Winter morning peaks drove elevated prices across the NEM through the early hours. Victoria reached demand of 7,914 MW around 08:25 AEST, pushing prices into the $170–$190/MWh band; Queensland peaked at 7,928 MW at 18:00 AEST with a sustained $165–$188/MWh band. Both regions have since retreated — VIC1 back to $115/MWh at 5,494 MW, QLD1 to $103/MWh at 6,056 MW as of 06:30 AEST. The QNI interconnector was binding hard at its import limit of −590 MW, running Queensland exports south into NSW at full capacity. SA1 saw the sharpest 24h average at $151/MWh with a daily max of $262/MWh; morning prices repeatedly cleared $180–$230/MWh between 07:00–12:00 AEST. Watch for any renewed demand ramp into the evening peak as winter conditions persist.
Tasmania is the standout today on two fronts. Between 20:05–20:25 UTC, TAS1 achieved 100% renewable generation, with hydro output of approximately 1,140–1,206 MW and negligible wind contribution — regional prices held steady at ~$79/MWh through that period. Earlier in the day, a binding network constraint (T_BLINK_TV_NGZ) reached an exceptionally high shadow price of $7.308 million/MWh during the 12:30–13:00 period, with the constraint persisting across multiple settlement intervals. Despite that congestion event, TAS1's 24h average remained the lowest in the NEM at $86/MWh (max $121/MWh). The constraint warrants close monitoring if Basslink flows or intra-state network conditions remain tight heading into the weekend.
The West Australian market was comparatively measured through the period. WA1 recorded a 24h average of $101/MWh and a daily maximum of $149/MWh — well