More than 2000 megawatts of coal power are set to come back online within 10 days and more gas-fired electricity will enter the grid by the end of the year as generators scramble to avoid a repeat of this week’s narrow escape from blackouts in NSW during a pre-summer heatwave.

Origin Energy is due to turn on one 720-megawatt unit at its huge Eraring coal power station on NSW’s Central Coast at the weekend after major planned maintenance over the past 11 weeks. AGL is aiming for Saturday to get a 660-megawatt unit back online at its Bayswater plant, which suffered an unexpected breakdown last week, and December 8 for another unit at the Hunter Valley site.