The Aussie electricity market malfunction of June 2022 - EP156

Australia’s National Electricity Market was suspended by the market operator for nine days in June 2022. For a brief period, authorities were worried there would have to be widespread blackouts to balance supply and demand, so the market operator stepped in to direct generators to produce the power that was needed. In this episode, Andrew Murdoch, Managing Director of Arche Energy, explains what went wrong in June, and he talks to show host Gene Tunny about whether it could happen again. Are renewables coming into the system too quickly? What’s happening with batteries? Will Australia be able to cope with the retirement of coal-fired power stations? And what about all the EVs that will need charging? These and other questions are tackled in a frank and fearless conversation.  About this episode’s guest: Andrew MurdochAndrew Murdoch is Managing Director of Arche Energy, a Brisbane-based consulting firm specialising in energy projects.. He is an experienced general manager, project director and engineer operating in renewable power, power generation, energy, ports and heavy infrastructure. For more on Andrew’s experience, check out the Arche Energy website:https://archeenergy.com.au/about-us/andrew-murdoch/Links relevant to the conversationAustralian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) report into market suspension in June 2022:https://www.aemo.com.au/-/media/files/electricity/nem/market_notices_and_events/market_event_reports/2022/nem-market-suspension-and-operational-challenges-in-june-2022.pdf?la=enAEMO’s Integrated System Plan:https://aemo.com.au/en/energy-systems/major-publications/integrated-system-plan-ispNEM suspensions costs lower than expected - NB when they were directed to supply gas to the market at an uneconomic price for them at the market price cap of $300/MWh, the generators became eligible for compensation:https://aemo.com.au/newsroom/media-release/nem-suspension-costs-lower-than-expectedAEMO’s Electrical Statement of Opportunityhttps://aemo.com.au/en/energy-systems/electricity/national-electricity-market-nem/nem-forecasting-and-planning/forecasting-and-reliability/nem-electricity-statement-of-opportunities-esooSome large-scale Australian renewable and battery projects: https://lockyerenergy.com.au/https://supernode.com.au/Global coal demand as high as it has ever been:https://www.iea.org/reports/coal-market-update-july-2022/demandCreditsThanks to Josh Crotts for mixing the episode and to the show’s sponsor, Gene’s consultancy business www.adepteconomics.com.au. Please consider signing up to receive our email updates and to access our e-book Top Ten Insights from Economics at www.economicsexplored.com. Also, please get in touch with any questions, comments and suggestions by emailing us at [email protected] or sending a voice message via https://www.speakpipe.com/economicsexplored. Economics Explored is available via Apple Podcasts, Google Podcast, and other podcasting platforms.