Load Advisor: Saturday 27 June 2026

Victoria offers the standout opportunity across the NEM today. Predispatch prices will fall to around $10–$11/MWh across a sustained window from approximately 13:30 AEST through to at least 04:30 AEST Sunday, saving up to $130/MWh against peak. The driver is clear skies forecast for Victoria today (max cloud cover 41%), which will support midday solar generation and push prices to near-floor levels through the afternoon. Flexible loads in VIC1 — industrial processes, thermal storage, EV charging fleets — should target the 14:30–19:30 AEST block as the primary scheduling window. South Australia follows with similarly strong afternoon pricing: predispatch has SA1 at $28–$29/MWh from 16:30 through to at least 04:30 AEST, saving around $108–$109/MWh versus the morning peak. SA operators should target 16:30–19:30 AEST as the prime window, with a secondary opportunity around 03:30–04:30 AEST at ~$50/MWh.

In NSW and Queensland, the savings opportunity is narrower but still material. NSW1 prices are currently at $80.53/MWh and will rise toward $95–$113/MWh through the morning peak (07:00–10:30 AEST) before easing back to the high $70s through the afternoon. The best NSW window is 04:00–06:30 AEST at $62–$71/MWh, saving roughly $40–$43/MWh against the morning peak — load that can be advanced into the early hours should act now. Queensland sits at $69.25/MWh currently and will climb toward $103–$109/MWh during the 07:00–10:30 AEST peak. The optimal QLD1 shift window is 01:00–02:00 AEST at ~$54/MWh, with secondary value at the 05:30 AEST half-hour ($53.75/MWh). Tasmania shows the flattest price profile of all regions — predispatch holds a near-constant $70.22/MWh through most of the day, stepping up to $79–$84/MWh from 06:00–12:00 AEST. Load shift savings in TAS1 are modest at ~$14/MWh; the off-peak overnight and early afternoon periods (02:00–06:00 AEST, then 12:30–13:00 AEST) are the best available but represent a low-urgency opportunity.

The avoidance case is equally important. All mainland regions face a common morning peak band between 07:00 and 10:30 AEST, with NSW1 forecast at up to $113/MWh, QLD1 up to $109/MWh, SA1 up to $103/MWh, and VIC1 up to $108/MWh. Any flexible load that can be deferred or advanced away from this 07:00–10:30 AEST window should be. Evening pricing is less severe than morning on today's forecast — VIC1 and SA1 afternoon solar suppression extends savings well into the 18:00–19:30 AEST range, providing an unusual afternoon/evening window that is not typical of winter weekdays.

Concrete recommendation: Victoria and South Australia are the