Ben Fordham accuses Anthony Albanese of 'another broken promise'
Gas price cap surpassed for two straight monthsPrice is sometimes 33 per cent higher than cap READ MORE: Peter Dutton hits back at 'weak and rattled' Anthony Albanese after the PM's climate wars attackPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has been accused of 'another broken promise' because the government imposed cap on gas prices has been surpassed for two straight months.
Gas price cap surpassed for two straight monthsPrice is sometimes 33 per cent higher than cap READ MORE: Peter Dutton hits back at 'weak and rattled' Anthony Albanese after the PM's climate wars attackPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has been accused of 'another broken promise' because the government imposed cap on gas prices has been surpassed for two straight months.
On December 9, 2022, when he announced the price cap, Mr Albanese said 'The Commonwealth will take action on gas in putting a mandatory code of conduct in place for a temporary period of 12 months of $12 a gigajoule.'
In April 2023, the policy was extended until 2025.
In a joint statement at the time, Energy Minister Chris Bowen, Resources Minister Madeleine King and Industry Minister Ed Husic said the gas code would ensure sufficient supply of Australian gas at a reasonable price, that the $12 price cap would remain.
'The price cap is in place until at least 2025, but here we are with higher gas prices in 2024,' Fordham said.
In April, after the collapse of plastics maker Qenos due to high gas prices, Australian Industry Group chief executive Innes Willox warned that more manufacturers could go under for the same reason.
'Qenos is surely not the only industrial gas user to be unviable at these prices,' Mr Willox told theAustralian Financial Review.
'And more businesses may shrink or collapse without the local product supply and demand for goods and services that Qenos provided.'
He added that 'the long-term rise in natural gas prices eroded Qenos' competitiveness and its prospects.
Australia produces more than six times the gas it needs, but the vast majority of it is exported at far higher prices that it is sold for domestically. A gas rig is pictured©Provided by Daily Mail
'Prices rose over the past decade because of the take-off of LNG (liquefied natural gas) exports, the erosion of southern gas production, and the lack of adequate planning to manage these long-foreseen developments.'
Before LNG exports from Queensland began 10 years ago, gas prices typically ranged between $3 and $5 per gigajoule.
Australia produces more than six times the gas it needs, but the vast majority of it is exported at far higher prices that it is sold for domestically.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Albanese for comment.
Why this delay then, Solution is in your hands
waiting so long for an approval #PEP11
(20min delay)