Australian grid renewables top 80% of demand for first time
NEM milestone hit despite heavy curtailment of wind and solar
Renewables supplied more than 80% of National Electricity Market demand on Saturday afternoon — a first — even as operators curtailed large volumes of wind and solar and batteries absorbed surplus power.
Australia’s main electricity grid briefly pushed renewable share past 80% of consumption on Saturday, according to market data trackers, beating a record set only a day earlier. Analysts noted the milestone happened alongside substantial curtailment of available renewable output, coal generation falling below one-fifth of demand, and strong battery and pumped-hydro charging. The combination underlines how the NEM transition is now as much about flexible load and surplus management as about simply displacing coal megawatts.