Wind, solar and battery records tumble on last day of Autumn in Australia’s most coal dependent grid

Queensland reached a new maximum instantaneous renewables plus storage (RES) share of consumption of 79.5% at 11:20 hrs on Sunday 31 May 2026, the final day of autumn and just one day before the start of the Australian winter.

The new record was up 1.1 percentage points, or 1.4%, from the previous Queensland high of 78.4% at 11:40 hrs on Monday 13 April 2026. One year earlier, the record stood at 76.6% at 11:15 hrs on Sunday 20 October 2024, around 2.9 percentage points lower.

Queensland also recorded a new maximum instantaneous Battery Share of Consumption of 16.9% at 10:50 hrs, fractionally exceeding the previous record set eight days earlier, at 10:45 hrs on Saturday, May 23.

A year earlier, the comparable record was just 6.4% at 11:00 hrs on Sunday May 18, 2025, highlighting how quickly storage is becoming material in NEM operations.

What makes the renewable share record especially notable is its timing. Across the NEM, high renewable-share records are often associated with spring conditions. Queensland setting a new high on 31 May, the final day of autumn, shows it can now reach near-80% renewables-plus-storage share even close to winter.

A few useful observations:

– This was a flexibility record as much as a renewables record: Queensland reached 79.5% RES share of consumption while batteries, exports and some curtailment helped manage the midday surplus.

– The result is notable not only for the headline 79.5% renewable share, but for the shape behind it: more than 4 GW of rooftop PV, strong grid-scale solar, over 1.2 GW of battery charging, net exports and some curtailment all interacting during a late-autumn midday interval.

– The battery result is important: Queensland’s Battery Share of Consumption reached 16.9%, compared with 6.4% one year earlier, highlighting how quickly storage is becoming material in NEM operations.

– The record was concentrated in the late-morning solar window rather than sustained across the whole day. QLD’s full-day average RES share of consumption was 40.5%, ranking 60th since 23 March 2018, compared with the daily-average record of 45.5% on Monday 30 March 2026 and the 3rd-highest day of 44.9% on Friday 8 May 2026.

– This was an instantaneous 5-minute record, not a whole-day average, but it is a useful marker of how Queensland’s operating envelope is shifting as solar, storage and system flexibility grow.

Overall, this record shows Queensland’s transition moving from seasonal highs to a broader operating reality: high solar output, rapidly growing battery charging, exports and curtailment are now combining to push RES share of consumption close to 80%, even on the final day of autumn.

Editor’s note: Queensland remains Australia’s most coal dependent grid with a share of 66% over the last 12 months, hence the headline. The state LNP government has ripped up the state’s renewable energy targets.