AND HERE'S WHY!
- The wholesale price of electricity – the price that your electricity company buys electricity to sell to you- is based largely based on what is used to generate the electricity at the time it is purchased.
- The electricity wholesale price changes constantly depending on how the electricity is produced AND THE COST OF PRODUCING THE ELECTRICITY.
- The most expensive means to produce electricity is by increasingly failing coal-fired power stations.
- THE SECOND MOST EXPENSIVE MEANS TO PRODUCE ELECTRICITY IS BY NATURAL GAS! This is partly because of the cost of extraction BUT ALSO BECAUSE THE PRICE OF GAS IUSED IN AUSTRALIA IS GOVERNED BY THE PRICE OF GAS BEING EXPORTED TO OVERSEAS MARKETS! – very little to do with demand and supply within Australia.
- The cost of producing electricity through renewable energy – solar, wind and hydro (and [possibly ocean) is the cheapest of all! – sometimes in fact a negative price!
- The more electricity produced by renewable energies at any moment the cheaper will be the cost of wholesale electricity – and the cost of the electricity you use!
- The greater amount of gas and coal in the energy mix being used to produce your electricity the higher the cost!
- This is why increasing the dependence on gas to produce the electricity you use has the possible effect of higher – not less- energy prices!
- Our cheapest electricity is produced by renewable energies! - solar and wind!
- Consensus by energy analysts worldwide = THE CHEAPEST ENERGY FOR AUSTRALIA AND ACROSS THE WORLD IS ROOFTOP SOLAR AND WIND GENERATED (and possibly ocean currents!) PLUS LARGE BATTERY STORAGE.
A CAUTIONARY ECONOMIC TALE!!
*Economics 101 = Increasing supply IF DEMAND and ALL OTHER CONDITIONS REMAIN THE SAME generally should lead to lower prices in an UNCONTROLLED market. BUT – with lower prices demand may well increase driving prices upwards!
AND NOW LET’s ADVANCE TO ---
*Economics 301 = When the market is controlled by external forces (e.g., gas supply controlled by international companies with export contract amounts and prices already negotiated; state governments who do not approve new gas projects/actively engaged in laws for the disconnection of gas energy; domestic gas prices controlled by international export gas prices; the costs of mining and extraction of gas increasing etc
THEN
Increasing domestic supply [if that is even possible] DOES NOT GUARANTEE A DECREASE IN THE PRICE OF GAS TO DOMESTIC CONSUMERS! Your energy bill might even increase!
‘ELECTRIFY EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE WITH RENEWABLY PRODUCED ENERGY AND LARGE BATTERY STORAGE – THAT’S THE SOLUTION FOR REDUCED ENERGY BILLS & COST OF LIVING!