 → 04:00 AEST · 30-min average
| Region | Avg | VWAP | Min | Max | Neg | Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | $62 | $67 | -$7 | $120 | 6 | 0 |
| QLD | $55 | $58 | -$7 | $103 | 6 | 0 |
| SA | $68 | $70 | $9 | $262 | 0 | 0 |
| VIC | $63 | $66 | $4 | $141 | 0 | 0 |
| TAS | $61 | $63 | $5 | $127 | 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 | $4,153 | 0 | $11 | 24 Aug, 22:25 |
| LOWERREG | $841 | 0 | $4 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| RAISE6SEC | $121 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:05 |
| LOWER60SEC | $120 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| RAISE60SEC | $104 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:15 |
| LOWER6SEC | $49 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| LOWER5MIN | $41 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:35 |
| RAISE5MIN | $34 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:15 |
| Total | $5,463 | |||
Cost = NSW RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $7,060 | 0 | $11 | 24 Aug, 22:25 |
| LOWERREG | $2,449 | 0 | $4 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| RAISE6SEC | $368 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:05 |
| LOWER60SEC | $320 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| RAISE60SEC | $309 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:15 |
| LOWER6SEC | $107 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| LOWER5MIN | $63 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:35 |
| RAISE5MIN | $41 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:15 |
| Total | $10,718 | |||
Cost = QLD RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $10,983 | 0 | $11 | 24 Aug, 22:25 |
| LOWERREG | $2,481 | 0 | $4 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| LOWER60SEC | $326 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| RAISE60SEC | $321 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:15 |
| RAISE6SEC | $302 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:05 |
| LOWER5MIN | $119 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:35 |
| RAISE5MIN | $99 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:15 |
| LOWER6SEC | $79 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| Total | $14,709 | |||
Cost = VIC RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $4,458 | 0 | $11 | 24 Aug, 22:25 |
| LOWERREG | $3,361 | 0 | $4 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| RAISE6SEC | $327 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:05 |
| RAISE60SEC | $279 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:15 |
| LOWER60SEC | $247 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| LOWER6SEC | $98 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| LOWER5MIN | $86 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:35 |
| RAISE5MIN | $62 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 07:15 |
| Total | $8,918 | |||
Cost = SA RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
| Service | Cost | Spikes | Peak | When |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAISEREG | $13,373 | 0 | $78 | 24 Aug, 17:00 |
| LOWERREG | $4,302 | 0 | $38 | 24 Aug, 12:05 |
| RAISE60SEC | $1,444 | 0 | $29 | 24 Aug, 15:20 |
| RAISE6SEC | $389 | 0 | $3 | 24 Aug, 14:50 |
| LOWER6SEC | $133 | 0 | $1 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| LOWER60SEC | $81 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:10 |
| RAISE5MIN | $17 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 06:20 |
| LOWER5MIN | $4 | 0 | $0 | 24 Aug, 15:15 |
| Total | $19,743 | |||
Cost = TAS RRP × cleared MW per 5-min interval.
Battery dispatch
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 1,755 MW at 18:00 as NSW spot hit $117/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 1,576 MW at 18:30 as QLD spot hit $99/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 847 MW at 18:30 as VIC spot hit $115/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 321 MW at 19:00 as SA spot hit $117/MWh.
Peak moment
Fleet discharged 4,419 MW at 18:30 as TAS spot hit $103/MWh.
Fleet net dispatch · spot-price overlay · 30-min average
Regional dispatch ranking
| Region | Discharged | Net |
|---|---|---|
#1NSW | 6,673MWh | -827 |
#2QLD | 6,036MWh | -381 |
#3VIC | 4,331MWh | -1,054 |
#4SA | 1,348MWh | -728 |
Generation Mix
- Coal54.6% · 112.0 GWh
- Gas0.5% · 1.1 GWh
- Hydro2.9% · 5.9 GWh
- Wind9.7% · 19.9 GWh
- Solar (utility)13.6% · 27.9 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)15.4% · 31.7 GWh
- Battery3.3% · 6.7 GWh
- Coal55.1% · 106.6 GWh
- Gas1.4% · 2.7 GWh
- Hydro0.8% · 1.6 GWh
- Wind15.3% · 29.7 GWh
- Solar (utility)11.6% · 22.5 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)12.1% · 23.3 GWh
- Battery3.1% · 6.0 GWh
- Other0.5% · 1.0 GWh
- Coal57.6% · 100.1 GWh
- Gas0.8% · 1.4 GWh
- Hydro3.8% · 6.6 GWh
- Wind22.8% · 39.7 GWh
- Solar (utility)3.9% · 6.7 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)8.6% · 15.0 GWh
- Battery2.5% · 4.3 GWh
- Gas9.0% · 3.7 GWh
- Wind81.1% · 33.7 GWh
- Solar (utility)1.6% · 0.7 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)5.1% · 2.1 GWh
- Battery3.2% · 1.3 GWh
- Gas4.7% · 1.4 GWh
- Hydro75.2% · 22.3 GWh
- Wind17.4% · 5.2 GWh
- Solar (rooftop)2.7% · 0.8 GWh
Renewables
- NSW 40.6%
- VIC 44.4%
- QLD 47.2%
- SA 82.5%
- TAS 90.9%
Interconnectors
| Region (proxy) | Net flow | Direction changes | Hours at limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| N-Q-MNSP1 | +30.7 GWh | 18 | — |
| NSW1-QLD1 | −27.4 GWh | 10 | — |
| VIC1-NSW1 | +7.5 GWh | 7 | — |
| V-SA | −9.0 GWh | 40 | — |
| T-V-MNSP1 | +2.3 GWh | 3 | — |
Per-region net of NETINTERCHANGE proxied to a representative interconnector. Full per-interconnector decomposition + hours-at-limit needs DINTERCONNECTOR parsing (follow-up).
Emissions
| NSW | 97.9k tCO₂ | 0.468 tCO₂/MWh |
| QLD | 94.6k tCO₂ | 0.481 tCO₂/MWh |
| SA | 2.0k tCO₂ | 0.047 tCO₂/MWh |
| VIC | 118.9k tCO₂ | 0.679 tCO₂/MWh |
| TAS | 844 tCO₂ | 0.029 tCO₂/MWh |