Renewables Steady Australia’s Grid Amid Soaring Summer Temperatures

A record uptick in renewables capacity helped Australia’s power grid weather last month’s scorching summer heat.

South Australia “smashed” its electricity demand records toward the end of January after reaching a peak of 4,235 megawatts—10% higher than the previous record set earlier in the month, reports Renew Economy. At the same time, wind and solar power contributions also hit a peak, rising to 3,956 megawatts and helping meet that heightened demand. A similar pattern was seen in Victoria, and the country’s National Electricity Market that covers the eastern states logged its third-highest demand on record.

Rooftop solar helped meet about 45% of demand, with a lot of that generation consumed behind the meter, powering home air conditioning and lowering grid strain. Over the past year, wind and solar provided 75% of South Australia’s electricity demand, and the state is expected to reach 100% net renewables in the coming year.

Renewable energy also recently provided more than half of Australia’s electricity consumption in a given quarter for the first time, reported the Australia Broadcasting Company.

The recent spike in electricity demand is linked to severe heatwaves that scorched the country in late January. A hot air mass developed in Western Australia and moved east before stagnating as a heat dome “sitting in place with nowhere to go,” according to Jonathan How of Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology. The conditions were made worse by a cyclone off Western Australia’s northwest coast.

In some areas, high temperatures persisted for seven to eight days, with many locations nearing 50°C. Temperatures have since eased, leading the Bureau to cancel heatwave warnings across the country on February 1.

Scientists have said an earlier heatwave in January was made about five times more likely because of climate change. Roughly 50 weather stations recorded their highest temperatures on record, especially in western New South Wales, western Victoria, and eastern South Australia, reported The Guardian.

Historical records also show that the frequency of extremely hot days is increasing.