Australia’s most renewable grid sets spectacular new wind record as it awaits word on COP hosting bid

If the share of renewables in its local grid were the main criteria, then South Australia would be a shoe-in for hosting next year’s United Nations climate jamboree.

The state on Sunday morning posted a spectacular new record for wind output, breaking total wind and renewable shares at the same time, helped along by some blustery conditions as a cold front swept across the state.

According to GPE NEMLog, the share of wind energy hit a new peak of 157.2 per cent of local demand at 5.30 am, beating the record of 155.1 per cent at 4.55 am (AEST) a day earlier. That had broken the previous record of 153.3 per cent set in late October.

The share of renewables in the state grid also hit a new peak of 157.2 per cent at the same time on Sunday – given there was no solar.

South Australia already leads the world with an average share of 75 per cent wind and solar (over a 12 month period), and has an unmatched official target – first set by then state Liberal government – of reaching 100 per cent net renewables by the end of 2027.

That target appears on track, with a host of new projects and a lot of new battery storage entering the grid or going through commissioning and construction.

South Australia’s most recent records have been assisted by the completion of the state’s biggest wind farm, the 412.5 megawatt (MW) Goyder South wind farm (pictured above), and the partial completion of the new transmission link to NSW, known as Project EnergyConnect.

The new link, and the addition of some new big batteries, means that more excess wind and solar can be either exported to other states or stored, reducing the often high levels of curtailment in a state that finds itself at the end of a long skinny grid.

What’s particularly interesting about this latest record is that at the time of the new peak, more than 2,150 MW of electricity was being fed into the grid, and just 43 MW was coming from fossil fuels.

And that was coming from a single gas-fired unit at Torrens Island, and was not needed for its energy, but for its “system strength” – a need that will be mostly made redundant with the connection of the new link to NSW, and the growing use of synchronous condensers and grid forming battery inverters that can provide the same service.

“These events underline SA’s position at the frontier: periods of surplus RE depend on interconnector headroom and flexible resources (storage, demand timing) to minimise curtailment and keep value in the system,” GPE NEMlog’s Geoff Eldridge wrote on LinkedIn.

“SA’s transition continues in real time — higher renewable shares, strong exports when available, and curtailment that ebbs and flows with network headroom.

“The next gains will come from more storage, smarter load-shifting, and additional transfer capacity to move surplus wind when it arrives.”

A decision on whether Australia – and therefore Adelaide – will get to host COP31, the next UN climate conference, will be made this week at the current conference being held in Belem, Brazil.

Türkiye has also bid to host the conference and has so far refused to cede ground, despite majority support for Australia’s bid, meaning that the hosting could default to Bonn if no consensus can be reached.

Note: Story has been updated with the new Sunday morning records.

See also: In Brazil, climate standoff between Australia and Türkiye remains as divided as their drinking habits

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