Load Advisor: Tuesday 21 July 2026

# NEM Load Shifting Advisory — Wednesday 22 July 2026

Overnight into early-morning trough pricing offers the deepest NEM-wide savings today, with VIC1 and SA1 forecast to sit near $1–11/MWh between 11:00–16:30 AEST (03:00–06:30 local overnight window in UTC terms), before all regions ramp sharply into a morning peak from 07:30–12:00 AEST. Flexible load scheduled into the trough will capture savings of $90–120/MWh versus this morning's peak across the southern regions.

The strongest windows region-by-region: SA1 offers the deepest discount, with prices forecast at $1.52–11/MWh between 03:30–06:00 AEST (low-medium risk), saving up to $121/MWh versus peak. VIC1 mirrors this closely, at $1.42–10.50/MWh across 03:00–06:30 AEST. TAS1 troughs at $1.38–10/MWh over a similar window. NSW1 and QLD1 sit higher but still favourable, with NSW1 forecast at $42.80–43.05/MWh from 04:00–06:00 AEST and QLD1 at $39.75–41.51/MWh from 03:30–05:30 AEST — both low-risk, low-carbon windows. WA1 is currently trading at $131.62/MWh outside the NEM proper and isn't covered by these windows.

All five NEM regions are forecasting a sharp morning peak from roughly 07:30 to 12:00 AEST, with NSW1 reaching $105–123/MWh, QLD1 $105–122/MWh, SA1 peaking highest at $121–125/MWh, VIC1 $90–110/MWh, and TAS1 $87–99/MWh. A secondary but shallower peak builds again from 13:00–15:00 AEST before prices ease into the afternoon. Flexible load — EV charging, pool pumps, batteries, industrial pre-cooling — should be avoided in both these windows, particularly 09:00–11:30 AEST when SA1 and QLD1 forecasts exceed $120/MWh.

**Recommendation:** Schedule all shiftable load for the 03:00–06:30 AEST window today, prioritising VIC1 and SA1 assets where discounts are steepest ($1–11/MWh, savings of $100–121/MWh vs peak).