Seasonal determination - 1 March 2019

Friday 1 March, 2019

The northern Victoria Resource Manager today updated 2018/19 seasonal determinations.

The Goulburn system and the Loddon system increase from 96 per cent high-reliability water shares (HRWS) to 98 per cent HRWS.

The seasonal determination in the Broken system increases from 33 per cent HRWS to 34 per cent HRWS.

The Murray and Campaspe systems remain at 100 per cent HRWS and the Bullarook system remains at 100 per cent HRWS and 100 per cent of low‑reliability water shares (LRWS).

Resource Manager Mark Bailey said recent cooler weather had led to the small increases in seasonal determinations.

“The cooler temperatures throughout February have reduced operating losses across the systems,” Dr Bailey said.

“This has increased the volumes of water available to allocate in the Goulburn, Loddon and Broken systems.”

Dr Bailey noted the climate outlooks for rainfall over the next three months favoured drier conditions.

“The latest Bureau of Meteorology seasonal outlook indicates the chance of receiving above average rainfall during the March to May period is between 20 and 35 per cent but accuracy for this period is low,” Dr Bailey said.

Dr Bailey urged water users to continue planning their water needs carefully.

“Websites such as the Resource Manager ( www.nvrm.net.au ), the Victorian Water Register ( www.waterregister.vic.gov.au ) and the Murray-Darling Basin Authority ( www.mdba.gov.au ) provide information about water trends and availability, which can help users plan their use," he said.

Water System High-Reliability Water Share Low-Reliability Water Share
The seasonal determinations for northern Victorian water systems on Friday, March 1.
Murray 100% 0%
Broken 34% 0%
Goulburn 98% 0%
Campaspe 100% 0%
Loddon 98% 0%
Bullarook 100% 100%

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.

The Goulburn system’s inter-valley trade (IVT) account owes about 140 GL to the Murray system. The Goulburn, Campaspe and Loddon systems can trade to the Victorian Murray system, New South Wales and South Australia while the total volume owed to the Murray system is less than 200 GL. Deliveries of Goulburn system IVT to support Murray system operations are planned to continue into March. Information on IVT deliveries is available on the Goulburn-Murray Water website.

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.

Customers participating in the water trading market can monitor trade availability on the Water Register website. Additional information about how trade opportunities are calculated is available on the allocation trading page allocation trading page.

The Murray-Darling Basin Authority is restricting trade of water allocations from above the Barmah Choke to downstream of the Choke to protect the delivery of downstream water entitlements. Customers can monitor trading opportunities across the Barmah Choke on the Authority’s website Authority's website.

Upcoming Resource Manager announcements

  • The next 2018/19 seasonal determination announcement will be released on Friday March 15, 2019.