By Anton Lang ~
This Post details the daily power consumption data for the AEMO coverage area in Australia. For the background information, refer to the Introductory Post at this link.
Each image is shown here at a smaller size to fit on the page alongside the data for that day. If you click on each image, it will open on a new page and at a larger size so you can better see the detail.
Note also the scale change for some of the images. That scale (the total power shown on the left hand axis) has been changed to show the graph at a larger size.
Tuesday 18th December 2018
Total Power Generation All Sources
Here, the black line across the top of the graph shows the total power generation from every source. This is also similar to the total power consumption, which is slightly lower after minor grid losses are taken into account.
The dark grey colour is for the black coal fired power generation. The yellowish colour is for the brown coal fired power generation. The purple colour is for natural gas fired power generation. The blue colour is for Hydro (water) power generation. The green colour is for wind power generation. The red colour in the dip between the two peaks is for solar power plant generation. Rooftop solar power is not included on this graph, as this shows just the power generation from all power plants only.
In the data below, both of those (exact) figures for total power consumption for the daily minimum and the daily Peak are taken directly from the AEMO site, adding up the totals for each of the five States in this coverage area. Also, note the slight difference between Total Consumed Power and Total Generated Power. That indicates some of the losses in the grid system
Daily Minimum Power Consumption – MW
Daily Peak Power Consumption – MW
Daily Minimum Generated Power – 18500MW
Daily Maximum Generated Power – 26500MW
Average Total Power Generation – 23300MW
Total Power Generation In GWH – 559.2GWH
All Fossil Fuels Total – Coal Fired and Natural Gas Fired Power Generation
Here, the upper black line is the total from all fossil fuels, and this is the same as the blue line in the image directly above.
The black line just under that top black line is the Sub Total just for coal fired power. Note here how closely that coal fired line follows the shape of the upper Load Curve, and this indicates that coal fired power can be ramped up and down to follow actual power consumption.
Daily Minimum Coal Fired – 15120MW
Daily Peak Coal Fired – 17970MW
Average Coal Fired Generation – 17230MW
Total Generated Power – 413.52GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 73.95%
Natural Gas Fired Power Generation
This image for Natural Gas Fired Power Generation shows the gap between the total for all Fossil Fuelled Sources of power generation and Coal Fired Power Generation in the image directly above.
Note here how closely the shape follows the total power generation Load Curve in the top image, indicating how these natural gas fired plants are used to smooth out the load curve to match actual power consumption.
Note also that while coal fired power provides the bulk of the power, these natural gas fired plants are used to add more power to the system during those time periods during the day when consumption rises for the morning peak, and the main evening Peak
Daily Minimum – 750MW
Daily Peak – 3610MW
Average Natural Gas Fired Generation – 1960MW
Total Generated Power – 47.04GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 8.41%
All Renewable Power Generation Versus Total Power Generation
This Image shows just the gap between total power generation from every source and the total power from renewable sources only. It is the same image as the first image at the top here, only with the fossil fuelled total (the grey, yellow and purple colours) removed from the graph, As in that top image, it shows Hydro Power, (blue colour) wind power, (green colour) and solar power. (red colour) This image is used here to highlight the gap between the total power generation and the total from renewable sources alone.
All Renewable Power Generation (Does not include rooftop solar generation)
This image is the same as for the one directly above for all renewable power, only with the total from all sources removed from the graph. As the scale of the left hand vertical axis has now changed, you can better see the detail of all renewable power. Again, the blue colour is for hydro, the green colour is for wind, and the red colour is for solar. The other colours you can just make out indicates smaller plants, mostly using biofuels as their fuel source, tiny plants adding up to a very small total and for a short time duration. For this data, I have added the times for the daily minimum, and the daily maximum, to show how they do not correlate with the actual times of minimum power consumption (4AM) and maximum power consumption. (around 6/6.30PM)
Daily Minimum – 2300MW
Daily Peak – 5300MW
Average Renewable Generation – 3640MW
Total Generated Power – 87.36GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 15.62%
Generation From Other Sources
This image shows the power being generated from the seven smaller sources other than the major sources of power generation. These include Natural Gas/Diesel, Natural gas/Fuel Oil, Coal Seam Methane, Diesel, Kerosene, Waste Coal Mine Gas and Bagasse. All of these are fossil Fuels, excepting Bagasse which is sugar cane waste mostly used to provide main and auxilliary power at sugar mills.
Note the scale change here, as these are smaller producers of power, and the scale is changed so they can be more easily shown on the graph.
For the data here, I have just added the average generation across the day, the total generated power from all these sources, and the percentage of the total.
Average Generation – 470MW
Total Generated Power – 11.28GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 2.02%
Hydro Power Generation
This image shows all Hydro power generation. It is the same as the orange line in the top image for power generation from all sources.
Again, note here that the shape of this load curve follows the shape of the main load curve for all power generation, in that it has similar peaks in the morning and for the man evening Peak. The coloured lines at the bottom of this graph indicate the power generation from each of the hydro plants in this coverage area.
Daily Minimum – 870MW
Daily Peak – 2860MW
Average Hydro Generation – 1730MW
Total Generated Power – 41.52GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 7.42%
Wind Power Generation
This image shows the total power generated by every wind plant in this vast coverage area. It is the same as for the purple coloured line in the image at the top showing generation from all sources.
The total Nameplate for all these wind plants is 5452MW.
