Australians can expect a once-in-a-decade surge in electricity demand this summer and that could mean blackouts and power outages.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), Michael Gatt said recently, “This year’s summer forecast is for hot and dry El Niño conditions, increasing the risk of bushfires and extreme heat, which could see electricity demand reach a 1-in-10-year high across the eastern states and in Western Australia.
“The entire industry has been focusing and continues to focus on managing possible risks for the summer ahead, particularly during high demand periods.”
Making things worse, storms, like we saw across the country this week.
So what can we do about it as members of the public? The easiest way to handle power outages is buying portable, rechargeable, power stations. Battery technology has improved dramatically in recent years making portable power stations more powerful and reliable. They aren’t just for camping … they are THE SIMPLEST SOLUTION to overcoming blackouts and power outages.
As I explained in the video above on Sky News, I made use of EcoFlow power stations during the week after the power was cut in our suburb. We received about ten minutes notice so it gave me a chance to set a few of the newer units up for ‘real world’ testing.
You can power everything from your TV to your fridge – or your whole home at once. If you have something that is vital to keep running – find out how much power it draws – then match it with the appropriate power station.
“”So forget the candles, get a power station instead. “
Then, if you leave it plugged in all the time, not only will your power station keep your fridge running for days (depending on fridge and power station) it will automatically cut in when the power goes out. It does it so fast the TV doesn’t even notice. It essentially behaves like an UPS or uninterruptable power supply.
The NBN is likely to go dark as well during a power outage, even if you supply power to the modem and router. Staying online should be as simple as using you smartphone of 5G modem. But this may also have issues.
In this scenario, satellite backup is a fantastic option. I would recommend Starlink’s Roaming service. The hardware costs A$599 and monthly subscription A$174. The great thing about this plan is its ‘pause’ option. So after setting it up, you can pause the plan between trips across Australia. As summer begins, reactivate, just in case of blackouts.
Starlink will run for days on larger power stations. So forget the candles, get a power station instead.