Victoria has released a new independent report by WSP, updating estimates of water availability and perennial horticulture demands in the southern Murray-Darling Basin.
The updated report has been developed in close collaboration with the New South Wales and South Australian governments, the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, and industry experts to provide an up-to-date understanding of how horticultural water demands are changing. The new report builds on analysis released in 2019, 2020 and 2022 and provides a greater level of confidence in the projected demand estimates through improved data accuracy.
The report finds that there remains a risk of not enough water being available; this is particularly significant in both extreme and moderately dry conditions. Water users should remain mindful of increasing water competition, especially in the lower Murray.
Read more: Water supply and horticulture demand in the southern Basin – 2025 Update
The Department and Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) has released four new reports for the Victorian water market. These are:
The release of these reports continues the Victorian Government’s commitment to ensuring all water participants can easily access water market information.
The reports compliment an increased suite of online reports and dashboards. These provide downloadable data for interested parties to undertake their own analysis. Dashboards and reports include Frequent Traders, Large Water Owners, Water Share Transfers to the Australian Government and new data for delivery shares. They are available on the Victorian Water Register website.
Read more: Four new trade reports released offer insight into Victoria’s water market
The 21st edition of the Victorian Water Accounts have been released, with water use and availability data from 2023–24 now available online.
The 2023–24 Victorian Water Accounts have been released, with 21 years of data and information now available online.
The Victorian Water Accounts are a trusted and transparent source of information that provides a comprehensive picture of the availability and use of the state’s water each year.
The reports have been released annually since 2003–04 and contain valuable data gathered during significant dry and wet periods.
To improve the security and resilience of My Water and the Broker Portal, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) has planned to rollout Multiple Factor Authentication for users in the first half of 2026. This initiative strengthens cybersecurity and makes the Victorian Water Register more secure for everyone.
DEECA will provide more information for customers early next year through the Victorian Water Register news. To ensure you are kept aware of these changes, users can subscribe via the homepage at https://waterregister.vic.gov.au/.
The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action has released the Goulburn-to-Murray Post Trade Opening Report (October 2025). This report summarises the outcomes from the October Goulburn-to-Murray trade opening. It consolidates information available via the Victorian Water Register website with some additional data around the number of unique allocation accounts that traded. It provides insights into the number, volumes, and reason for trade for all applications submitted and the order they were processed.
The October Goulburn-to-Murray trade opportunity opened with a balance of 31,523 ML. A total of 203 eligible trade applications were received, with a total volume of 70,222 ML. Eligible applications were randomised to determine a processing order. Processing resulted in 98 applications being approved.
Read more: Post trade report for October 2025 Goulburn-to-Murray trade opening now available
The next Goulburn-to-Murray trade opening is scheduled for Monday 15 December 2025. Based on current estimates, a minimum of 14 gigalitres (GL) of Goulburn-to-Murray trade opportunity will be released.
The estimated minimum 14 GL of trade opportunity is an indicative volume based on the available data to date. It does not include additional opportunity that may be available on 15 December following the Northern Victorian Resource Manager’s seasonal outlook announcement at 10 am. This additional opportunity can arise due to adjustments to the Legacy Trade Reserve set aside to meet historic exchange rate trade commitments.
The Goulburn to Murray trade review Scientific Advisory Panel (the Panel) has prepared three reports, covering detailed results and analysis of the lower Goulburn River Research and Investigations Program undertaken during 2023–24, and interpretation of the outcomes over the combined three years from the start of the program (2021–24).
The program is designed to assess the environmental performance of the long-term Operating Rules for the lower Goulburn River and to determine whether the rules are working as intended to prevent environmental damage from sustained high flows over summer and autumn.
Climatic and flow conditions throughout 2021–24, including record breaking floods in spring 2022 and summer 2024, saw relatively low demand for inter-valley trade (IVT) deliveries from the Goulburn River to the River Murray during the peak irrigation period (December to April).
The Goulburn-to-Murray Trade Limit – which governs allocation trade from the Goulburn, Broken, Campaspe, and Loddon systems to the Victorian Murray system, New South Wales, and South Australia – will open again on Monday 15 December 2025. This is the third of three Goulburn-to-Murray scheduled trade openings for the 2025–26 water year. Estimated volumes will be made public closer to this date.
Customers are encouraged to lodge trade applications throughout the 7-hour submission window. Market participants are not required to submit trade applications as soon as the submission window opens. A customer who submits a trade application at the start of the submission window will have the same chance of having their application succeed as a customer who submits at the end of the window.
Earlier this year, the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) and WaterNSW developed a draft framework to assess options for improving the efficiency and equity of access to inter-valley trade opportunities. In July–August 2025 we sought feedback on whether the draft framework is appropriate and what options for managing access to trade opportunities should be assessed.
A report, summarising what we heard during the consultation, is available on Engage Victoria.
Read more: What We Heard – Improving access to trade in southern Murray-Darling Basin – Stage 1