Load Advisor: Friday 27 March 2026
Prices across NSW, VIC, SA and QLD are presently sitting well below their dispatch average, with the current window already delivering excellent savings ratings. NSW is clearing at $72.25/MWh and VIC at $63.84/MWh right now, but predispatch forecasts show both regions will drop sharply into negative or near-zero territory within the next two to three hours — making today's morning period the standout load-shifting opportunity across the NEM.
The single best window for flexible load across all mainland regions will be 9:00–9:30 AEST (22:00–22:30 UTC), when NSW prices are forecast to dip as low as -$2.50/MWh and VIC to -$6.50/MWh, with SA reaching -$5.12/MWh and QLD hitting -$20.20/MWh. That QLD negative price is the most aggressive on the board and represents a saving of up to $74.24/MWh against the current dispatch price. The window deepens further into 10:00 AEST (23:00 UTC), where NSW predispatch shows prices at -$13.71/MWh and VIC at -$13.45/MWh, and QLD plunges to -$33.15/MWh — a saving of $87.19/MWh against today's reference price. Operators with flexibility extending into that half-hour should prioritise it above all others.
SA follows a similar trajectory, with prices forecast to reach -$13.53/MWh around 10:00 AEST, a saving of $80.41/MWh. The 9:30–10:30 AEST block is the sweet spot for SA flexible loads including irrigation, desalination, and industrial process heat. VIC and NSW operators should target the same block. QLD users — particularly those in agriculture and manufacturing — should treat the 9:30–10:30 AEST period as a near-compulsory dispatch window given the depth of negative prices forecast.
Tasmania is the exception: TAS1 prices are holding at $96.24/MWh throughout the predispatch horizon with only marginal variation, and the quality of shifting opportunity is rated fair at best. There is no meaningful price arbitrage available in Tasmania today. WA operates outside the NEM on SWIS and its data is not current. The concrete recommendation: schedule all deferrable load in NSW, VIC, SA and QLD to run between 9:00 and 10:30 AEST, with the 10:00–10:30 AEST half-hour as the priority slot. Avoid committing load to peak periods forecast for mid-morning and evening when prices will recover toward the $55–72/MWh range currently observed.