The last seven days of detected price spikes, negative pricing intervals, record renewables and binding grid constraints across the NEM and WEM. 26 June 2026 to 03 July 2026.
QLD1 experienced sustained negative pricing at −$1.31/MWh across two consecutive intervals (04:15 and 04:25 on 3 July 2026), representing minor severity with minimum price reaching −$1.31/MWh. The negative pricing occurred during early morning peak solar generation (approximately 4,730 MW combined solar output) with substantial coal baseload (3,556 MW) and wind generation (655 MW) maintaining overall system supply.
The WEM in WA1 experienced a moderate price spike to $276/MWh at 03:40 UTC on 3 July 2026, representing a 75% increase from the preceding interval's $158.16/MWh. The spike was isolated to a single 5-minute trading interval before prices subsequently adjusted.
Tasmania experienced brief negative pricing during two consecutive dispatch intervals (00:10 and 00:15 on 3 July 2026), with prices reaching −$0.39/MWh. The negative pricing occurred within a period of elevated regional generation from hydro and wind sources totalling approximately 1.2–1.8 GW, with gas generation remaining offline.
VIC1 experienced brief negative pricing during the early morning of 3 July 2026, with prices falling to −$0.37/MWh across 2 intervals. The event occurred during a period of high renewable generation (approximately 3,212–3,331 MW of wind and 557 MW of solar) combined with substantial brown coal baseload output (3,184 MW), creating an oversupply condition in the region.
SA1 experienced sustained negative pricing at −$3.29/MWh during the 21:40 settlement interval on 2 July 2026, with negative prices occurring in 2 of 7 intervals sampled. The region's generation mix was dominated by wind (1,442 MW) and battery storage (215 MW), with minimal demand from conventional gas generation.
Tasmania experienced 100% renewable generation during the evening peak of 2 July 2026, with hydro and wind resources combining to meet all demand. Prices fell sharply into negative territory (reaching −$6.17/MWh) before recovering toward zero as the period progressed, indicating a temporary supply surplus relative to system requirements.
VIC1 experienced sustained negative pricing across five consecutive trading intervals on 2 July 2026 between 17:25 and 17:55, with prices ranging from −$7.61/MWh to −$6.60/MWh. The negative pricing persisted despite a generation mix dominated by approximately 6,340 MW of wind generation and 2,864 MW of brown coal.
TAS1 experienced sustained negative pricing across 8 consecutive intervals from 17:25 to 18:00 on 2 July 2026, with prices ranging from -$6.93/MWh to -$7.87/MWh. The region's generation was dominated by renewable sources, with wind contributing approximately 378 MW average and hydro around 311 MW average, whilst gas-fired generation remained offline.
South Australia experienced sustained negative pricing in the SA1 region during the 15:00–15:40 interval on 2 July 2026, with prices hovering around −$4.65/MWh for three consecutive intervals. The event occurred during a period of high wind generation (1,749 MW) with minimal solar and battery output, creating conditions of structural oversupply.
South Australia (SA1) experienced very high renewable penetration of 95.3% during the 12:00–12:30 period on 2 July 2026, driven predominantly by wind generation of 1,690.53 MW with minimal conventional generation. Regional reference prices oscillated between negative and low positive values, reflecting oversupply conditions typical of high renewable generation intervals.
Tasmania experienced brief negative pricing in TAS1 during the 12:00–12:05 UTC intervals on 2 July 2026, with prices reaching −$4.91/MWh. The event occurred amid substantial renewable generation (hydro and wind contributing over 1,000 MW combined) and followed a period of positive but low prices ($5–$11/MWh).
VIC1 experienced negative pricing at -$4.7/MWh and -$1.1/MWh across two consecutive five-minute intervals on 2 July 2026 around midday. The negative prices occurred in a market context of very high wind generation (approximately 8,422 MW combined) and moderate brown coal output (3,255 MW), with minimal dispatchable gas capacity online.
The WEM experienced a sharp price spike in WA1 on 2 July 2026 at 09:40, with the RRP jumping to $278.66/MWh—a doubling from the previous interval's $171.75/MWh. The spike was short-lived, lasting only a single trading interval before prices escalated further to $362.84/MWh in the following period.
SA1 experienced sustained negative pricing on 2 July 2026, with prices declining sharply from +$59.55/MWh at 09:30 to -$157.47/MWh by 09:40, persisting across 2 intervals. The region's generation was dominated by wind (1,713.95 MW) and battery discharge (931.73 MW combined), with minimal conventional generation, creating an oversupply condition.
Tasmania experienced a major constraint event on 2 July 2026 around 07:00 AEST, with the binding constraint T_BLINK_TV_NGZ reaching an exceptionally high shadow price of $8.352 million/MWh. This triggered a sharp price spike to $85.24/MWh in the 07:00 settlement interval, representing a 63% increase from the preceding half-hour, before prices moderated in the following period.
