How South Australia's grid-scale batteries performed in 2026: energy and FCAS market revenue, $/MW, $/MWh, top performers, and price events.
South Australia (SA1) batteries earned $59.93M in estimated gross energy and FCAS market revenue so far in 2026, from 14 grid-scale units tracked by NEMPulse. Figures cover 2026 to date (through 30 Oct 2026).
Normalised across 1,131 MW and 1,868 MWh of registered capacity, the region earned $53k/MW and $32k/MWh for the period.
Energy arbitrage supplied 96% of the total and FCAS 4%, with estimated Frequency Performance Payments contributing the remaining 0% ($330k). Within FCAS, regulation accounted for 52% and contingency 48%; the single largest market was raise regulation at $749k.
For context on the trading conditions, the average daily price spread (top two hours minus bottom two hours) in South Australia was $316/MWh, and the highest spot price reached $20,300/MWh.
Against the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, South Australia batteries captured 51% of what hindsight would have earned, an estimated $52.47M of unrealised upside.
On capture of the perfect-foresight energy benchmark, the strongest performers were Bolivar Waste Water Treatment Plant (78%), Christies Beach Wastewater Treatment Plant (73%), Happy Valley Water Treatment Plant (66%). At the other end: Summerfield BESS 2 (10%), Lincoln Gap Wind Farm Battery (2%), Summerfield BESS 1 (-122%) — capture reflects strategy, contracting and constraints as much as skill, so a low figure is not automatically underperformance.
The strongest single day was 26 Jan 2026 at $17.95M, and the best single battery-day was Blyth Battery Energy Storage System on 26 Jan 2026 with $4.98M. Revenue stays concentrated: five of the period's 303 days delivered 44% of everything South Australia batteries earned.
One battery earned its first market revenue in the period — Clements Gap BESS — adding 60 MW of earning capacity.
Blyth Battery Energy Storage System led the region with $15.17M. Full dispatch, state-of-charge and bidding detail is available on each battery's page.
South Australia saw 131 price events this period, the sharpest an extreme price event peaking at $20,300/MWh.
| Battery | Energy + FCAS | $/MW | $/MWh | Capture |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blyth Battery Energy Storage System | $15.17M | $76k/MW | $38k/MWh | 57% |
| Torrens Island BESS | $11.24M | $45k/MW | $45k/MWh | 47% |
| Templers Battery Energy Storage System | $9.80M | $88k/MW | $34k/MWh | 65% |
| Mannum Battery Energy Storage System | $9.33M | $93k/MW | $47k/MWh | 58% |
| Hornsdale Power Reserve | $5.63M | $38k/MW | $29k/MWh | 40% |
| Bungama Battery Energy Storage System | $2.88M | $19k/MW | $9,585/MWh | 33% |
| Tailem Bend 2 Hybrid Renewable Power Station | $2.05M | $50k/MW | $50k/MWh | 50% |
| Clements Gap BESS | $1.48M | $25k/MW | $12k/MWh | 56% |
| Lake Bonney BESS1 | $1.30M | $52k/MW | $25k/MWh | 36% |
| Adelaide Desalination Plant | $375k | $61k/MW | $62k/MWh | 62% |
| Happy Valley Water Treatment Plant | $276k | $69k/MW | $69k/MWh | 66% |
| Dalrymple North BESS | $253k | $8,427/MW | $21k/MWh | 20% |
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 — 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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