February Wind Energy Breaks Records, Batteries Impact Gas Generation

The Australian electricity grid has wrapped up the summer of 2025-26 by achieving remarkable new records in renewable energy generation, primarily driven by wind energy rather than solar power.

Recent figures from Rystad Energy highlight that every state except Tasmania and Victoria reported record monthly wind generation for February 2026. Notably, Queensland saw wind farms producing a staggering 508,780 megawatt-hours (MWh) over the month, as detailed by OpenNEM.

Outstanding Wind Performance

According to David Dixon from Rystad Energy, the standout wind assets for February were predominantly located in Western Australia. The Potentia Energy-Synergy Warradarge wind farm led the charge with an impressive average capacity factor of 60.5 per cent.

Dixon also praised Squadron Energy for emerging as the top wind generator for February, achieving a production of 387 gigawatt-hours (GWh). This surpassed Tilt Renewables, which generated 364 GWh, marking a significant change as Tilt had previously held the title for most months over the past six years.

Battery Performance Surges

Australia’s large battery systems also had a stellar month, discharging a total of 245 GWh in February for the National Electricity Market (NEM), reflecting an incredible 266 per cent increase compared to the 67 GWh recorded in February 2025.

In New South Wales, new milestones were achieved with the highest monthly battery charge recorded at 75,884 MWh, alongside a discharge of 58,799 MWh, per OpenNEM’s data.

Downtrend in Gas Generation

Despite these remarkable advancements, gas generation continues its downward trend, as noted by Dixon, due to the increasing availability of utility batteries in the market. Rystad reports gas generation within the NEM at 506 GWh for February.

On the large-scale solar front, Rystad indicates that the top-performing assets spanned New South Wales, Victoria, and Western Australia, with SUN Energy’s Merredin wind farm in WA achieving a capacity factor of 41.2 per cent (AC).

NSW’s Dominance in Renewable Generation

New South Wales dominated the renewable energy sector for the month, amassing 617 GWh from wind energy and 853 GWh from utility-scale solar, culminating in a combined total of 1,470 GWh.

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