Load Advisor: Tuesday 15 September 2026

NEM-wide, the overnight trough from roughly 06:00 to 16:00 AEST offers the deepest load-shifting value of the day, with all five mainland regions currently pricing between -$12/MWh and -$3/MWh across predispatch. NSW1, VIC1, SA1, QLD1 and TAS1 are all forecasting negative RRPs through this window, driven by low overnight demand and no solar contribution at these hours — current spot prices sit at $94–104/MWh across regions as of 06:30 AEST, but predispatch shows a sharp drop into negative territory from roughly 08:00 AEST (06:00 UTC on the 16th maps to 16:00 AEST — flagging this for confirmation against your local schedule) through to mid-morning.

SA1 shows the strongest single-window opportunity: a 1.5-hour trough averaging -$11.58/MWh with a $221.52 saving versus peak for each MW shifted — the largest dollar saving of any region today. QLD1 and NSW1 both offer multiple low-risk windows saving $144–148/MWh vs peak, concentrated between the equivalent of early morning and just after sunrise. VIC1 and TAS1 trough slightly shallower but still deliver $126–145/MWh savings per MW shifted. All flagged windows carry low risk ratings with zero carbon intensity recorded, reflecting minimal thermal generation on the margin during these periods.

Peak periods to avoid fall in the mid-morning ramp: NSW1 forecasts climbing from $50/MWh to $136–151/MWh within two hours as the trough clears, with QLD1 and VIC1 following similar trajectories up to $135–140/MWh by mid-morning. A secondary, flatter peak persists through the middle of the day across all regions, with NSW1 holding $113–147/MWh and QLD1 sitting near $95–125/MWh — discretionary load scheduled here will cost 15–20 times more than in the overnight trough. Evening prices ease back to $75–95/MWh across regions but do not return to trough levels.

Recommendation: schedule flexible, interruptible load — EV charging, batch industrial processes, water heating, battery charging — into the overnight-to-pre-dawn window where forecast RRPs are negative across all mainland regions, prioritising SA1 first given its largest saving per MW, followed by QLD1 and NSW1. Avoid dispatch during the morning ramp and midday peak entirely; if load must run during business hours, the early-afternoon easing (NSW1 and VIC1 dropping toward $80–90/MWh from mid-afternoon) is the next-best fallback ahead of the overnight window reopening tonight.