Already a subscriber?High costs and uncertainty about recovering those costs have stalled investment in cleaner generation capacity, meaning the vast task of the energy transition is getting harder rather than easier despite policy measures to help it along, according to Alinta Energy CEO Jeff Dimery.
Mr Dimery used an address to the National Press Club in Canberra to call for an honest conversation and public debate about the cost of the transition for consumers, saying it was inevitable they would have to pay more given rising capital costs, labour costs and transmission costs. The comments reflect the situation in Victoria late last year, when rooftop solar met the majority of electricity demand some days, sending wholesale prices diving into negative territory andMr Dimery said at existing wholesale power prices of about $58 a megawatt-hour, “I can’t build anything to meaningfully prepare for coal to come out of the system”.
He also rejected the common belief that electricity retailers have made super-profits from the big increases in prices over the past two years, pointing to competition regulator figures showing that retail margins are down to record lows. The average retail margin on a $1500 annual household power bill is $34, with most of the cost coming from network fees and charges and wholesale power.