A New South Wales Legislative Council inquiry issued 26 recommendations to reform data centre regulation across the state. The committee proposed hourly renewable energy matching and demand flexibility incentives for the facilities. The inquiry rejected a moratorium on new data centres. The committee urged the state government to mandate stricter transparency regarding energy consumption. The inquiry also recommended the state reduce reliance on diesel backup generation at the facilities.
The NEM recorded a mean price of $67.8/MWh. Tasmania recorded the highest regional average at $112.2/MWh. The Tasmanian average sat above its seven-day average of $77.2/MWh and higher than the $87.19/MWh recorded on the same weekday last week. South Australia reached the highest price of $191/MWh at 00:20 and the lowest price of -$325/MWh at 14:35. The South Australian average price of $46.0/MWh landed above its seven-day average of $44.0/MWh. South Australia experienced 18.7 hours of negative prices. Queensland recorded 17.3 hours of negative prices, followed by Victoria with 15.8 hours and New South Wales with 8.5 hours. Queensland recorded the demand peak of 9,361 MW at 17:40. Renewables supplied 51.5 per cent of energy across the market. The instantaneous renewable share peaked at 80.3 per cent at 12:00. Batteries discharged 22,327 MWh across the trading day.
Eku Energy commissioned the 200 MW / 500 MWh Williamsdale battery energy storage system in the Australian Capital Territory. The facility has entered commercial operation. The asset marks the completion of the territory government's Big Canberra Battery project. The Williamsdale facility is the largest battery in the government initiative. Neoen, Frontier Energy and Lightyears secured debt and equity financing for solar, wind and battery storage projects across Australia and New Zealand.
The Australian Renewable Energy Agency committed $15 million toward a $30 million pilot project by Hadean Energy. The developer will construct and manage a 50 kW demonstration plant at BlueScope's Port Kembla Steelworks. The facility will trial Australian-developed tubular solid oxide electrolysis technology. The project aims to validate the efficiency of producing green hydrogen for industrial decarbonisation. Hadean Energy is advancing the technology developed by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. The technology aims to reduce electricity consumption for green hydrogen production by 30 per cent. The efficiency gains are intended to lower costs for steelmaking applications.
Atmos Renewables is constructing a 300-bed workers accommodation facility for the Parron Maam Marang Farm project in Western Australia. The Yued Aboriginal Corporation holds an option to acquire full ownership of the housing infrastructure under the agreement.
Chinese manufacturer AIKO secured 1 GW in supply agreements for its fourth-generation all-back-contact solar modules. The company signed the deals during the All Energy Australia exhibition. The agreements coincide with the official domestic launch of the high-efficiency technology range. RMIT University will lead the new RENEW Organics Hub. The federal government provided nearly $5 million in funding to support the initiative. The hub aims to foster collaboration between academia, industry and government. The initiative will advance organic materials research to support the renewable energy transition and resource management in Australia.
Brent Crude rose 3.6 per cent to US$97.98 a barrel.
AEMC published version 255 of the National Electricity Rules on 29 October. The update incorporates Schedule 4 of the improving compensation frameworks rule. AER published gas transmission network performance data for the 2025 regulatory year. The data covers the Amadeus Gas Pipeline, the Roma Brisbane Pipeline and the Victorian Transmission System. AER accepted an individual retail exemption application from Tuggeranong Town Centre for South.Point Tuggeranong on 23 October. AEMC received a rule change request from the Australian Energy Council to amend effective dates to enable industry compliance with metering maintenance obligations. The commission has not yet initiated the rule change request. The commission will publish a consultation paper to facilitate stakeholder feedback when the process begins. AEMC received terms of reference from the Energy and Climate Ministerial Council for a review of the reliability and price settings framework for the future NEM. The commission has not yet initiated the review. The commission will publish a consultation paper when the process begins. AEMC is considering modernising energy communications to meet consumer needs across electricity and gas rules.