New retailers pushing power prices down more than government

Competition from a new major energy company is driving down power prices faster than regulatory bodies according to analysts, but governments are unlikely to abandon plans to reform the gas and electricity market.

More consumer choice in the market is having a greater impact on power prices.

Perth-based energy company Alinta expanded into the east coast energy market with the billion dollar acquisition of Victorian coal-fired power station Loy Yang B late last year, and its aggressive growth strategy is being seen in the market as one of the major drivers of lower power bills.

“Alinta is doing more for lowering electricity costs on the east coast than anything the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission will do,” Wood Mackenzie principal lead for oil and gas, Saul Kavonic, told Fairfax Media.

Read Cole Latimer’s story in The Age - “New retailers pushing power prices down more than government.”

More solar beer as Melbourne boutique brewer installs 100kW rooftop PV

An inner Melbourne craft brewery will soon be powered by rooftop solar, with the installation of just under 100kW of PV panels set for competition at the end of February.

Local business Beon Energy Solutions said on Thursday that it was installing a 96.3kW solar system at Collingwood brewery, Stomping Ground Brewing Co, that – once completed – would generate enough power to supply 20 homes, covering the small business’s sizeable energy needs.

The project was guided by the Yarra Energy Foundation (YEF), an independent Melbourne organisation that helps households, businesses, community groups and governments make the transition to solar.

Renewable powered beer is becoming an increasingly common phenomenon, both in Australia and overseas, both for major international brewers and small, local, boutique concerns.

Read the One Step Off the Grid story by Sophie Vorrath - “More solar beer as Melbourne boutique brewer installs 100kW rooftop PV.”

Energy cartel laws waived by ACCC for food processors desperate to reduce costs

In the face of skyrocketing energy prices, Australia's competition regulator the ACCC is allowing a group of agribusinesses to jointly buy electricity and gas across an 11-year period.

ACCC allows energy-intensive food processors to
jointly tender to bring down electricity and gas prices.

Laws prohibit this type of cartel behaviour, but an exemption is granted if the benefit outweighs the detriment to the public.

Eight businesses have so far joined the Eastern Energy Buyers Group, including the large Rivalea pig farm, Australian Lamb Company, CSF Proteins, Diamond Valley Pork, Gathercole Group, Greenham and Sons, MC Herd Pty Ltd, Ridley Agripoducts, and Turi Foods and Farming.

One lamb processor told the ABC the plant's energy costs have skyrocketed this year alone, despite investments in solar power.

Read the ABC News story - “Energy cartel laws waived by ACCC for food processors desperate to reduce costs.”

‘Held to ransom': Esso-BHP gas production drop to be examined by ACCC

The competition watchdog will demand ESSO and BHP Billiton explain in more detail why gas supplies from its Bass Strait joint venture will decline sharply next year amid concerns the nation is "being held to ransom”.

Under scrutiny: A big drop in expected gas
 supplies from the Bass Strait has the ACCC
drilling for more information.

There are also calls for acting resources minister Barnaby Joyce to make public a study into offshore gas resources he has had for more than a month that could shed light on the venture's future.

The Turnbull government has so far blamed soaring gas prices on governments in Victoria and NSW for blocking or stalling on new gasfields, and in Queensland for allowing excessive LNG exports.

But by far the biggest contributor to the projected national shortfall of 55-108 petajoules of gas in 2018 will be the 86pj drop from the Esso-BHP's record output of 330pj  this year, according to a recent  Australian Competition and Consumer Commission report.

Read Peter Hannam’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “‘Held to ransom': Esso-BHP gas production drop to be examined by ACCC.”

No country for coal gen – Below 2°C and regulatory risk for US coal power owners

Coal’s market share in the US power mix is being diminished at an unprecedented rate due to fierce competition from cheap gas and renewables. 

Around 30 GW of coal capacity has been retired over the last three years, with coal generation declining by 13% over the same period. 

The economics of US coal power could not be starker: new coal capacity is not remotely competitive, while in the next few years it will be the exception rather than the rule for the operating cost of existing coal to be lower than the levelized cost of new gas and renewables.

Read the Carbon Tracker story - “No country for coal gen – Below 2°C and regulatory risk for US coal power owners.”

Open energy markets failing households.

Opening up the electricity market to competition may have been touted by government as paving the way for lower bills, but many households have refused to take part, which has resulted in only a modest number of families nationwide chasing cheaper power suppliers.

At the same time, households say that the value for money of their electricity services ranks behind gas and all other utility services, including banking, mobile phones and internet services, said Rosemary Sinclair, the chief executive of the government-backed Energy Consumers Australia.

Read Brian Robins’ story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Open energy markets failing households.”

Low cost of intellectual property helps cut costs of renewable energy

Plummeting costs for renewable energy have finally made solar and wind a viable alternative to fossil fuels. But what’s responsible for the drop in price? Technological innovation and expanded manufacturing share some of the blame, but less examined is the low cost of intellectual property.

According to a report from the International Center of Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD), “the basic approaches to solving the specific [clean energy] technological problems have long been off-patent. What are usually patented are specific improvements or features.” Competition between sellers brings the price of these components “down to a point at which royalties and the price increases available with a monopoly are reduced.”

Read the ClimateProgress story - “The Little-Known Reason Renewable Prices Are Dropping.”