To avoid crisis, the gas market needs a steady steer, not an emergency swerve

Rising gas costs are “the single biggest factor in the current rise in electricity prices”.

Sections of pipes are lined up ready for use in the construction of a coal seam gas pipeline.

What is most noteworthy about this statement is not the fact that it is true, but that it was made by Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, many of whose party colleagues remain convinced that renewable energy is the real bogeyman.

Turnbull’s comments were made in response to a report released this week by the Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), which yet again warns of impending gas shortages.

I argue below that renewables are a solution to the problem, rather than its cause. But first, is there actually a gas crisis?

Read the piece on The Conversation by the Emeritus Professor of Sociology, Australian National University, Andrew Hopkins -  “To avoid crisis, the gas market needs a steady steer, not an emergency swerve.”