The Australian Energy Council’s Chief Executive, Sarah McNamara, said the NEM continues to be under pressure during summer particularly where supply is tight and demand is high, but power station operators have been taking steps to be as prepared as possible.
“Continuous supply can never be guaranteed in any power system because unplanned outages can occur from time to time, both in Australia and overseas. Blackouts can also occur as a result of isolated faults caused by extreme conditions.
“But the community should feel confident that the industry is intent on maintaining the high level of service it has historically provided, despite difficult climatic conditions and a transitioning generation fleet.
“Plant operators have been undertaking plant and system maintenance in the lead-up to summer.
“Investment of more than $700 million by key asset owners on maintenance and upgrades this year demonstrates the industry’s commitment to delivering continuous supply for households and businesses,” Ms McNamara said.
Electricity demand has historically been highest on weekdays and usually at the end of a run of three or more hot days.
“Even with more solar panels in the NEM now, the increased demand from population growth and more widespread use of air-conditioners means very high demand periods are likely. The industry will continue to work closely with the market operator to manage these periods” Ms McNamara said.
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.