CANBERRA, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Surging solar output drove Australia's renewable energy generation to a third-quarter record high from July to September, the market operator said on Friday.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) said in its energy dynamics report that renewables supplied 44.3 percent of national electricity market generation from July 1 through Sept. 30, surpassing the previous third-quarter record of 41.8 percent set in 2025.
It said that generation output from large-scale solar stations increased by 30 percent year-on-year to a new third quarter high of 2,211 megawatts (MW), while rooftop solar output grew 13 percent to 3,203 MW and hydro generation increased by 15 percent to 1,572 MW.
Electricity generation from black coal and gas-fired power plants fell by a combined 744 MW in the same period. Brown coal generation increased 8.9 percent to 3,832 MW.
Large-scale batteries supplied 8.0 percent of electricity demand during the evening peak across the quarter, exceeding the contribution from gas-fired generation for the first time in any quarter.
The report noted that underlying national electricity market demand grew 1.3 percent to a new third-quarter high of 25,471 MW. It attributed the rise to ongoing electrification, higher industrial demand and increasing data center consumption. ■
