Power outages hit Melbourne, regional Victoria as state swelters through extreme weather

Power companies have been directed to start restoring electricity to thousands of Victorians, after the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) ordered load shedding across the grid on Melbourne's hottest day in five years.

Shops across parts of Melbourne closed due to power outages in the heatwave.

Load shedding occurs when demand is too great, so the energy operator directs power companies to create rolling blackouts in different parts of the network so the entire system is not at risk.

Just after midday, AEMO chief executive officer Audrey Zibelman said the power outages would affect about 60,000 customers for up to two hours.

Read the ABC News story - “Power outages hit Melbourne, regional Victoria as state swelters through extreme weather."

Energy policy could spur more shareholder hostility

Concerns over investor activism are rising as the federal government's new energy policy forces power companies to include coal and gas in their generation mix.

AGL's Liddell power station in the foreground and the Bayswater plant behind. 

The government's National Energy Guarantee is putting greater obligations on generators and retailers to ensure energy security and reliability of supply, which includes coal and gas.

According to Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg, coal and gas energy sources will account for between 64 and 72 per cent of Australia's future generation mix.

 Cole Latimer’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Energy policy could spur more shareholder hostility.”

Energy policy: power companies could remotely turn down your appliances in exchange for cash

Power companies would remotely turn down home airconditioners and swimming pool pumps to cut power use on hot summer days in exchange for cash rewards for consumers, under a plan by Australia's energy watchdog.

The Australian Energy Regulator hopes the draft
plan will encourage power companies to help
 consumers reduce electricity use. 

The Australian Energy Regulator wants power utilities to increase electricity supply by helping consumers use less, rather than building expensive new poles, wires and other infrastructure and passing the cost on to customers.

Amid soaring power bills, rising greenhouse gas emissions and the risk of blackouts, the regulator this week released a draft plan to give incentives to electricity distributors who manage the power use of consumers.

As well as saving customers money, experts say so-called "demand management" could deliver far more capacity than the Turnbull government's proposed $2 billion Snowy Hydro expansion.

Read Nicole Hasham’s story in today’s  Melbourne Age - “Energy policy: power companies could remotely turn down your appliances in exchange for cash.”

Dithering over Hazelwood closure will lead to a messy end

Hazelwood's closure could be
 as early as next April.

The closure of Hazelwood is unfolding like Ernest Hemingway's description of going bankrupt: "gradually, then suddenly". Age, emissions and other energy options meant it was only a matter of time before Australia's oldest and dirtiest power station retired. Rumours permeated the Latrobe Valley for the last couple of years. But only now that an announcement appears imminent – and closure could be as early as next April – are governments starting to respond.

The federal government has said it's up to the power companies themselves to decide if and when to close coal stations. But leaving it up to the market means giving up control of critical infrastructure and the future of regional communities to a few big power companies.

We saw what happened when Alinta shut down South Australia's Northern coal station with just eight months' notice: 400 jobs gone, massive dislocation for the people of Port Augusta, and sudden pressures on the state's electricity system which the energy market operator is still figuring out how to address. The causes of South Australia's recent price spikes are many, but earlier attention to smoothing the impacts of coal exit could certainly have helped.

Now we are about to repeat the same experience in Victoria, on a larger scale. This is a messy way to undertake what Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg calls the transition to a lower emissions future.

Read Olivia Kember’s comment in today’s Melbourne Age - “Dithering over Hazelwood closure will lead to a messy end.”