The national energy market is an abject failure - it's time for a publicly owned grid

Microeconomic reform has failed in every part of the supply system and it needs to be redesigned from the ground upThe recent proposal by the Greens for the establishment of a publicly owned electricity retailer is the latest of a series in which proposals for renewed public intervention have emerged across the political spectrum. The Queensland Labor government has committed to the establishment of a publicly owned renewable electricity generator, to be called CleanCo. At the federal level, the Labor leader, Bill Shorten, has repeatedly stated that electricity privatisation was a mistake. The LNP government is still committed to the Snowy 2.0 hydro scheme, while the climate denialist faction wants public money for a new coal-fired power station.This renewed appetite for public ownership is accompanied by general recognition that the national electricity market has been a complete failure. As I discuss in my contribution to a new book, Wrong Way, How Privatisation and Economic Reform Backfire, microeconomic reform has failed in every part of the electricity supply system. Continue reading...