South Australia achieved very high renewable penetration of 96.9% on 17 August 2026, with wind generation dominating at 1,425.77 MW and minimal conventional generation. Regional reference prices remained moderate, ranging between $49.43–$55.97/MWh during the five-minute intervals captured.
The high renewable penetration was driven by strong wind output contributing the vast majority of dispatchable generation in the region. Multiple binding constraints with elevated marginal values, particularly the constraint with a marginal value of $17.70/MWh, indicate that physical limitations on network or inter-regional flows were active and restricting output, which supported price formation despite the low marginal cost of wind generation.
Causal analysis generated by gridIQ's synthesis model from live AEMO market data: dispatch prices, generation mix, interconnector flows and market notices in the interval surrounding the event.