How Queensland's grid-scale batteries performed in May 2026: energy and FCAS market revenue, $/MW, $/MWh, top performers, and price events.
Queensland (QLD1) batteries earned $6.73M in estimated gross energy and FCAS market revenue in May 2026, from 14 grid-scale units tracked by NEMPulse. Figures cover the full period.
Normalised across 2,614 MW and 5,800 MWh of registered capacity, the region earned $2,575/MW and $1,160/MWh for the period.
Total revenue was down 24% on April 2026, which returned $8.83M. Per MW per day — which strips out both fleet growth and the length of the window — earnings were down 32% at $83/MW/day. Optimal capture slipped 20 points, from 69% to 49%.
Energy arbitrage supplied 89% of the total and FCAS 10%, with estimated Frequency Performance Payments adding $70k. Within FCAS, regulation accounted for 34% and contingency 66%; the single largest market was lower 6-second at $193k.
For context on the trading conditions, the average daily price spread (top two hours minus bottom two hours) in Queensland was $102/MWh, broadly flat on the previous period, and the highest spot price reached $338/MWh.
Against the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, Queensland batteries captured 49% of what hindsight would have earned, an estimated $5.99M of unrealised upside.
On capture of the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, the strongest performers were Western Downs Battery Energy Storage System (66%), Western Downs Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) (55%), Swanbank BESS (55%). At the other end: Chinchilla BESS, Units 1-80 (40%), Ulinda Park BESS (39%), Supernode BESS (39%) — capture reflects strategy, contracting and constraints as much as skill, so a low figure is not automatically underperformance.
The strongest single day was 22 May 2026 at $516k, and the best single battery-day was Supernode BESS on 31 May 2026 with $94k. Revenue stays concentrated: five of the period's 31 days delivered 34% of everything Queensland batteries earned.
One battery earned its first market revenue in the period — Woolooga BESS — adding 222 MW of earning capacity.
Western Downs Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) led the region with $945k. Full dispatch, state-of-charge and bidding detail is available on each battery's page.
| Battery | Energy + FCAS | $/MW | $/MWh | Capture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Downs Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) | $945k | $3,704/MW | $1,852/MWh | 55% |
| Tarong BESS | $897k | $2,989/MW | $1,495/MWh | 50% |
| Western Downs Battery Energy Storage System | $831k | $3,258/MW | $2,077/MWh | 66% |
| Swanbank BESS | $765k | $3,062/MW | $1,531/MWh | 55% |
| Brendale BESS | $723k | $3,527/MW | $1,763/MWh | 53% |
| Supernode BESS | $658k | $2,530/MW | $1,207/MWh | 45% |
| Greenbank BESS | $517k | $2,586/MW | $1,293/MWh | 44% |
| Supernode BESS | $444k | $1,709/MW | $408/MWh | 39% |
| Ulinda Park BESS | $320k | $2,065/MW | $1,074/MWh | 39% |
| Wandoan Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) | $255k | $2,550/MW | $1,700/MWh | 47% |
| Chinchilla BESS, Units 1-80 | $229k | $2,290/MW | $1,145/MWh | 40% |
| Bouldercombe Battery Project | $168k | $3,369/MW | $1,684/MWh | 49% |
Capture = actual energy revenue as a share of the perfect-foresight LP benchmark; shown only for units with material modelled upside.
Third-party reporting on these units, matched automatically and linked for context. NEMPulse does not endorse or verify external coverage.
Keep reading: NEM-wide wrap — May 2026Queensland battery fleetActual vs optimal dispatchMarket eventsHow capture is calculated
Explore: All insightsBattery fleetActual vs optimalPerformance rankingsMarket economicsMarket eventsBid stackBidding strategyVirtual power plantsProject simulatorAskPulseEmail alerts
Automatically generated from AEMO public data using fixed templates (not AI-written). Figures are estimated gross market revenue (energy + FCAS) from dispatch — they exclude contracts, hedges and network-support schemes (e.g. SIPS), so actual commercial revenue will differ.
Loading live data…