| Founded | 2009 |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Australia |
Key people |
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| Website | www |
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) performs an array of gas and electricity market, operational, development and planning functions. It manages the National Electricity Market (NEM), the Wholesale Electricity Market (WA) (WEM) [1] and the Victorian gas transmission network. AEMO also facilitates electricity and gas full retail contestability, overseeing these retail markets in eastern and southern Australia. It is additionally responsible for national transmission planning for electricity and the establishment of a Short Term Trading Market (STTM) for gas. [2]
It commenced operations on 1 July 2009, [3] superseding several state-based and cross-state organisations including the National Electricity Market Management Company Limited (NEMMCO), the Victorian Energy Networks Corporation (VENCorp) which was responsible for the efficient operation of gas and electricity industries in Victoria, the Electricity Supply Industry Planning Council (ESIPC) which was responsible for the effective operation of the electricity industry in South Australia, the South Australian operations of Retail Energy Market Company (REMCo)), Gas Market Company (GMC) and Gas Retail Market Operator (GRMO).
AEMO has several departments within such as Engineering and Design, Forecasting, National Planning, Operational forecasting, Markets and Strategies as well as administrative, safety, peopleculture and human resources departments. AEMO is the semi-governmental body that acts as the information source for the industry's and manufacturers outlook on the national electricity policies, forecast as well as future plans. The organisation is owned 60% by the Government and 40% by industry and market participants. [4] AEMO has offices across the country in Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Perth, Adelaide as well as a handful of regional offices.
In March 2017, AEMO sought to reassure the public that the closure of the Hazelwood Power Station, which has a capacity of 1600 megawatt, would be offset by the availability of three mothballed gas-fired stations, which have a combined capacity of 830 megawatts, and large industrial businesses agreeing to time-shift their electricity use in the event of an emergency. The addition capacity would be provided by the Pelican Point Power Station in South Australia, Tamar Valley Power Station in Tasmania and Swanbank Power Station in Queensland. [5]
In 2017, AGL Energy reaffirmed that it intends to close the Liddell Power Station in 2022. [6] The closure of this and other coal-burning power stations in Australia has led to the former Prime Minister of Australia, Malcolm Turnbull, to seek advice from AEMO on extending the life of a number of them, [7] to head off future power shortages. [8] Turnbull said the government had been advised that if the Liddell plant were to close in 2022, there would be a 1000MW gap in base load, dispatchable power generation. [7]
In May 2018, AEMO warned solar and wind projects in north-western Victoria of potential curtailment to their generation profiles. In particular, the 220kV transmission line that links Ballarat, Horsham, Red Cliffs, Kerang and Bendigo was the focus of their announcement. "If further development proceeds as suggested, this will add to the thermal constraints in this area", AEMO warns. [9]
In order to simplify operations of the electricity market, AEMO suspended the spot market for wholesale electricity across the country in June 2022. [10] That move came after AEMO issued warnings for possible power interruptions amid supply shortfalls and significant prices rises. [11]
In June 2023, AEMO sounded an alarm over the country's transition to renewable energy. Daniel Westerman was concerned that investment in renewables wasn't happening fast enough as two-thirds of coal-fired power stations were expected to shutdown by 2030. [12]
An electricity market is a system that enables the exchange of electrical energy, through an electrical grid. Historically, electricity has been primarily sold by companies that operate electric generators, and purchased by consumers or electricity retailers.
The National Electricity Market (NEM) is an arrangement in Australia's electricity sector for the connection of the electricity transmission grids of the eastern and southern Australia states and territories to create a cross-state wholesale electricity market. The Australian Energy Market Commission develops and maintains the Australian National Electricity Rules (NER), which have the force of law in the states and territories participating in NEM. The Rules are enforced by the Australian Energy Regulator. The day-to-day management of NEM is performed by the Australian Energy Market Operator.
The Loy Yang Power Station is a brown coal- fired thermal power station located on the outskirts of the city of Traralgon, in south-eastern Victoria, Australia. It consists of two sections, known as Loy Yang A and Loy Yang B. Both Loy Yang A and B are supplied by the Loy Yang brown coal mine. The Loy Yang power stations are located in the brown coal rich Latrobe Valley, along with the Yallourn Power Station.
ActewAGL is an Australian multi-utility joint venture company provides utility services in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and south-east New South Wales. The company was formed in October 2000 between the Australian Gas Light Company and ACTEW Corporation.
The State Electricity Commission of Victoria is a government-owned electricity company in Victoria, Australia. Originally established to generate electricity from the state's reserves of brown coal, the SEC gradually monopolised most aspects of the Victorian electricity industry, before being broken up and largely privatised in the 1990s. After several decades of dormancy, it was revived in 2023 to invest in renewable energy and storage markets.
