NEMPulse · Insights · SA1

South Australia Battery Wrap — H2 2026

How South Australia's grid-scale batteries performed in H2 2026: energy and FCAS market revenue, $/MW, $/MWh, top performers, and price events.

  • Energy + FCAS revenue: $19.22M
  • Batteries: 15
  • Rev / MW: $17k/MW
  • Rev / MWh: $10k/MWh
  • Optimal capture: 46%
  • $/MW/day vs H1 2026: -61%

South Australia (SA1) batteries earned $19.22M in estimated gross energy and FCAS market revenue so far in H2 2026, from 15 grid-scale units tracked by NEMPulse. Figures cover H2 2026 to date (through 13 Nov 2026).

Normalised across 1,140 MW and 1,890 MWh of registered capacity, the region earned $17k/MW and $10k/MWh for the period.

Total revenue was down 52% on the same days of H1 2026, which returned $40.17M. Per MW per day — which strips out both fleet growth and the length of the window — earnings were down 61% at $124/MW/day. Optimal capture slipped 13 points, from 59% to 46%.

Energy arbitrage supplied 93% of the total and FCAS 6%, with estimated Frequency Performance Payments contributing the remaining 1% ($127k). Within FCAS, regulation accounted for 41% and contingency 59%; the single largest market was raise 1-second at $275k.

For context on the trading conditions, the average daily price spread (top two hours minus bottom two hours) in South Australia was $177/MWh, down 57% on the previous period, and the highest spot price reached $16,971/MWh.

Against the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, South Australia batteries captured 46% of what hindsight would have earned, an estimated $20.49M of unrealised upside.

On capture of the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, the strongest performers were Templers Battery Energy Storage System (70%), Clements Gap BESS (62%), Christies Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant (54%). At the other end: Tailem Bend 3 BESS (4%), Summerfield BESS 1 (-4%), Summerfield BESS 2 (-6%) — capture reflects strategy, contracting and constraints as much as skill, so a low figure is not automatically underperformance.

The strongest single day was 8 Jul 2026 at $1.23M, and the best single battery-day was Hornsdale Power Reserve on 8 Jul 2026 with $307k. Revenue stays concentrated: five of the period's 136 days delivered 15% of everything South Australia batteries earned.

Blyth Battery Energy Storage System led the region with $3.97M. Full dispatch, state-of-charge and bidding detail is available on each battery's page.

South Australia saw 68 price events this period, the sharpest an extreme price event peaking at $16,971/MWh.

South Australia batteries — H2 2026
BatteryEnergy + FCAS$/MW$/MWhCapture
Blyth Battery Energy Storage System$3.97M$20k/MW$9,916/MWh45%
Bungama Battery Energy Storage System$3.50M$23k/MW$12k/MWh50%
Torrens Island BESS$2.64M$11k/MW$11k/MWh38%
Mannum Battery Energy Storage System$2.61M$26k/MW$13k/MWh52%
Templers Battery Energy Storage System$1.89M$17k/MW$6,646/MWh70%
Clements Gap BESS$1.86M$31k/MW$15k/MWh62%
Hornsdale Power Reserve$1.61M$11k/MW$8,318/MWh32%
Tailem Bend 2 Hybrid Renewable Power Station$555k$14k/MW$14k/MWh43%
Lake Bonney BESS1$440k$18k/MW$8,458/MWh37%
Adelaide Desalination Plant$103k$17k/MW$9,856/MWh50%
Happy Valley Water Treatment Plant$72k$18k/MW$9,786/MWh53%
Bolivar Waste Water Treatment Plant$41k$20k/MW$9,646/MWh52%

Capture = actual energy revenue as a share of the perfect-foresight LP benchmark; shown only for units with material modelled upside.

Keep reading: Previous period: H1 2026NEM-wide wrap — H2 2026South Australia battery fleetActual vs optimal dispatchMarket eventsHow capture is calculated

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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.

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