On Thu, 08 Aug 2024 16:26:01 +1200, Mutley <
[email protected]>
wrote:
Rich80105 <[email protected]> wrote:
On 7 Aug 2024 23:04:44 GMT, Gordon <[email protected]> wrote:
https://www.thepost.co.nz/politics/350370759/new-zealands-sovereign-risk-gas-bill-comes-due
This is worth while reading as it sets out the history/reasons of how this >>>power situation arose.
Behind a paywall so I could not see it.
I read it ok and not a subscriber.
I suspect you saw it through another avenue than the url given above
then.
Radio NZ had an interesting interview with someone from Electric Kiwi:
https://www.rnz.co.nz/programmes/news-bulletin-podcast/story/2018950335/rnz-news-at-5pm-august-8
The reality is that the system is working exactly as was intended in
the Bradford Reforms of a previous National
For a blast from the past: "Lower prices and a real choice of who
supplies your electricity � that's what the Coalition Government's
electricity reforms are all about,� Bradford said in a 1998 government
press release.�
and that is from:
https://www.consumer.org.nz/articles/the-bradford-reforms-25-years-on#article-electricity-prices-have-continued-to-go-up
also from that article (from August last year):
"Letting the power generators also be retailers enables them to
maintain a stranglehold on the market, because the other independent
retailers have to buy electricity on the wholesale market from the
gentailers, who they are also competing against.
This is a fundamental flaw in the electricity market structure.�It
makes it very hard for independent retailers to make inroads. The flaw
serves to lower competition, which reduces innovation and increases
prices."
The reality is that under law the Directors (and that includes the
Government appointed directors) are required to maximise value to
shareholders - those who were sold the shares cheaply by the National
Party government.
And as the Electric Kiwi person said, they have resource consents for
a number of large new generation projects, but have not started work
on many of them - it is in the interests of shareholders to play
chicken with shortages and use of coal - whenever they manage to
create a crisis the price for all of the generating companies goes up!
- and surprise surprise profits rise!
The current government knows that the system worked for them beyond
their wildest dreams - corporate sponsorship of the parties of the
right can now itself be regarded as a safe investment! So they lie to
the public, but reality is starting to intrude. Watch for faux
outrage, lies that the government can renege on contracts without any penalties, and behind the scenes they will try to get through a plea
to keep the gravy train going by not being quite as obvious . . .
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
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