Rulemaker warns current 'patchwork' of policies won't fix power prices

The energy market rule maker has slammed the government’s "patchwork" approach to policy, warning a focus on short term fixes was undermining the prospect of lasting solutions to high power prices.

PM Scott Morrison has hitched his wagon to "fair dinkum" power.

The Australian Energy Market Commission's submission to a senate inquiry into the federal government’s so-called Fair Dinkum Energy policy, released on Friday, offers a withering assessment of the state of play.

The government's policy proposals include a regulated basic electricity price for households and the power to break up companies found to be behaving poorly in the market.

It unveiled the policies after ditching the National Energy Guarantee, which enjoyed widespread support from many stakeholders, and in the wake of an Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s electricity review which found the energy market was ‘broken’ and not operating in customers interest.

Read the story from The Age by Cole Latimer - “Rulemaker warns current 'patchwork' of policies won't fix power prices.”

Josh Frydenberg hints the government could back away from clean energy target

The Turnbull government is hinting that the rapidly declining cost of renewable energy is undermining the case for further clean-energy subsidies, as it maintains it will make a decision on a clean energy target in coming months.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull with Minister
Josh Frydenberg at Parliament House in Canberra.

In a speech to the Australian Financial Review's National Energy Summit in Sydney on Monday, Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg has emphasised the "declining cost curve" for wind, solar and renewables storage.

"Globally in the past seven years, the cost of wind-powered generation has more than halved. Domestically, solar PV costs have dropped more than 50 per cent," he said.

"By 2020, costs of battery technologies are expected to fall 40 to 60 per cent and over 70 per cent to 2030.

Read Adam Gartrell’s story in today’s Melbourne Age - “Josh Frydenberg hints the government could back away from clean energy target.”