Renewable energy: ‘Drought’ hits wind power despite investment billions

Already a subscriber?Billions of dollars of investment in wind farms over several years have been unable to prevent a “drought” in wind power generation this quarter that has surprised the market and contributed to a squeeze on east-coast gas supplies inflating wholesale prices.

The numbers highlight the natural volatility in generation from renewable energy sources that can have increasingly large impacts on power grids as round-the-clock baseload coal generators close. Energy executives point to the need for investment across different clean energy technologies and regions, and for improved transmission.

“There will be very little buffer left in case Longford gas supply or coal power generation trip again.” Energy policy advisers have previously warned about the implications for the NEM of a “renewables drought” in winter months,. Meaning “dark doldrums”, it refers to a prolonged period when both solar and wind power generation are subdued. The Australian market is most affected by low wind power rather than solar, leading some experts to decline to apply the term to present conditions.

Global-ROAM also noted on Monday that limits appeared to have been placed on generation from solar farms in south-west NSW.

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