South Australia’s ludicrous attempt to run on sunshine and breezes has rendered it an international laughing stock.  Daily, routine, total and totally unpredictable collapses in wind power output result in price gouging efforts that see the spot price for power rocket from around $70 per MWh to $2,000 to $4,000 per MWh, in a matter of minutes and, on plenty of occasions, zipping all the way to the regulated market price cap of $14,000 per MWh.

Businesses and households bear the ultimate brunt: back in July, SA’s biggest miner, BHP Billiton paid $2.57 million in a single day for power that would normally cost them around $250,000, during yet another total wind power output collapse (see our post here).

Understandably, businesses like BHP, Nyrstar and Arrium are furious about the opportunists cashing in and have taken their, justifiable, complaints to Australia’s competition regulator, the ACCC.  But, to no avail. …