A major binding constraint (N_QPSFB_L_9INV) with an exceptionally high shadow price of $811,961/MWh became active in NSW1 during the early morning period of 2 July 2026, causing spot prices to spike to $73/MWh. The constraint remained binding across multiple settlement periods whilst the region was operating with high renewable penetration (4,063 MW of wind and solar) and substantial coal generation (3,743 MW).
South Australia experienced sustained negative pricing in SA1 region during the early morning of 2 July 2026, with prices reaching −$47.66/MWh across three consecutive intervals (02:10–02:20) before gradually recovering over the following 35 minutes. The event reflects excess renewable generation, particularly wind output of approximately 999 MW, combined with low demand typical of overnight periods.
VIC1 experienced sustained negative pricing at −$1.15/MWh across two intervals late on 1 July 2026, with prices recovering to positive levels in intervening periods. The event occurred during a period of high renewable generation, with wind contributing approximately 4,174 MW and solar 415 MW to the regional mix.
SA1 experienced sustained negative pricing at approximately −$6.50/MWh across five consecutive 5-minute intervals (20:20–20:40) on 1 July 2026, with prices recovering slightly thereafter. The event occurred during evening dispatch when wind generation dominated the South Australian generation mix at 1,648.73 MW, whilst solar output was nil and demand-side flexibility appeared constrained.
Tasmania's electricity market experienced 100% renewable generation on 1 July 2026 between 20:05 and 20:30 UTC, with hydro and wind providing the entire supply mix whilst gas-fired generation remained offline. Regional reference prices rose modestly from $50.12/MWh to $53.12/MWh over the 25-minute period, despite the absence of thermal generation.
VIC1 experienced sustained negative pricing averaging around -6.7/MWh across 8 consecutive intervals from 16:55 to 17:30 on 1 July 2026, with the minimum price reaching -6.91/MWh. The negative pricing occurred during a period of high wind generation (approximately 3,200 MW) combined with substantial brown coal output (2,867 MW), resulting in oversupply relative to demand.
South Australia (SA1) experienced sustained negative pricing during the 14:30–15:05 period on 1 July 2026, with prices declining to a minimum of −$7.02/MWh over three consecutive intervals. The region was characterised by high wind generation (1504 MW) and minimal demand-side flexibility, with solar and battery storage unavailable during this afternoon period.
A major binding constraint (N_QPSFB_L_9INV) with an exceptional shadow price of $812,000/MWh occurred in NSW1 on 1 July 2026 at midday, causing NSW1 RRP to decline from $91.22 to $74.06/MWh over a 20-minute period. The constraint remained binding whilst the market adjusted generation dispatch to relieve the limitation.
SA1 experienced very high renewable penetration of 95.7% on 1 July 2026 around midday, driven predominantly by wind generation of 1,801 MW. Regional reference prices fell to negative values of -$0.10/MWh across multiple consecutive settlement intervals, indicating oversupply conditions.
VIC1 experienced sustained negative pricing at −$0.05/MWh across four consecutive intervals (11:20–11:40 on 1 July 2026), with prices alternating between zero and negative values over a seven-interval window. The minimum price of −$0.05/MWh was reached during the latter portion of this event, indicating an oversupply condition requiring financial incentives to reduce generation.
South Australia (SA1) experienced sustained negative pricing at −$1.00/MWh and −$1.49/MWh across two consecutive intervals (09:05 and 09:15 on 1 July 2026), representing a minor severity event. Prices recovered to modest positive levels (+$3.54/MWh) in the intervening interval before declining again.
VIC1 experienced brief negative pricing in two consecutive intervals (05:40 and 05:45) on 1 July 2026, with prices reaching −$0.05/MWh before recovering to $8.94/MWh in subsequent periods. The negative pricing episode was minor and short-lived, affecting only a small portion of the trading day during early morning hours.
Tasmania's electricity region achieved 100% renewable generation during the evening of 30 June 2026, with hydro and wind sources combining to meet all demand. Regional prices remained subdued at $10–$25/MWh for most of the period before rising to $50.20/MWh in the final two intervals, despite sustained high renewable output.
The WEM experienced a moderate price spike in WA1 on 30 June 2026, with the regional reference price jumping to $250.39/MWh during the 16:25 trading interval, up sharply from $106.35/MWh just 25 minutes earlier. Prices remained elevated above $242/MWh across the five intervals from 16:10 to 16:25, suggesting a sustained supply-demand imbalance.
SA1 experienced high renewable penetration of 93.7% during the 12:00–12:25 settlement period on 30 June 2026, driven primarily by wind generation of approximately 1,800 MW. Regional reference prices exhibited moderate volatility across the six five-minute intervals, ranging from $34.24/MWh to $77.89/MWh, with a spike at 12:10.
Events are detected automatically by gridIQ from AEMO dispatch and constraint data, then enriched with AI-generated causal analysis. For the full searchable archive, see the event history. For deeper context on price spikes and negative pricing, read the negative-price explainer or browse live electricity prices by region.