Load Advisor: Monday 7 September 2026
**NEM-wide load shifting advisory — Tuesday 8 September 2026**
Overnight prices sit at rock-bottom levels across all five mainland regions right now, with QLD1 forecast at -$1.36/MWh around 10:30am AEST and NSW1, VIC1, SA1 and TAS1 all sitting between $0–$25/MWh from roughly 10:00am through to 4:30pm AEST. This is the primary shift window for flexible load today. QLD1 offers the deepest and longest trough, holding near $0/MWh from 09:00am to 03:30pm AEST, while NSW1, VIC1, SA1 and TAS1 converge on sub-$15/MWh pricing between 12:00pm and 2:30pm AEST. Predispatch forecasts confirm this trough is broad enough to accommodate multi-hour shifting across most flexible load categories.
A second, sharper window opens in VIC1 and SA1 during the afternoon, with forecast prices turning negative from around 2:30pm to 4:00am AEST (VIC1 down to -$4.41/MWh, SA1 to -$0.88/MWh) as strong rooftop and grid-scale solar output outpaces demand in the southern regions. This is the standout savings opportunity today — VIC1 flexible load shifted into the 2:30pm–3:30pm AEST slot saves up to $122/MWh versus this evening's peak, and SA1 loads shifted into the same window save up to $145/MWh. NSW1 and QLD1 do not see negative pricing but still offer solid savings of $90–$107/MWh versus peak across their respective morning troughs.
Peak periods to avoid fall in the morning demand ramp, roughly 5:30pm to 8:30pm AEST, when NSW1 and VIC1 forecasts climb above $100/MWh and SA1 peaks near $125/MWh as rooftop solar tapers off and evening heating load builds (SA1 and VIC1 current heating demand readings of 13.5 and 11.9 respectively reflect cold overnight conditions of 4–6°C). QLD1's peak is comparatively contained near $94/MWh, and TAS1 peaks around $106/MWh in the same window.
Recommendation: schedule discretionary and shiftable load — EV charging, batch industrial processes, HVAC pre-cooling/pre-heating, battery charging — into the 10:00am–3:30pm AEST window NEM-wide, prioritising VIC1 and SA1 for the 2:30pm–4:00pm negative-price slot where available. Avoid new load starts between 5:00pm and 8:30pm AEST across all regions. Note several high-risk flags on the very lowest-priced intervals (notably VIC1 and SA1 near $0/MWh and QLD1's 1.5-hour window from 01:00am–02:30am AEST) reflecting forecast volatility — size shifted load conservatively in those specific half-hours.