Note that the shape of this load curve does not follow the shape of the main load curve for total power generation. Wind power generates its power only when the wind is blowing, hence it does not follow actual power consumption levels.
For this data, I have added the times for the daily minimum, and the daily maximum, to show how they do not correlate with the actual times of minimum power consumption (4AM) and maximum power consumption. (around 6/6.30PM)
Daily Minimum – 350MW (11.45AM)
Daily Peak – 2230MW (9.50PM)
Average Wind Generation – 1430MW
Total Generated Power – 34.32GWH
Average Percentage Of Total – 6.14%
Solar Power Plant Generation
This image shows the total power generated from all the solar power plants in this coverage area. This is the same as for the red coloured area you can just see in that top image.
The total Nameplate for all these 29 solar plants is 2021MW.
Daily Minimum – Zero
Daily Peak – 1270MW
Average Solar Plant Generation for hours of generation – 820MW (5.30AM till 7.30PM)
Average Solar Plant Generation across the whole 24 hour day – 480MW
Total Generated Power – 11.52GWH
Average Percentage Of Total across the whole 24 hour day – 2.06%
Rooftop Solar Power Generation
As this source of power generation is classed as ‘behind the meter’, it is not included in the total power generation. Note here that the State of Queensland (QLD on the legend under the graph) is broken down into four separate areas as this is the largest State with the largest number of installations.
While the total Nameplate changes often, the latest information is that the total is now 7800MW, and that is a large total. However, that total equates to 1.8 Million homes with panels on their roof. That equates to an average sized installation of 4.3KW. Most of the power is consumed by the homes with the panels, and what is fed back to the grid, while seemingly still high is spread across that huge number of installations across the whole of this coverage area.
Daily Minimum – Zero
Daily Peak – 3820MW
Average For Hours of Generation – 1800MW (5.00AM till 8.00PM)
Average Rooftop Solar Generation across the whole 24 hour day – 1120MW
Total Generated Power – 26.88GWH
Average Percentage Of Total across the whole 24 hour day – 4.81%
Wind And Solar Power Generation Versus Total Power Generation
This image shows the total power generated from all the wind plants, and all the solar power plants in this coverage area, combined in the one image, and compares it to the overall total generated power, the black line at the top of the graph. Wind power is the green coloured area, and solar plant power is the red coloured area, and these are the same as shown in those other coloured images at the top of the Post.
I have also added the total generated power for both wind and solar plant power combined, and the percentage of the overall total below for the maximum power from both sources with respect to the overall total, both at the maximum for both, and then for the total for both at the daily peak Power time.
Daily Peak for Wind and Solar Plant Power – 2600MW
Average Across the whole day – 1910MW
Total Generated Power – 45.84GWH
Average Percentage of Total across the whole 24 hour day – 8.2%
Total Generated power at the daily maximum for both wind and solar plant power, the time of that maximum, and percentage of the total at that daily maximum – 2600MW – 4.55PM – 9.81%
Total Generated power for wind and solar plant power at Peak Power Consumption time for the day, and percentage of total at that daily Peak Power time – 2600MW – 4.55PM – 9.81%
Notes
- Finding Averages – On each (non solar) graph, there are 25 hourly time points, starting with midnight and finishing with midnight. I have added the total at each time point together, and divided by 25.
- For both solar power averages, I have used the same addition of hourly time points and then divided by the same number of those time points of actual generation. Every so often, as the days get longer (or shorter after Summer) I change the hours of generation as those hours change.
- For total power in GWH, multiply the average daily power by 24, and then divide by 1000.
- The total percentages for coal fired power, natural gas fired power, all renewables, and those other smaller sources add up to 100%.
- The total percentages for Hydro, Wind, and Solar adds up to the total percentage for all Renewables.
- Total Generated Power is expressed here as GWH (GigaWattHours) and a GWH is a MWH (MegaWattHour) multiplied by 1000
Comments For This Day
Sometimes it surprises you. You spend the usual three hours compiling all the data and the images for these Posts only to find it is virtually unchanged from the day before, with the only change being in the mix of supply from the different sources.
Here the overall average power generation per hour was only 100MW higher than it was for the day before, a change of only 0.6%.
The average for coal fired power was 170MW higher, and there are still 7 of those coal fired Units off line.
The average for natural gas fired power was 120MW, the average for hydro power was lower by 290MW, the average for those smaller Other sources was higher by 20MW and the average for solar plant power was higher by 30MW
The average for wind power was higher by 290MW, but here, note that low point only 350MW with a range from there to the high point of 1800MW, and how can you run a Country when you have that sort of variability? That average of 1430MW gave wind power a daily operational Capacity Factor of 26.23%, which is just a ;ittle lower than the average, and it’s an odd thing to me that an average of only 30% Capacity factor is actually something that is acceptable. If someone was to say to me that here is your nice new car, but it’s only going to get you to your destination one time in three, and you won’t know which time that will be or when it will be. an average 30% Capacity factor is just NOT ACCEPTABLE.
On a day when the overall was virtually unchanged from the day before, note here that the power delivered from coal fired power was almost 74% of every watt of power being generated.
Anton Lang uses the screen name of TonyfromOz, and he writes at this site, PA Pundits International on topics related to electrical power generation, from all sources, concentrating mainly on Renewable Power, and how the two most favoured methods of renewable power generation, Wind Power and all versions of Solar Power, fail comprehensively to deliver levels of power required to replace traditional power generation. His Bio is at this link.
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Posted on Sat 12/22/2018 by TonyfromOz
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