Load Advisor: Wednesday 12 August 2026

QLD1 offers the deepest load-shifting opportunity on the NEM this morning, with predispatch prices running negative from 09:00 through to around 15:30 AEST, bottoming near -$25/MWh at 14:00-14:30 AEST. That window alone is worth over $150/MWh in savings versus the region's afternoon peak, and demand charges effectively disappear for any load shifted into it. Current spot price in QLD1 sits at $91.73/MWh with demand at 6,915 MW, but the overnight-to-midday trough is where flexible load should be concentrated.

Across the other regions, the best windows cluster between 10:30 AEST and 16:30 AEST (overnight into early afternoon in market terms), with NSW1 troughing near $11/MWh at 14:30 AEST, VIC1 dropping to $10.50-$12.50/MWh between 09:30 and 11:30 AEST, and TAS1 easing to $11/MWh around 14:30 AEST. SA1's cheapest window is narrower and shallower, sitting around $20-$30/MWh between 12:30 and 14:00 AEST, reflecting SA1's typically tighter supply margin. Current spot prices — NSW1 at $96.62/MWh, VIC1 at $39.86/MWh, SA1 at $68.58/MWh, TAS1 at $58.37/MWh — will fall sharply into these midday troughs as rooftop and utility solar ramp, before recovering hard into the evening peak.

All regions should expect a sharp price spike from roughly 17:30 AEST through to 20:00 AEST as solar output fades and evening demand builds. Forecasts show VIC1 climbing to $170-$177/MWh between 18:30 and 20:30 AEST, SA1 peaking above $190/MWh near 20:30 AEST, and TAS1 reaching $159/MWh in the same window. QLD1 and NSW1 show a more moderate but still material peak, with QLD1 near $130/MWh around 21:00 AEST and NSW1 touching $144/MWh by 19:30-21:30 AEST. Flexible load — EV charging, batteries, industrial process shifting, HVAC pre-cooling — should be locked into the 10:00-15:00 AEST band across all regions and strictly avoided from 17:00 to 21:30 AEST.

For traders and grid operators managing cross-regional flexible assets, QLD1's negative pricing between 09:00 and 15:30 AEST is today's standout opportunity, effectively paying load to consume. VIC1 and NSW1 offer the next-best combination of depth and duration in their late-morning troughs. SA1 requires tighter scheduling given its narrower low-price window and the steepest evening peak on the NEM today. Clear-sky conditions in NSW1 and QLD1 support strong solar-driven price suppression through midday, reinforcing confidence in these windows holding through the trading day.