Brown coal output hits record low in Victoria, as renewables reach 72% of demand

The most polluting technology in Australia’s main grid – brown coal generation – hit a record low in Victoria on Saturday afternoon, as renewables grabbed a two-thirds share of total generation and more than 70 per cent of demand.

The milestone was achieved at 12.40pm on Saturday afternoon, in Victoria, when brown coal output fell to 1908MW, a record low according to Dylan McConnell from the Climate and Energy College in Melbourne.

One unit at Loy Yang A and one unit at Loy Yang B were not operating, and two units at Yallourn were also not operating with one of the two operating units at much reduced capacity.

At the same time, rooftop solar (1629MW) and wind (1617MW) were competing for primacy amongst the renewable energy sources, which together were accounting for more than 70 per cent of state demand, (and later a peak of 79 per cent of demand) and around 66.5 per cent of total generation, with some being exported.

There was zero gas generation at the time, and only a tiny amount of hydro. Utility scale solar was producing 367MW, but some large scale installations had either switched off or dialled down their output to minimal levels to dodge negative pricing events.

The share of brown coal generation in the main grid, known as the National Electricity Market, was just 8.1 per cent, also a record low, and the total output of brown and black coal was just 42 per cent as renewables grabbed more than 55 per cent share.

Renewables hit a 56.5 per cent share later on Saturday afternoon, which was close to a new record, but didn’t beat the 57.1 per cent reached last Sunday afternoon, when rooftop and utility scale solar beat the combined output of brown and black coal for the first time.

Brown coal is relatively cheap, but very dirty. It used to provide around 25 per cent of the output of Australia’s main grid, but has been steadily declining since the closure of the Northern power station in South Australia and Hazelwood in Victoria.

The remaining brown coal generators – Yallourn and Loy Yang A and B – have been forced by the growing share of rooftop solar to rapidly adjust their output, something they find difficult to do with their ageing machinery.

On Saturday afternoon the output of brown coal on the main grid (8.1 per cent) trailed that of utility scale solar, large scale wind, and rooftop solar.