Australian power prices compared to poor countries is OK as salaries and Government handouts are much higher in Australia.
However the problem due to real energy cost ie cost in US$ /kWh then Australia's high energy cost when compared to other countries who we compete with means that we cannot compete in manufacturing or production.
For example Australia cannot produce high energy products due to high cost of power, ie take silicon metal which is used to make solar panels. It takes 12,000 to 14,000 kWh to produce one tonne of silicon. In Malaysia where power cost for OM Holdings a large alloy smelter in Sarawak, the cost of power is US$0.025/kWh so it costs US$350/ tonne for energy. In Australia the cost would be US$3,500/tonne for the power requirement.
Therefore Australia is uncompetitive and must buy from China or Malaysia.
So the heading of this post discussion thread is absolute drivel when it comes down to reality of doing business in the world.
