Seasonal Determination Update

The Resource Manager for northern Victoria today announced seasonal determinations in all systems remain unchanged.

Seasonal determinations in the Murray system remain at 100 per cent high-reliability water shares (HRWS) and 5 per cent low-reliability water shares (LRWS).

Seasonal determinations in the Goulburn and Loddon systems stay at 100 per cent HRWS. The Broken, Campaspe and Bullarook systems remain at 100 per cent HRWS and 100 per cent LRWS.

Resource Manager Mark Bailey said water resource availability in all systems had not improved since the last assessment.

“The stable weather of the last four weeks meant actual Murray system inflows and losses closely matched our assumptions,” Dr Bailey said.

“Actual inflows into the Goulburn system were slightly lower than forecast. The shortfall to a seasonal determination for low-reliability water shares in 2016/17 is now about 480 gigalitres.”

Trading Opportunities

Allocation trade from New South Wales to Victoria is limited to the lesser of a net annual volume of 200 GL or a volume that keeps the risk of spill in the Murray system below 50 per cent. The current risk of spill limit allows 200 GL of net trade from New South Wales to Victoria.

Trade to the Victorian Murray system, New South Wales and South Australia from the Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon systems is restricted when the total volume owed to the Murray system is greater than 200 GL. On March 14, the volume owed to the Murray system was close to 180 GL. Further trading opportunities will be available as deliveries from the Goulburn inter-valley trade account to the Murray system are occurring. Trade from the Victorian Murray system, New South Wales and South Australia to the Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon systems will also improve trading opportunities.

The Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon systems can trade from the Victorian Murray system, New South Wales and South Australia while the total volume owed to the Murray system is greater than zero.

The volume in the Broken system’s inter-valley trade account is currently about 1,500 ML. Trade from the Broken system is allowed when the balance of this account is less than 1,500 ML. Further trading opportunities will be available as deliveries from the Broken inter-valley trade account to the Goulburn system are occurring or if backtrade occurs. Customers participating in the water trading market are reminded that allocation trading from the Broken system to other systems is only permitted from July 1 to March 31 in each water year.

Customers participating in the water trading market can monitor trade availability on the Water Register website.

The trading of water allocations from above the Barmah Choke to downstream of the Barmah Choke is restricted to protect the delivery of downstream water entitlements. Customers can monitor trading opportunities across the Barmah Choke on the Murray-Darling Basin Authority website. Trade from upstream of the Barmah Choke to downstream is restricted to backtrade, which is the volume of allocation trade from downstream of the Barmah Choke to upstream.

Upcoming Resource Manager Announcements

• The last 2016/17 seasonal determination announcement will be released on Monday 3 April, 2017.