Load Advisor: Thursday 2 April 2026

NSW sits at 71.09 $/MWh, QLD at 62.95 $/MWh, and TAS at 83.39 $/MWh right now, while VIC and SA are running near zero at 8.95 $/MWh and 8.70 $/MWh respectively — these two markets are the standout opportunity for any flexible load that can operate today. Predispatch windows confirm prices in VIC and SA will remain deeply negative through the overnight and early-morning period, with VIC forecast to reach as low as −56 $/MWh around 14:00–15:30 AEST (03:00–04:30 UTC) and SA touching −52 $/MWh in the same window. QLD overnight prices settle between −3 $/MWh and −25 $/MWh from roughly 23:30 AEST through to 14:00 AEST, with the sharpest troughs around 13:00–14:30 AEST (−25 $/MWh). NSW overnight troughs are shallow — mostly 1–11 $/MWh from 08:00 AEST through to early afternoon — but represent meaningful savings against the current 71 $/MWh reference price. TAS offers no comparable off-peak window; prices are forecast to hold 70–89 $/MWh across the full predispatch horizon and should be treated as a region to defer non-critical load rather than target for shifting into.

The strongest load-shifting windows ranked by expected savings are: **VIC 08:30–16:00 AEST** (prices −20 to −56 $/MWh, savings up to ~130 $/MWh vs reference), **SA 08:30–16:00 AEST** (prices −20 to −52 $/MWh, savings up to ~136 $/MWh), and **QLD 09:00–14:30 AEST** (prices −5 to −25 $/MWh, savings ~110–130 $/MWh). A secondary NSW window exists from **08:00–14:00 AEST** with prices 1–22 $/MWh — worthwhile given the current 71 $/MWh spot, but a tier below VIC and SA. For all NEM regions, avoid the morning ramp 06:30–08:00 AEST: predispatch shows NSW climbing toward 30 $/MWh, QLD approaching 22 $/MWh, and TAS above 80 $/MWh as demand lifts into the business day.

The concrete recommendation: schedule all deferrable industrial, HVAC pre-conditioning, EV fleet charging, and battery charging in VIC and SA to run between **09:30 and 15:30 AEST** — this captures the deepest negative price tranche across both markets. QLD flexible loads should target **09:00–14:00 AEST**. NSW operators should front-load any shiftable demand into the **08:00–13:00 AEST** window before prices recover toward the afternoon peak. TAS operators have no compelling window today and should simply avoid adding discretionary load during the 06:30–08:30 AEST ramp. WA data is stale (last settlement 09:30 AEST 2 April)