Liddell Power Station is a decommissioned coal-fired thermal power station that had four 500 megawatts (670,000 hp) EE steam-driven turbine alternators, providing a combined electrical capacity of 2,000 megawatts (2,700,000 hp).
Pacific Blue is an electricity generation and retailing company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. The company was founded in 1992 and was soon floated on the Australian Securities Exchange, it was later bought by a consortium of industry superannuation funds and delisted. It is now owned by China's State Power Investment Corporation.
AGL Energy Ltd is an Australian listed public company involved in both the generation and retailing of electricity and gas for residential and commercial use. It is one of the "big three" retailers in the National Electricity Market. AGL is Australia's largest electricity generator, and the nation's largest carbon emitter. In 2022, 83% of its energy came from burning coal.
Solar power is a major contributor to electricity supply in Australia. As of December 2023, Australia's over 3.69 million solar PV installations had a combined capacity of 34.2 GW photovoltaic (PV) solar power. In 2019, 59 solar PV projects with a combined capacity of 2,881 MW were either under construction, constructed or due to start construction having reached financial closure. Solar accounted for 12.4% of Australia's total electrical energy production in 2021.
The energy policy of Australia is subject to the regulatory and fiscal influence of all three levels of government in Australia, although only the State and Federal levels determine policy for primary industries such as coal. Federal policies for energy in Australia continue to support the coal mining and natural gas industries through subsidies for fossil fuel use and production. Australia is the 10th most coal-dependent country in the world. Coal and natural gas, along with oil-based products, are currently the primary sources of Australian energy usage and the coal industry produces over 30% of Australia's total greenhouse gas emissions. In 2018 Australia was the 8th highest emitter of greenhouse gases per capita in the world.
Energy in Victoria, Australia is generated using a number of fuels or technologies, including coal, natural gas and renewable energy sources. Brown coal, historically, was the main primary energy source for the generation of electricity in the state, accounting for about 85% of electricity generation in 2008. The amount of coal-fired power has decreased significantly with the closure in 2017 of the Hazelwood Power Station which supplied around 20% of Victoria's electricity, and to a lesser extent with the exit of Anglesea Power Station in 2015. Brown coal is one of the largest contributors to Australia's total domestic greenhouse gas emissions and a source of controversy for the country. Australia is one of the highest polluters of greenhouse gas per capita in the world.
Grid parity occurs when an alternative energy source can generate power at a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) that is less than or equal to the price of power from the electricity grid. The term is most commonly used when discussing renewable energy sources, notably solar power and wind power. Grid parity depends upon whether you are calculating from the point of view of a utility or of a retail consumer.
Energy in Australia is the production in Australia of energy and electricity, for consumption or export. Energy policy of Australia describes the politics of Australia as it relates to energy.
South Australia is a leader in utility-scale renewable energy generation, and also produces gas and uranium for electricity generation. Gas production is mostly concentrated in the Cooper Basin in the state's north-east. Gas is delivered from these fields by pipeline to users interstate and to Port Adelaide where it fuels three separate gas-fired power plants. Uranium is also mined in South Australia, though nuclear power generation is prohibited nationally. The Olympic Dam mine is the world's single largest known deposit of uranium and represents 30% of the world's total uranium resource. Many utility-scale wind farms and solar farms have been commissioned during the 21st century and geology with potential for geothermal energy has also been identified but is yet to be developed.
Macquarie Generation is an electricity generation company in New South Wales, Australia, owned by AGL Energy, and has a portfolio of generating sites using predominantly thermal coal power. The company now trades as AGL Macquarie and generates electricity for sale under contract.
The electricity sector in Australia has been historically dominated by coal-fired power stations, but renewables are forming a rapidly growing fraction of supply. In 2021, Australia's electricity production reached 265 TWh, with coal accounting for 52.9% and natural gas for 18.8%. Renewable sources, comprising solar, wind, hydro, and bioenergy with waste, collectively made up 26.7% of the total electricity generation mix.
Turkey uses more electricity per person than the global average, but less than the European average, with demand peaking in summer due to air conditioning. Most electricity is generated from coal, gas and hydropower, with hydroelectricity from the east transmitted to big cities in the west. Electricity prices are state-controlled, but wholesale prices are heavily influenced by the cost of imported gas.
The South Australian blackout of 2016 was a widespread power outage in South Australia that occurred as a result of storm damage to electricity transmission infrastructure on 28 September 2016. The cascading failure of the electricity transmission network resulted in almost the entire state losing its electricity supply, affecting 850,000 SA customers. Kangaroo Island did not lose its supply, as the Kangaroo Island power station had been built to supply the island for the contingency of a failure in the power cable under the Backstairs Passage.
The Broken Hill Solar Plant, which became operational in December 2015, is a 53 megawatt farm located near Broken Hill in western New South Wales, Australia. It is associated with the Nyngan Solar Plant, making the total capacity of the combined plants 155 megawatts.
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