Interconnector Watch: Friday 4 September 2026
**NEM interconnector snapshot, 5 September 2026 (06:35 AEST dispatch interval)**
Three of six interconnectors are currently binding. VIC1-NSW1 is exporting 908 MW from Victoria into NSW, sitting right at its 908 MW export limit — fully utilised. This flow is consistent with the price spread: VIC1 is at -$5/MWh while NSW1 sits at $57.39/MWh, so Victoria's low-cost surplus (likely wind and rooftop solar depressing local prices) is flowing north to firm up NSW demand of 6,691 MW. Basslink (T-V-MNSP1) is bound on its import side, drawing 453 MW from Tasmania into Victoria at its -453 MW import limit, despite TAS1 pricing near flat at $0.16/MWh — Tasmanian hydro generation is being exported at capacity regardless of the thin local price signal. Murraylink (V-S-MNSP1) is also binding, flowing 87 MW from Victoria to SA1, matched exactly to both its import and export limits, indicating a constrained operating point rather than commercial optimisation.
Heywood (V-SA) is not binding, carrying only 98 MW from VIC1 to SA1 against a much larger 656 MW import capability — well under-utilised. This is despite SA1 pricing at -$4.84/MWh, similarly soft to VIC1, meaning the interconnector isn't needed to arbitrage the near-zero spread between the two regions. QNI (NSW1-QLD1) is flowing 224 MW from QLD1 into NSW1, non-binding and well short of its 1,143 MW import limit, consistent with the modest $2/MWh spread between NSW1 ($57.39) and QLD1 ($55.26). Directlink is flowing a negligible 9 MW QLD-to-NSW, non-binding.
On constraints: the Sydney West–Vineyard No.29 330 kV outage (from 04 September, 17:00) continues to invoke constraint set N-SWVY_29, affecting QNI, Directlink and VIC1-NSW1 simultaneously — likely contributing to VIC1-NSW1 sitting pinned at its export ceiling. The Keith–Kincraig 132kV line outage in SA (unplanned, from 21:36 on 4 September) remains active under constraint set S-KHKN, capping Heywood's effective transfer capability despite the nominal 656 MW import limit shown. A VIC1 lightning-related reclassification on the Yallourn–Rowville 220kV lines was cancelled at 06:09 AEST as the contingency risk passed, removing constraint set V-ROYP78_R_N-2 with no interconnector-side impact. Overall, today's price spreads are being shaped more by these active network constraints than by generation mix alone — traders should watch for further NSW network notices given the ongoing Sydney West–Vineyard outage.