Bazz,

I don't actually like AGL. In SA it used to be the government owned ETSA, until an incompetent premier, John Olsen, sold it off to a Chinaman who is now the 15th richest person in the world, to pay off government debt. There was no choice. None of this now BS artificial 'competition’. Electricity was an essential utility, and reasonably priced. Eventually, of course, some bureaucrat conned the idiot political class into turning an essential service into a money-making concern for rich people to make more money - bloody foreigners at that!

However, the real reasons for ridiculously high power prices in Australia are government incompetence and the climate change/unreliable alternatives to coal power scams. The only way out is to return power (and all essential services) to public ownership. I'm all for private enterprise in consumer goods and services, but selling off essential services to dodgy businessmen is reckless and bordering on criminal. Governments have no business selling off that which belongs to the people.

It is hard these days to pick which group of crooks is the most dangerous: the political class or big business

// We have used more air conditioning, this year as the hot spell came in earlier than last year.//

hasy could you be suffering from global warming.

Here in Victoria we have the highest churn rate of any state, that is people shopping around and switching providers, with over a quarter of us changing each year. It was claimed to be the highest in the world.

Not only that in other states the top 3 retailers have over 75% of the market share but here in Victoria it is about 60%.

Added to that we are lucky to have one of the more progressive state governments. Last year they introduced a $50 cash incentive for people to compare their bills and created an “independent Victorian Government energy price comparison site” for them to do so without any kickbacks involved, something that plagues many of the other comparison sites.

As a Victorian Foxy if you haven't done so already it takes about 20 minutes and at $50 it is worth the time.
http://compare.energy.vic.gov.au/start

If we have to have a competitive market for our electricity then the worst thing you can do is sit on your hands and say it is all too hard to compare providers. Granted the bastards make it difficult sometimes but it is worth the exercise and it is the intelligent thing to do.

hasy could you be suffering from global warming.

Posted by Paul1405, Monday, 17 December 2018 8:02:18 AM.

No Paul, as I said the warm spell came early this year. But to spoil your hopes, it then got colder. It is so cool this year that I haven't even taken the cover off the swimming pool.

Dear Paul,

Old Hasbeen's right. This year's highest November temperature in his neck of the woods this year was only 7th highest since the station's records starting from the mid 50s.

It was in 2016 that all November records for 60 years were smashed with a 38.6 degree day.

That wasn't all. In the same year the both June and July took out the highest records for each particular month as well.

And then last year January, March and September also blew away previous records from the last 6 decades.

So the previous two years saw six of the highest temperatures recorded in a particular month since records began at the weather station.

Apparently nothing to worry about really.

Actually Steele there is significant co-incidence in that many days
have zero sunspot numbers. Radio HF conditions have been terrible for
several years now. It was nothing like this in the 50s & 60s even
during the lows of the 11 year cycle.
This low count was common during the Maunder Minimum.
Commentary on TV recently said that scientists have connected low
sunspot counts with Solar cooling.
Perhaps we should burn more coal !