Australia: Power cuts, bigger bills on the way

Buy candles. Pray for more rain. And hope for good snow this winter

THE water shortage across eastern Australia is now so acute it has begun to affect power supplies, and the country is at risk of electricity shortages next year.

“I think we are in denial, and are going to have brownouts in NSW if we don’t get snow this winter,” a source within the electricity market told the Herald.


Coal and hydro power generation require very large amounts of water, and the Snowy scheme depends on it for 86 per cent of its generation capacity.

“Last year we had the lowest snowfall ever recorded. If this happens again we are in trouble,” the source said. He declined to be named because electricity pricing and supply is a politically charged subject.

Prices are already tipped to double in South Australia.

Sydney Morning Herald