By Angela Macdonald-Smith
Jan. 30 (Bloomberg) -- Australia’s wholesale electricity market operator cut power to some customers in Victoria and South Australia states for a second day after shortages left the system unable to meet record demand amid extreme temperatures.
About 350 megawatts of customer load was reduced from the transmission networks in Victoria and 90 megawatts in South Australia, the National Electricity Market Management Co. said today in statements on its Web site. Hot weather affected power flows through the Basslink cable from Tasmania to Victoria and the output of “a number” of generators was reduced, it said.
The temperature in Melbourne, Victoria’s capital, was forecast to reach 43 degrees Celsius (109.4 Fahrenheit) today, the first time the city has had three consecutive days above 42 degrees, the National Climate Center said. The state government provided free public transport, citing a “once-in-a-century heatwave.”
The cut to Victoria’s power supply were equivalent to 3.3 percent of today’s peak demand of about 10,500 megawatts and 2.7 percent of South Australia’s maximum use. The power cuts affected a combination of households, businesses and industry were implemented by distribution companies, the market manager said.
The Basslink underwater cable, owned by Singapore’s CitySpring Infrastructure Trust, is designed to shut down when temperatures in northern Tasmania reach more than 35 degrees, and also halted operations yesterday. Such conditions are estimated to occur just once in 50 years, Basslink Chief Executive Officer Malcolm Eccles said yesterday.
Power was restored to all customers after about 2 1/2 hours, said Paul Bird, a spokesman for National Electricity.
To contact the reporter on this story: Angela Macdonald-Smith in Sydney at amacdonaldsm@bloomberg.net
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