Australian Chart of the week | Elephant in the room: the veiled role of gas markets/supply?

Queensland Liquified Natural Gas exports commenced in early 2015. Historically, prior to this, gas markets in eastern Australia have been relatively stable. Conventional gas fields supplied large industrial users, business/residential – mass market – load as well as gas-powered generators at relatively low prices.

In this Chart of the week, we explore the gas demand by segment from 2014 to 2019. We also compare it to prices Victoria.

To keep reading, please log in to your account or sign up for free

Alternatively, please sign up to receive free market insight online and direct to your inbox

Related thinking

Low carbon generation

Analysing earlier coal retirement in Victoria: What does it take for more emission reduction?

AEMO has recently published the 2022 Integrated System Plan (ISP), which provides an energy transition roadmap for the National Electricity Market (NEM). This ISP focuses on the “Step Change” scenario, which reflects strong action on climate change leading to a step change reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, based on the...

Commercial and market outlook

Big Battery, even bigger revenues

The Victorian Big Battery (VBB) in Geelong, Victoria, is currently the largest commissioned battery in the NEM at 300 MW/450 MWh. In Q2 2022, VBB, and its owner Neoen, posted an estimated AEMO wholesale net revenue of just over $13 million for the three-month period. It is important to note...

Commercial and market outlook

Australian gas prices have recently coupled with European spot. Will linkage persist post-2023?

Last year it was difficult to imagine that spot gas prices in Australia would hit unprecedented levels of more than $40-50/GJ, with AEMO capping the DWGM price at $40/GJ. By comparison, the DWGM only averaged $5.10/GJ last year. As was mentioned by Energy Market Intelligence Manager Mohsin Ali in the...

Power and gas networks

Australian gas markets spike to unprecedented levels

Australia’s gas markets are in the middle of an unprecedented price spike. Current prices in the Victorian Declared Wholesale Gas Market (DWGM) have been tracking in the $20-40/GJ range since early May 2022, with prices hitting $50/GJ on 30 May. Prices in the other gas hubs of Sydney and Brisbane...

Commercial and market outlook

Nobody said it was easy, but it’s time for us to part: VIC’s climate targets & coal

In 2017, the Victorian Government legislated a state target of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Since then, short-term targets have been set in five-year increments, with the 2030 target being to cut emissions by 45-50% below 2005 levels. The Government is currently consulting on the 2035 target, which must...

Low carbon generation

Lower energy prices? More than just hot air

The Victorian Government launched Australia’s first offshore wind targets as part of its transition towards a net-zero emission future. According to the target, 9GW of offshore wind will be installed by 2040, nearly quadrupling the total wind capacity in VIC. In this Chart of the week, we dive into the...

Commercial and market outlook

Is the NEM going off schedule?

Is the NEM getting harder to control with rising variable renewable generation and distributed photovoltaic growth? AEMO’s balancing of scheduled supply is critical to ensure the system remains stable and wholesale prices work efficiently. This Chart of the week briefly examines if the NEM is “on schedule” to meet this...

Commercial and market outlook

Round and round it goes, where the loop flow stops, nobody knows

A by-product of how market boundaries are defined, loop flows are phenomena in electricity markets that manifest as flows going in one direction across parts of a network loop and goes the opposite way in other parts of the same network loop. Regardless of whether the market design is nodal...