Capacity mechanism, FCAS, load shedding: how much have you learned from Australia’s energy crisis? Take our quiz

Find out what you’ve learned about Australia’s electricity market during the energy crisis. Photograph: AAP

1. What is load shedding?

   1. A yoga term describing the relief when moving from the downward dog to a low lunge.

   2. A fancy name for a blackout.

   3. A last resort when electricity market bosses have tried everything else to balance out demand with supply.

   4. Any time a power generator has to carry out planned repairs.

2. What is an example of dispatchability?

   1. An off-the-shelf power source that can be put in place quickly, such as a battery or a solar panel.

   2. Foreign minister Penny Wong being sent to the Pacific straight after an election to rebuild Australia’s reputation on climate change.

   3. A shop promising immediate delivery of a power bank to keep your mobile phone going when it runs out of juice.

   4. A source of electricity that can be controlled to keep supply and demand balanced in the system.

3. What is a “default market offer” in the electricity sector?

   1. An electricity company can’t pay back its loans, but someone down the market is offering to sell you that company in exchange for all those power banks you keep buying.

   2. A price set by an energy regulator that influences how much an electricity retailer can charge you.

   3. The standard price for borrowing a market stallholder’s extension cable which can rise or fall in line with the cost of lettuce.

   4. The minimum cost that power generators such as a wind farm or a coal plant say they can provide electricity for.

4. What is the wholesale electricity market?

   1. The price a fruit and vegetable wholesaler pays for air-conditioning so a $12 iceberg lettuce doesn’t go limp.

   2. A place where electrons go to buy confectionery in bulk.

   3. A virtual marketplace in which retailers buy electricity from companies that generate it.

   4. Any participant in the electricity market – from a coal plant to a battery owner – that can theoretically deliver at least 1,000 megawatts of electricity.

5. What is a Lack of Reserve Notice?

   1. A notice from your boss at the cafe to buy more avocados (but not too many) because not enough are available to meet smashed-avo demand.

   2. A notice issued by the electricity market operator to all market participants, such as coal plant owners and large battery operators, about a potential or actual shortfall in energy supply.

   3. An email from the coach to say the squad is threadbare this week and does anyone have a mate that can play wing defence?

   4. A notice issued by electricity generators to the market that they can no longer provide as much power as usual.

6. What does FCAS stand for?

   1. Flexible Contingency Auxiliary System. Also known as a parasitic load, it refers to energy used by generators themselves.

   2. Forecast Close Asset Strategy. A plan agreed between a regulator and a power provider for staged close-down of a power plant.

   3. Frequency Control Ancillary Services. A market in which generators can provide services that keep the electricity system balanced.

   4. Fully Cooked And Solared. Electricity market slang for when cheaper renewables push fossil fuels out of the market.

7. What is the integrated system plan?

   1. A detailed plan produced every two years by the Australian Energy Market Operator on the optimal future design of the National Electricity Market.

   2. A plan produced every two years by the energy department to link the National Electricity Market with the Northern Territory’s electricity networks and Western Australia’s South West Interconnected System.

   3. A plan that owners of coal-power plants must submit each year detailing how quickly they are working to close down.

   4. A plan to integrate all the systems in an integrated and systematic way that both plans and integrates all the things.

8. If you hear energy wonks and ministers talking about a “capacity mechanism”, what might they be referring to?

   1. A proposal to make sure that the electricity system always has access to enough power generation.

   2. The network of poles and wires that delivers electricity to consumers.

   3. Energy worker jargon for a meal break. “I’m off for my capacity mechanism, boss.”

   4. Google it, mate.

Solutions

1:C - When electricity market bosses have tried everything else to balance out demand with supply, they can resort to load shedding – deliberately turning off power to some places to reduce demand and stop a large-scale collapse. It’s different to a blackout, which refers to an unplanned outage. , 2:D - Technically, coal, gas, large-scale solar and wind are all dispatchable forms of electricity. Rooftop solar on its own isn’t as it can’t be controlled in the same way. “Dispatchable” is sometimes incorrectly used interchangeably with “firm”, which in market jargon relates to how dependable and predictable a source of power is, and “flexibility”, which refers to how quickly it can be turned up, down, on or off., 3:B - Households and small businesses normally buy electricity on either a promotional deal (a “market offer”) or a default “standing offer”. In South Australia, New South Wales and south-east Queensland, the Australian Energy Regulator sets a maximum price a retailer can charge – called the “default market offer” – and this acts like a soft cap on prices. In Victoria, the state’s essential services commission sets this, and calls it the Victorian Default Offer., 4:C - Retailers buy electricity either at a “spot price”, which changes every five minutes, or a contracted price agreed between retailers and generators over a set period. The wholesale price makes up about a third of a consumer’s electricity bill., 5:B - These notices come from the Australian Energy Market Operator. The most serious is an “actual” level 3 notice, which means power supply is probably being turned off somewhere to keep the system balanced., 6:C - Electricity market operators call on these services if there are sudden changes, such as a fault in a power plant or a big consumer stops needing power., 7:A - The plan looks at how the market could be developed over the coming decades that would be low cost, reliable and in line with climate targets. The National Electricity Market covers NSW, the ACT, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania. The next plan is due at the end of June., 8:A - This is an idea being explored by energy ministers and market regulators to pay electricity providers to have guaranteed power available at certain times when demand is high.

Scores

1. 8 and above.

   Rating: Terrawatt. You know transitioning Australia’s electricity grid away from fossil fuels is a crucial part of getting to net zero, and so you want to know the detail. Either that or all your friends work at Aoemo.

2. 7 and above.

   Rating: Megawatt. You know the difference between your NEM and your elbow. Great effort.

3. 6 and above.

   Rating: Megawatt. You know the difference between your NEM and your elbow. Great effort.

4. 5 and above.

   Rating: Megawatt. You know the difference between your NEM and your elbow. Great effort.

5. 4 and above.

   Rating: Megawatt. You know the difference between your NEM and your elbow. Great effort.

6. 3 and above.

   Rating: Watt? You seem to think the future of Australia’s electricity supply is a joke. But seeing as you’re here. How many birds does it take to change a lightbulb? Toucan do it.

7. 2 and above.

   Rating: Watt? You seem to think the future of Australia’s electricity supply is a joke. But seeing as you’re here. How many birds does it take to change a lightbulb? Toucan do it.

8. 1 and above.

   Rating: Watt? You seem to think the future of Australia’s electricity supply is a joke. But seeing as you’re here. How many birds does it take to change a lightbulb? Toucan do it.

9. 0 and above.

   Rating: Watt? You seem to think the future of Australia’s electricity supply is a joke. But seeing as you’re here. How many birds does it take to change a lightbulb? Toucan do it.